Cognitive psychology researcher, known for his role in introducing Cognitive load theory.
He’s part of the big flame war against Constructivism (Kirschner, P. A., Sweller, J., & Clark, R. E. (2006). Why Minimal Guidance During Instruction Does Not Work: An Analysis of the Failure of Constructivist, Discovery, Problem-Based, Experiential, and Inquiry-Based Teaching. Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 75–86)
And he’s suggested that the Testing effect has limited application for complex material: van Gog, T., & Sweller, J. (2015). Not New, but Nearly Forgotten: The Testing Effect Decreases or even Disappears as the Complexity of Learning Materials Increases. Educational Psychology Review, 27(2), 247–264, contra Jeffrey Karpicke and others.
Q. How was I introduced to the work of John Sweller?
A. Worked example effect and Cognitive load theory literature.