Does visualization affect monitoring accuracy,restudy choice,and comprehension scores of students in primary education?

In the present study, we investigated how 116 fourth and fifth grade students’ monitoring skills were associated with restudy choices and explored whether drawing was a useful intervention to improve monitoring accuracy, restudy choice, and comprehension scores. During the first session, all students read a text, judged their learning of the information within that text, selected paragraphs to reread, reread those parts, and then made another judgment of learning (JOL) before doing a post-test. Several significant correlations were found between the various variables involved, such as higher JOLs before rereading related to fewer paragraphs being reread, and JOL-accuracy after rereading was positively correlated with the scores on the postreading questions. For the second session, students were split-up into three conditions: a control condition and two drawing conditions. In the long-drawing condition, students were allowed to draw throughout the whole second session, including post-test. In the brief-drawing condition participants only got to draw the first time they read the second text. We did not find significant differences on the postreading scores. The only differences we found were that the participants in the long drawing group were more accurate in their JOLs before rereading and selected more paragraphs to reread than the other two groups, and invested more mental effort in comparison to the other groups. Drawing more elements was positively correlated with the posttest scores and JOLs, whereas drawing more details was negatively correlated with posttest scores and did not correlate with JOLs. As students in the long drawing condition drew both more elements but also created more detail in those drawings compared to the short drawing condition, it is possible that the beneficial effects of creating drawings were cancelled out by the negative effects.     

The ontologies of complexity and learning about complex systems

This paper discusses a study of students learning core conceptual perspectives from recent scientific research on complexity using a hypermedia learning environment in which different types of scaffolding were provided. Three comparison groups used a hypermedia system with agent-based models and scaffolds for problem-based learning activities that varied in terms of the types of text based scaffolds that were provided related to a set of complex systems concepts. Although significant declarative knowledge gains were found for the main experimental treatment in which the students received the most scaffolding, there were no significant differences amongst the three groups in terms of the more cognitively demanding performance on problem solving tasks. However, it was found across all groups that the students who enriched their ontologies about how complex systems function performed at a significantly higher level on transfer problem solving tasks in the posttest. It is proposed that the combination of interactive representational scaffolds associated with NetLogo agent-based models in complex systems cases and problem solving scaffolding allowed participants to abstract ontological dimensions about how systems of this type function that, in turn, was associated with the higher performance on the problem solving transfer tasks. Theoretical and design implications for learning about complex systems are discussed.     

Do drawing tasks improve monitoring and control during learning from text?

In two experiments it was investigated how drawing as a monitoring task affects self-regulated learning and cognitive load. To this end, participants (Exp. 1: N = 73, Exp. 2: N = 69) were randomly assigned to one of two conditions. In the experimental condition, students were asked to read an expository text on the formation of polar lights consisting of five paragraphs, whereby, after each paragraph, they had to create a drawing of the text's content. In the control condition, students read the same text, but performed no drawing task. In both conditions, students had to give judgments of learning (JoLs) after each paragraph and after reading the whole text as well as rate their cognitive load. Then, they were asked to select paragraphs for restudy. In Experiment 1, participants continued with an assessment of their learning outcomes immediately after their restudy selection, whereas in Experiment 2 they were first given the opportunity to actually restudy the selected paragraphs before working on the posttest. Results of both experiments indicate that JoLs rather than cognitive load predicted posttest performance. Moreover, students in the drawing condition compared with the control condition exhibited more accurate (relative) monitoring in Experiment 1 in that their JoLs were more strongly related to performance. Moreover, JoLs predicted students' restudy decisions in both experiments; however, this effect was by-and-large independent of whether they had to draw. Overall, results hint towards the potential of drawing to support metacognitive monitoring.     

