Characteristics of a cognitive tool that helps students learn diagnostic problem solving

Three related studies replicated and extended previous work (J.A. Danielson et al. (2003), Educational Technology Research and Development, 51(3), 63–81) involving the Diagnostic Pathfinder (dP) (previously Problem List Generator [PLG]), a cognitive tool for learning diagnostic problem solving. In studies 1 and 2, groups of 126 and 113 veterinary students, respectively, used the dP to complete case-based homework; groups of 120 and 199, respectively, used an alternative method. Students in the dP groups scored significantly higher (p = .000 and .003, respectively) on final exams than those in control groups. In the third study, 552 veterinary students responding to a questionnaire indicated that the dP’s gating and data synthesis activities aided learning. The dP’s feedback and requirement of completeness appear to aid learning most.     

Comparing the effectiveness of preparatory activities that help undergraduate students learn from instruction

Students can learn better from instruction after first engaging in activities that prepare them to learn (Kapur, 2016; Loibl, Roll, & Rummel, 2017; Schwartz & Bransford, 1998). In this study, we compare the effectiveness of four activities that prepare university students to learn from instruction. We use productive failure, an established instructional design, as the baseline preparatory condition. In productive failure, students generate solutions to challenging but accessible problems, which serves as preparation for formal instruction. We compare this approach with three alternative preparatory activities: contrasting a correct and an incorrect solution, sensemaking of the correct solution only, and studying a fully worked-out example of the correct solution. Despite the differences in preparatory activities, participants on average performed nearly identically on most of the process and outcome measures. In universities, or with similarly advanced learners, a variety of activities may be equally effective at preparing students to learn from instruction.     

An analysis of teacher-defined activities with mobile technologies: predecessor and successor tool use in the classroom

In this paper, different perspectives on the role of the teacher in a classroom equipped with personal digital assistants (PDAs) are presented. We report on four classroom studies conducted in two countries, Norway and the USA. The overall aim is to understand the use of new tools in different contexts. The key question that we explore concerns the teachers’ pedagogical use of the new tool and why certain tools are adopted and others are not. In one case, the activities simulated the affordances and constraints of the tools used prior to the PDA. In the other case, the activities harnessed the affordances and constraints offered by the successor tool, the PDA. We raise the question as to why these tools were used in two different ways. We analyse our findings in terms of sociocultural theory and concepts of human–computer interaction. Finally, we summarize our results and discuss some educational implications.     

Structuring academic conflicts between majority and minority students: Hindrance or help to integration

The effects of two types of structured academic conflict, controversy and debate, were compared with individual study in a study on desegregation. Seventy-two sixth grade students were assigned to conditions on a stratified random basis controlling for sex, reading ability, and ethnic membership. In all three conditions students studied a controversial issue with materials representing both pro and con views. In the controversy condition each learning group was divided into two pairs representing the pro and con sides. In the debate condition each member of a learning group was assigned a pro or con position to represent in a debate with the other three members. In the individualistic condition subjects were told to learn the material without interacting with other students and each student was given all the pro and con materials. The results indicate that controversy promotes the most cross-ethnic verbal rehearsal and exchange of the assigned material, the most concern that all students master the assigned material, the most active search for more information about the topic being studied, the most reevaluation of one's position and incorporation of opponents' arguments, the most liking for the subject matter and the instructional experience, the highest self-esteem, and the most accepting and supportive relationships among minority and majority students. The debate condition generated higher levels of these dependent variables than did individualistic study.     

How gifted students learn: Implications from recent research 1

A review of several recent investigations into the nature of how gifted students learn and the conditions under which they learn most effectively indicates that gifted learners spontaneously produce more effective learning strategies than comparison groups and benefit from the use of more complex, externally provided strategies. Implications from this research for the teacher of the gifted include the use of slower presentation rates for new information, spatial organization of prose content, and teacher provided mnemonic strategies.     

