Designing E-Learning for Life Skills Education in Primary School: A Cognitive Science-Based Instructional Framework

The expansion of digital learning has created new opportunities for primary education, but the pedagogical design of online learning for life skills remains insufficiently specified. This conceptual design study develops a cognitive science-based framework for designing e-learning lessons that support life skills education for primary school students. The study integrates research on life skills education, K–12 online learning, cognitive load theory, working memory, dual-coding and multimedia learning, learner engagement, and technology-supported learning. The analysis indicates that the instructional value of e- learning depends less on the presence of digital technology than on the alignment among learning outcomes, age-appropriate content, multimedia presentation, learner activity, interaction, and assessment. On this basis, a seven-component instructional framework is proposed: learning outcomes, content sequencing, multimedia resources, learning activities, interaction and support, assessment, and learner reflection and transfer. The framework is operationalized through an eight-stage lesson design process and a three-level assessment structure that moves from recognition to guided application and authentic transfer. Particular attention is given to the cognitive characteristics of primary learners: limited working- memory capacity, the need for contextualized examples, gradual scaffolding, and opportunities to connect digital learning with real-life action. The proposed framework contributes a theoretically grounded design model for life skills education in e-learning environments and provides a basis for subsequent empirical validation in primary schools.