Validity of Learning Strategies/Skills Training

摘要

Research has documented that most students tend to employ inefficient or less-than-effective methods for acquiring, retaining, retrieving, or applying information. To acquire, retain, and appropriately apply knowledge, it has become evident that methods designed to organize information for presentation to learners are of beneficial, yet limited, effectiveness. In contrast, strategies which the learner finds useful in transforming information through personal effort are likely to be 'owned,' retained, and contribute to increased performance. Programmatic research was initiated to (a) identify and compare the effectiveness of alternative learning strategies upon learner performance, (b) incorporate effective strategies and interactive practice materials within a systematic training program, and (c) empirically validate the performance of strategies-trained and untrained students. Some of the strategies included have been (a) various nmemonic devices, (b) imagery elaboration, (c) paraphrasing, (d) visual networking, (e) goal-setting, (f) distraction desensitization, and (g) formal peer interaction.