Scaffolding middle school students’ content knowledge and ill-structured problem solving in a problem-based hypermedia learning environment

This study investigated the effects of domain-general and domain-specific scaffolds with different levels of support, continuous and faded, on learning of scientific content and problem-solving. Students’ scores on a multiple-choice pretest, posttest, and four recommendation forms were analyzed. Students’ content knowledge in all conditions significantly increased from pretest to posttest. However, the continuous domain-specific condition outperformed the other conditions on the posttest. Although domain-general scaffolds were not as effective as domain-specific scaffolds on learning content and problem representation, they helped students develop solutions, make justifications, and monitor learning. Unlike domain-specific scaffolds, domain-general scaffolds helped students transfer problem-solving skills when they were faded. Several suggestions are discussed for making improvements in the design of scaffolds to facilitate ill-structured problem solving.     

Promoting and Scaffolding Elementary School Students' Attitudes Toward Science and Argumentation Through a Science and Society Intervention

This study investigated the effects of a science and society intervention on elementary school students’ argumentation skills and their attitudes toward science. One hundred and eleven fifth grade students volunteered as an experimental group to join a 12-week intervention; another 107 sixth grade students volunteered to be the comparison group. All participants completed the Student Questionnaire at the beginning and end of this study. Observation and interview results were used to triangulate and consolidate the quantitative findings. The data showed that after the intervention, the quality of the experimental group students’ arguments and their attitudes toward science were significantly higher than their comparison group counterparts. In addition, the experimental group boys made significantly greater progress in the quality of their argumentation from the pretest to posttest than the girls; and low achievers made the most significant progress in their attitudes toward science and quality of argumentation. Interviews and observations indicated that their understandings of explanation and argumentation changed over the intervention. This indicated that a science and society intervention can enhance both the ability of students to develop strong arguments and their attitudes toward science.     

The impact of orthographic connectivity on visual word recognition in Arabic: A cross-sectional study

This study aimed at assessing the effects of letters’ connectivity in Arabic on visual word recognition. For this purpose, reaction times (RTs) and accuracy scores were collected from ninety-third, sixth and ninth grade native Arabic speakers during a lexical decision task, using fully connected (Cw), partially connected (PCw) and nonconnected (NCw) Arabic words and pseudowords. Effects of grade on word recognition (in RTs and accuracy) and word superiority were predicted to occur. Also, in the third grade, recognition of NCw was predicted to be faster and more accurate than recognition of Cw, because in previous studies NCw were assumed to be visually less complex. In sixth and ninth grades, due to the frequent exposure to connected forms, the recognition of Cw was predicted to be as fast as or faster and more accurate than NCw. The findings largely supported the first and the second hypotheses. As for the third graders, a mixed pattern was obtained, suggesting that the participants were probably in a transitional phase. The results from sixth graders clearly showed that NCw yielded the slowest response times and the lowest accuracy scores across connectivity conditions. Finally, for ninth graders, the absence of connectivity effects on the speed of processing was attributed to the use of very frequent and highly automatized words.     

The Effects of Paraphrasing Interventions on Problem‐Solving Accuracy for Children at Risk for Math Disabilities

The purpose of this study was to examine effectiveness of paraphrasing interventions on mathematics word problem‐solving accuracy in third grade children (N = 72) at risk for mathematics disabilities (MD). Three instructional conditions directed students’ attention through paraphrasing, via writing, to different propositions within word problems. Students were randomly assigned to one of four intervention conditions: paraphrase question propositions (restate), paraphrase relevant propositions (relevant) and paraphrase all propositions (complete) or an untreated control. A mixed ANCOVA indicated that paraphrasing relevant and complete propositions significantly increased posttest accuracy when compared to the control and restate condition. Results from the study provide support for the effectiveness of paraphrasing interventions that directs students to restate/paraphrase propositions of mathematics word problems relative to the control condition.     

