Dr Juan C Castro Alonso

Dr Juan C Castro Alonso

School of Education
Assistant Professor in Educational Psychology

Contact details

Email
j.castroalonso@bham.ac.uk
Twitter
@DrCrisCastro
View my research portal
Address
School of Education
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
UK

Juan Cristobal Castro-Alonso (Dr Cris Castro) is a Biochemist, Master’s in Communication and Education, and PhD in Education. He is principal investigator and collaborator in research projects about educational psychology, cognitive science, STEM education, and multimedia learning. He has a proven record in quantitative experimental design, data processing, and statistical analyses. Dr Cris Castro is editor in the prestigious international journals Educational Psychology Review, PLOS ONE, Frontiers in Psychology, and Educational and Developmental Psychologist. He has edited and coauthored the book “Visuospatial processing for education in health and natural sciences” (2019, Springer), and has published more than 30 journal articles and book chapters.

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Qualifications

  • PhD in Education, University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia, 2013
  • Master’s in Communication and Education, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile, 2006
  • Graduate Diploma in Audiovisual Documentary Writing, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile, 2003
  • Bachelor of Biochemistry, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile, 2002

Biography

Dr Juan Cristobal Castro-Alonso (Cris Castro) is a Biochemist, Master’s in Communication and Education, and PhD in Education. He is principal investigator and collaborator in research projects about educational psychology, cognitive science, STEM education, and multimedia learning. He has a proven record in quantitative experimental design, data processing, and statistical analyses. Dr Cris Castro is editor in the prestigious international journals Educational Psychology Review, PLOS ONE, Frontiers in Psychology, and Educational and Developmental Psychologist. He has edited and coauthored the book “Visuospatial processing for education in health and natural sciences” (2019, Springer), and has published more than 30 journal articles and book chapters.

Teaching

  • Undergraduate courses “Introduction to Cognitive Psychology” and “Social Psychology and Learning”, 2022 
  • Undergraduate courses “Cognitive Psychology” and “Contemporary Issues in Education”, 2023

Postgraduate supervision

Cognitive load theory
Multimedia learning
Science education
Working memory and visuospatial processing
Embodied cognition
Gender differences

Other activities

  • Research consultant for the Explora Program of School Research and Innovation. Ministry of Science, Technology, Knowledge, and Innovation (Chile), 2020-2021
  • Educational and science consultant for the project CORFO 17ITE2.88850 granted to the international multimedia company Lab4U, 2018-2019
  • Educational and science consultant for the project CORFO 16PES-66152 granted to the international multimedia company Lab4U, 2017
  • International Professional Memberships in International Cognitive Load Theory Association (ICLTA), European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLI), American Educational Research Association (AERA), American Psychological Association (APA), and European Society for Cognitive Psychology (ESCOP)

Publications

Recent publications

Article

Castro-Alonso, JC, Hidalgo, AA & Sweller, J 2024, 'Biological evolution and human cognition are analogous information processing systems', Frontiers in Psychology, vol. 14, 1330345. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1330345

Hanham, J, Castro Alonso, C & Chen, O 2023, 'Integrating cognitive load theory with other theories, within and beyond educational psychology', British Journal of Educational Psychology, vol. 93, no. Suppl. 2, pp. 239-250. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12612

Chen, O, Retnowati, E, Castro-Alonso, JC, Paas, F & Sweller, J 2023, 'The relationship between interleaving and variability effects: A cognitive load theory perspective', Education Sciences, vol. 13, no. 11, 1138. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13111138

Carreño, MJ, Castro-Alonso, JC & Gallardo, MJ 2022, 'Interest in physics after experimental activities with a mobile application: gender differences', International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, vol. 20, no. 8, pp. 1841-1857. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10763-021-10228-4

Sepp, S, Wong, M, Hoogerheide, V & Castro-Alonso, JC 2022, 'Shifting online: 12 tips for online teaching derived from contemporary educational psychology research', Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, vol. 38, no. 5, pp. 1304-1320. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcal.12715

Castro-Alonso, JC, Wong, RM, Adesope, OO & Paas, F 2021, 'Effectiveness of multimedia pedagogical agents predicted by diverse theories: a meta-analysis', Educational Psychology Review, vol. 33, no. 3, pp. 989-1015. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-020-09587-1

Castro-Alonso, JC, de Koning, BB, Fiorella, L & Paas, F 2021, 'Five strategies for optimizing instructional materials: instructor- and learner-managed cognitive load', Educational Psychology Review, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 1379-1407. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-021-09606-9

Castro-Alonso, JC & de Koning, BB 2020, 'Latest trends to optimize computer-based learning: Guidelines from cognitive load theory', Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 112, 106458. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2020.106458

Chapter

Castro-Alonso, JC & Sweller, J 2021, The modality principle in multimedia learning. in RE Mayer & L Fiorella (eds), The Cambridge handbook of multimedia learning. 3rd edn, Cambridge Handbooks in Psychology, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, pp. 261-267. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108894333.026

Ayres, P, Castro-Alonso, JC, Wong, M, Marcus, N & Paas, F 2020, Factors that impact on the effectiveness of instructional animations. in S Tindall-Ford, S Agostinho & J Sweller (eds), Advances in cognitive load theory: Rethinking teaching. Routledge, London, UK, pp. 180-193. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429283895-15

Wong, M, Castro-Alonso, JC, Ayres, P & Paas, F 2020, The effects of transient information and element interactivity on learning from instructional animations. in S Tindall-Ford, S Agostinho & J Sweller (eds), Advances in cognitive load theory: Rethinking teaching. Routledge, London, UK, pp. 80-88. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429283895-7

Castro-Alonso, JC & Sweller, J 2020, The modality effect of cognitive load theory. in W Karwowski, T Ahram & S Nazir (eds), Advances in human factors in training, education, and learning sciences: Proceedings of the AHFE 2019 International Conference on Human Factors in Training, Education, and Learning Sciences. Springer, Cham, Switzerland, pp. 75-84. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20135-7_7

Castro-Alonso, JC, Ayres, P, Wong, M & Paas, F 2020, Visuospatial tests and multimedia learning: The importance of employing relevant instruments. in S Tindall-Ford, S Agostinho & J Sweller (eds), Advances in cognitive load theory: Rethinking teaching. Routledge, London, UK, pp. 89-99. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780429283895-8

Review article

Castro-Alonso, JC, Ayres, P, Zhang, S, de Koning, BB & Paas, F 2024, 'Research avenues supporting embodied cognition in learning and instruction', Educational Psychology Review, vol. 36, no. 1, 10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-024-09847-4

Goycolea, R, Castro-Alonso, JC & Dörr, A 2021, 'Visuospatial processing decline due to cannabis consumption in nondependent high school students', Educational Psychology Review, vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 619-635. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-020-09564-8

View all publications in research portal