What students learn in problem-based learning: a process analysis

This study aimed to provide an account of how learning takes place in problem-based learning (PBL), and to identify the relationships between the learning-oriented activities of students with their learning outcomes. First, the verbal interactions and computer resources studied by nine students for an entire PBL cycle were recorded. The relevant concepts articulated and studied individually while working on the problem-at-hand were identified as units of analysis and counted to demonstrate the growth in concepts acquired over the PBL cycle. We identified two distinct phases in the process—an initial concept articulation, and a later concept repetition phase. To overcome the sample-size limitations of the first study, we analyzed the verbal interactions of, and resources studied, by another 35 students in an entire PBL cycle using structural equation modeling. Results show that students’ verbal contributions during the problem analysis phase strongly influenced their verbal contributions during self-directed learning and reporting phases. Verbal contributions and individual study influenced similarly the contributions during the reporting phase. Increased verbalizations of concepts during the reporting phase also led to higher achievement. We found that collaborative learning is significant in the PBL process, and may be more important than individual study in determining students’ achievement.     

Helping students learn ‘how to learn’ from texts: Towards an ITS for developing metacognition

Intelligent tutoring systems have most frequently concentrated on imparting domain knowledge. However, there is another important aspect to learning. This is the meta level knowledge abouthow to learn a domain. Metacognition is a very important feature of learning. It consists of being aware of and regulating one's own cognitions.Good students have full control over their learning and see it as a planful and purposive activity. They reflect on their learning activities, are aware of a variety of strategies, and they oversee and monitor the application of these strategies, i.e. they are proficient in metacognitive activities. This paper describes a computer based system that helps students to learn these important self regulation skills. Students work with the system in pairs, and they can use it with any text from which they wish to learn. Apart from being used as a study aid, the system is being used as a tool to gather data about students learning processes.     

The promotion of moral ideals in schools; what the state may or may not demand

The content and boundaries of moral education the state may require schools to offer is a matter of contention. This article investigates whether the state may obligate schools to promote the pursuit of moral ideals. Moral ideals refer to (a cluster of) characteristics of a person as well as to situations or states that are believed to be morally excellent or perfect and that are not yet realised. Having an ideal typically means that the person is dedicated to realising the type of situation or person to which the ideal refers. Therefore generating student enthusiasm for moral ideals may be an effective way to realise a morally excellent society. This article defends the position that schools may be required to promote the recognition of ideals that all reasonable citizens endorse. Reasonable citizens will not, however, accept that the state obligates schools to promote the pursuit of moral ideals.     

Toward implementing distributed scaffolding: Helping students learn science from design

In this article, we present two studies that helped us understand the kinds of support that students need to learn science successfully from design activities. Both were enacted in the context of an approach to learning science from design called learning by design (LBD). In our first study, we designed and integrated a paper‐and‐pencil scaffolding tool, the design diary, into an LBD unit to support students' design‐related activities. We learned two important lessons from the first study. First, we refined our understanding of the processes involved in designing and the ways we might present those processes to students. Second, and more important, we observed that in the dynamic, complex environment of the classroom, not all of the scaffolding could be provided with any one tool or agent. We found that students need multiple forms of support and multiple learning opportunities to learn science successfully from design activities. In our next study, we provided additional support through an organized system of tools and agents. Our analysis of data from the second study leads us to believe that supporting multiple students in a classroom requires us to rethink the notion of scaffolding as it applied to groups of learners in a classroom. We put forth the notion of distributed scaffolding as an approach to supporting hands‐on inquiry learning in a classroom. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 42: 185–217, 2005     

Exploring the effectiveness of a mobile writing application for supporting handwriting acquisition of students with dysgraphia

Education and Information Technologies - Handwriting is one of the most important essential skills for both literacy and beyond. However, some students have difficulty in writing. Dysgraphia, a...     

数学学习策略的教学

教师对学生进行学习策略的教学,应重视每类知识通用学习策略的教学,重视点滴学习策略的提炼,将所有的学习活动都看成是能提高学生学习策略水平的教学资源;还应专门开设学习策略课向学生传授基本的学习策略.     