The differential effects of two self‐managed math instruction procedures: Cover,Copy, and Compare versus Copy,Cover, and Compare

This study compared the fluency and error rates produced when using the Cover, Copy, and Compare (CCC) and a modified CCC procedure (MCCC) called Copy, Cover, and Compare to complete subtraction math problems. Two second‐grade classrooms consisting of 47 total students participated in the study. The following items were administered to participants: (a) a timed pretest, (b) a timed CCC worksheet, (c) a timed MCCC worksheet, and (d) a timed posttest. Then the participants were asked which procedure they liked best. Results revealed significantly higher digits correct per minute (i.e., fluency scores) on the posttest when compared with the pretest scores. Likewise, students' fluency scores were significantly higher under the CCC condition when compared to the MCCC condition. There were no significant differences in accuracy from pretest to posttest nor between the CCC and MCCC conditions. Discussion focuses on implications for modifying instructional strategies, measuring student progress, implications for practice, and directions for future research. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The effects of a problem solving strategy on the achievement of earth science students

A review of the stated goals for education reveals a consistent emphasis on problem solving. Problem solving is compatible with the investigative nature of science and with higher order thinking. Consequently, a problem solving strategy was developed to improve the achievement of eighth grade students enrolled in earth science. The sample consisted of 287 eighth grade students randomly assigned to fourteen sections taught by four teachers. This resulted in seven control sections and seven experimental sections. The students in the treatment groups received approximately six weeks of instruction with the experimental groups receiving a variety of problem solving activities. A forty item posttest consisting of four subtests was administered to all students. The results indicate that the problem solving approach was useful in improving the overall achievement of students. It was particular effective in facilitating application of earth science subject matter. This problem solving approach appears to be a feasible strategy to use in most secondary science classrooms.     

Paraphrasing Interventions and Problem‐Solving Accuracy: Do Generative Procedures Help English Language Learners with Math Difficulties?

This randomized control treatment study investigated the role of generative paraphrasing interventions on word problem‐solving (WPS) accuracy in English language learners (ELL) who were at risk for math difficulties (MD). One hundred and forty‐two third‐grade monolingual and English language learners were randomly assigned to either an untreated control group or one of three treatment conditions: paraphrase question (Restate), paraphrase relevant information (Relevant), and paraphrase all propositions (Complete). Results showed that the relevant treatment condition improved WPS accuracy for monolingual and ELL children's accuracy relative to the control and restate condition. There were, however, no positive advantages on the transfer measures (knowledge of problem‐solving components, calculation) for ELL children with MD. In addition, the magnitude of posttest outcomes on the problem‐solving measures was substantially smaller for ELL children with MD than for children without MD. Although the results overall support the notion that generative learning improves problem‐solving accuracy, ELL children without MD are most likely to benefit from its application.     

Cognitive and Family-Support Mediators of Preschool Effectiveness: A Confirmatory Analysis

Investigated in this study were the mediators of the effects of preschool intervention on children's school achievement in sixth grade. A confirmatory structural model developed in a previous study of third graders was tested with 360 low-income, mostly black children who were available at the 3-year follow-up. The model incorporated cognitive readiness at kindergarten entry and parent involvement in school (rated by teachers and parents) as primary mediators of preschool effectiveness. In sixth grade (age 12), preschool participation at ages 3 or 4 was significantly associated with higher reading achievement, higher math achievement, and with lower incidence of grade retention. Cognitive readiness and parent involvement in school significantly mediated the estimated effects of preschool participation on school achievement and grade retention 7 years postprogram. Teacher ratings of school adjustment, school mobility, and grade retention also contributed to the transmission of effects. This integrated model fit the data better than several alternative models, including those based on the cognitive-advantage and family-support hypotheses.     

Focusing attention to deep structure in math problems: Effects on elementary education students with and without attentional deficits

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of actively categorizing math problems on the math problem solving performance of students with and without attention deficit disorder (ADD). To this purpose, 52 fifth and sixth grade students were involved in actively categorizing or noncategorizing (control) tasks followed by two problem solving activities. The results of this study indicated that students more frequently organize math problems by categories based on deeper structures (i.e., concepts or operations) when they were informed of the features to look for than students who organized math problems on their own. However, those students who actively organized the math problems and formed categories on their own had higher accuracy in an assessment of generality in a subsequent problem solving task than students who were earlier given categories. These effects were similar for both groups and provided generality to prior research on recall performance to assessing problem solving.     

