Table 2.

Sources of extraneous cognitive load potentially relevant to Guzheng instruction.

Source	Illustrative Guzheng manifestation	Potential cognitive implication	Possible design consideration	References
Split attention	Notation, fingering, and expressive cues presented separately; score and demonstration shown in disconnected formats	Students might have to mentally combine different sources of information, which could add unnecessary processing loads	Put the notation and fingerings closer together; match up the score display with the most applicable demonstration sections as appropriate	Sweller et al. (2019); Skulmowski and Xu (2022); Mirza et al. (2019); Trypke et al. (2023)
Attention switching	Learners alternate among teacher movement, verbal explanation, notation, and sound	Repetitive switching can lower the efficiency of processing and make delicate perceptual coordination harder, in particular, when dealing with novices	Sequence demonstrations more selectively; avoid concurrent overload from multiple competing streams	Skulmowski and Xu (2022); Elchlepp et al. (2021); Baumeler et al. (2020); Haavisto et al. (2023)
Redundancy	Similar information repeated across video, narration, text, and annotation	Duplicate processing may increase unnecessary load, particularly when the same channel is repeatedly burdened	Reduce non-essential repetition; avoid text-heavy overlays during visually demanding demonstrations	Sweller et al. (2019); Mirza et al. (2019); Trypke et al. (2023); Kalyuga Slava et al. (2004); Bayraktar et al. (2024); Curum Brita and Khedo Kavi Kumar (2021); Wan et al. (2023)
Poor digital coordination	Multiple windows, excessive prompts, dense overlays, or unnecessarily complex interfaces	Interface management may compete with musical learning and weaken attentional focus	Design for clarity, restraint, and better coordination of information flow across digital resources	Skulmowski and Xu (2022); Curum Brita and Khedo Kavi Kumar (2021); Hawthorne et al. (2019)

This table summarizes sources of extraneous cognitive load that may be relevant to Guzheng instruction. The implications should be interpreted cautiously. Several entries are supported mainly by broader cognitive load and digital-learning research rather than direct Guzheng-specific evidence. The design considerations are therefore theoretically informed and require domain-specific validation.