Asian medical students: quality of life and motivation to learn

Issues linked with the notions of quality of life (QOL) and motivation to learn among Asian medical students have not been well documented. This is true in both the international and the New Zealand contexts. Our paper addresses this lack of research by focusing on the QOL of international and domestic Asian students studying in New Zealand, where Asian students form a significant proportion of tertiary students. Although there is evidence to suggest that Asian students do well academically, it was felt that an investigation into their QOL would be instructive as QOL will likely have an impact on cognition, behavior, general well-being, and motivation. The present study surveyed fourth- and fifth-year medical students to examine the relationship between QOL and motivation to learn and to consider how Asian medical students compare against European medical and non-medical student peers. The study utilized the World Health Organization—Quality of Life questionnaire (BREF version) and a shortened version of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire. The results show that the Asian medical students in this study generated significantly lower scores in terms of their satisfaction with social relationships compared with their non-Asian peers. In addition, international Asian medical students appear to be more at risk than domestic Asian students with respect to test anxiety. The paper considers the findings and the implications for quality of life, motivation to learn, medical education, and the Asian student community.     

Teaching students how to study: a workshop on information processing and self-testing helps students learn

We implemented a "how to study" workshop for small groups of students (6-12) for N = 93 consenting students, randomly assigned from a large introductory biology class. The goal of this workshop was to teach students self-regulating techniques with visualization-based exercises as a foundation for learning and critical thinking in two areas: information processing and self-testing. During the workshop, students worked individually or in groups and received immediate feedback on their progress. Here, we describe two individual workshop exercises, report their immediate results, describe students' reactions (based on the workshop instructors' experience and student feedback), and report student performance on workshop-related questions on the final exam. Students rated the workshop activities highly and performed significantly better on workshop-related final exam questions than the control groups. This was the case for both lower- and higher-order thinking questions. Student achievement (i.e., grade point average) was significantly correlated with overall final exam performance but not with workshop outcomes. This long-term (10 wk) retention of a self-testing effect across question levels and student achievement is a promising endorsement for future large-scale implementation and further evaluation of this "how to study" workshop as a study support for introductory biology (and other science) students.     

Writing to learn ecology: a study of three populations of college students

Being an ecologically literate citizen involves making decisions that are based on ecological knowledge and accepting responsibility for personal actions. Using writing-to-learn activities in college science courses, we asked students to consider personal dilemmas that they or others might have in response to how human choices can impact coastal dead zones around the world. We explored how undergraduate students (42 biology and 47 elementary education majors at a 4-year college and eight Native studies majors at a tribal college in the United States) identified their ecological dilemmas after reading about aquatic hypoxia. About 30% of the 4-year college students’s essays demonstrated a more ecologically literate understanding of hypoxia by the end of the study. The tribal college students improved their ecological literacy by 50%, albeit with a small sample size. Biology majors made more human-centered comments than the education majors. The Native American students often discussed trade-offs between quality of life and ecological consequences, and were classified as both human-centered and ecosystem-centered.     

Quality of Vocational Literacy: how Finnish vocational school students learn from text

The article concentrates on the essential prerequisite for future continuing education—the skill of independent learning from text in the light of an evaluation study carried out in Finnish vocational schools. The research task was to elucidate how learning from text can be explained, what kinds of results students achieved and above all what kinds of learning strategies they applied. Furthermore, students’ learning orientation was studied. The results of the empirical study indicated that learning from text is a transactional process of many factors related to cognition and motivation. Seventy‐five percent of the qualitative level of the learning outcomes could be explained. The qualitative level of the results proved on average fairly low even though individual differences were notable. Information processing in the learning process was mostly superficial. Such processing was generally related to atomistic structuring of knowledge, limited and text‐bound use of knowledge as well as haste. With the help of cluster analysis of the learning process variables students were placed in five groups relating to their learning orientation. The groups differed from each other in relation to the aims of activities, learning process and results.