The consequences of fading instructional guidance on delayed performance: the case of financial services training

Empirical studies within a cognitive load framework have determined that for novice learners, worked examples provide appropriate levels of instructional guidance. As learners advance in specific subject domains, worked examples should be gradually replaced by practice problems with limited guidance. This study compared performance, both immediately post‐instruction and delayed, following instruction under different conditions: using example–problem pairs, using gradual fading of worked examples, and using pure problem‐solving. The study was conducted with employees of a financial services company in a classroom environment. Results indicated that the fading condition consistently outperformed the example–problem and problem‐solving conditions, and the advantage of this condition was enhanced, with statistically significant differences in performance, in delayed and transfer posttest performance.     

The Effects of Combined Strategy and Attribution Training on LD Adolescents' Spelling Performance

This investigation was intended to evaluate the effects of attribution training combined with spelling strategy training on spelling performance, strategy transfer, and effort attributions. Thirty-four adolescents with learning disabilities in Grades 7 and 8 were stratified by grade level and randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions: spelling strategy training, spelling strategy plus attribution training, or a traditional study control condition. Individually administered training sessions were conducted over 3 consecutive days. Participants in the two strategy training conditions received instruction in a five-step study strategy that included explicit training for strategy transfer, whereas participants in the control condition received training in the use of traditional spelling study procedures. Spelling performance was assessed across the training days and on an unprompted general- ization task that occurred 1 week following instruction. Results indicated that significant differences occurred on spelling recall scores across the training days, favoring the strategy training condition. No performance differences emerged on numbers of words learned on the unprompted generalization task or on posttest numbers of effort attributions. Significant differences were detected on numbers of participants who employed the trained strategy independently on the unprompted task, favoring the strategy attribution condition and the strategy training condi- tions. In this study, attribution training did not result in greater spelling perfor- mance, strategy transfer, or numbers of attributions to effort. Limitations are discussed in addition to implications for future research and classroom practice.     

The effect of a human agent’s external regulation upon college students’ hypermedia learning

In this study we examined the effectiveness of self-regulated learning (SRL) and externally regulated learning (ERL) on college students’ learning about a science topic with hypermedia during a 40-min session. A total of 82 college students with little knowledge of the topic were randomly assigned either to the SRL or ERL condition. Students in the SRL condition regulated their own learning, while students in the ERL condition had access to a human tutor who facilitated their self-regulated learning. We converged product (pretest–posttest declarative knowledge and qualitative shifts in participants’ mental models) with process (think-aloud) data to examine the effectiveness of SRL versus ERL. Analysis of the declarative knowledge measures showed that the ERL condition group mean was statistically significantly higher than the group mean for the SRL condition on the labeling and flow diagram tasks. There were no statistically significant differences between groups on the matching task, but both groups showed statistically significant increases in performance. Further analyses showed that the odds of being in a higher mental model posttest group were decreased by 65% for the SRL group as compared to the ERL group. In terms of SRL behavior, participants in the SRL condition engaged in more use of selecting new information sources, re-reading, summarizing, free searching, and enacting control over the context of their learning. In comparison, the ERL participants engaged in more activation of prior knowledge, utilization of feeling of knowing and judgment of learning, monitoring their progress toward goals, drawing, hypothesizing, coordination of information sources, and expressing task difficulty. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the international conference of Artificial Intelligence in Education (AI-Ed 2007), Los Angeles, LA (July, 2007).     

Effects of Cognitive Strategy Interventions and Cognitive Moderators on Word Problem Solving in Children at Risk for Problem Solving Difficulties

This study investigated the role of strategy instruction and cognitive abilities on word problem solving accuracy in children with math difficulties (MD). Elementary school children (N = 120) with and without MD were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions: general‐heuristic (e.g., underline question sentence), visual‐schematic presentation (diagrams), general‐heuristic + visual‐schematic, and an untreated control. When compared to the control condition that included children with MD, an advantage at posttest was found for children with MD for the visual‐schematic‐alone condition on measures of problem solving and calculation accuracy, whereas all strategy conditions facilitated posttest performance in correctly identifying problem solving components. The results also suggested that strategy conditions drew upon different cognitive resources. The General‐heuristic condition drew primarily upon the executive component of working memory (WM), Visual‐schematic condition drew upon the visual component of WM and the combined strategies condition drew upon number processing skills.     

Student Learning about Biomolecular Self-Assembly Using Two Different External Representations

Self-assembly is the fundamental but counterintuitive principle that explains how ordered biomolecular complexes form spontaneously in the cell. This study investigated the impact of using two external representations of virus self-assembly, an interactive tangible three-dimensional model and a static two-dimensional image, on student learning about the process of self-assembly in a group exercise. A conceptual analysis of self-assembly into a set of facets was performed to support study design and analysis. Written responses were collected in a pretest/posttest experimental design with 32 Swedish university students. A quantitative analysis of close-ended items indicated that the students improved their scores between pretest and posttest, with no significant difference between the conditions (tangible model/image). A qualitative analysis of an open-ended item indicated students were unfamiliar with self-assembly prior to the study. Students in the tangible model condition used the facets of self-assembly in their open-ended posttest responses more frequently than students in the image condition. In particular, it appears that the dynamic properties of the tangible model may support student understanding of self-assembly in terms of the random and reversible nature of molecular interactions. A tentative difference was observed in response complexity, with more multifaceted responses in the tangible model condition.     

An Exploratory Study of the Development of Social Sensitivity in Elementary School Children

Abstract

Two studies were conducted concurrently to determine whether there are significant differences in selected characteristics between economically disadvantaged and economically advantaged five-year-olds. The areas investigated included physical skills, social skills, language skills, intelligence, emotional disturbance, creativity in the use of materials, curiosity, attention to and interest in stories, preference for rewards, sensory discrimination ability, problem solving ability, and ability to conserve, Eight null hypotheses were supported, three null hypotheses were not supported, and three null hypotheses were partially supported.     

The challenge of promoting self-regulated learning among primary school children with a low socioeconomic and immigrant background

The authors explore the effects of student tutoring as an approach to provide support on self-regulated learning (SRL) to fifth- and sixth-grade students with a low socioeconomic or immigrant background. In total, 401 Flemish (Belgium) students participated. A quasi-experimental study with pretest, posttest, and retention test control group design was used, combining teacher ratings, self-report questionnaires, and think-aloud protocols. The teacher rating results show a significantly positive effect from pretest to posttest for the experimental condition, but this was not maintained at the retention test. The questionnaire and think-aloud results reveal no significant effects on students’ SRL. However, differential effects depending on students’ motivational profile were found. This study illustrates the complexity of promoting SRL among primary school children with a low socioeconomic or immigrant background, recommending further research into conditions and factors influencing the effectiveness of student tutoring programs promoting SRL.     

Enhancing visuospatial skills in second graders: An exploratory follow‐up study

This study was intended to assess the effect of a psychoeducational computer‐assisted and paper‐and‐pencil training designed to empower visuospatial skills in students attending the second grade of the primary school. At pretest, posttest and at the subsequent 3‐months follow‐up, 44 Italian second graders were presented with a battery of tests assessing nonverbal problem solving, imagery, speed of processing, visuomotor coordination, and verbal working memory. After pretest, 22 pupils were trained by the psychoeducational intervention for 15 weekly sessions (Fastame & Antonini (2011). RECUPERO IN… abilità visuo‐spaziali [Recovery in… visuo‐spatial abilities]. Trento, Italy: Edizioni Erickson). Posttest scores and a follow‐up assessment conducted after 3 months by the end of the training documented the positive effect of the psychoeducational intervention in enhancing visuospatial functions of the experimental group. These outcomes were also replicated when a questionnaire assessing visuospatial efficacy was proposed to the teachers of the participants.