The Effect of Textual Errors on Dyadic and Individual Learning

The Major Objective of the Present Experiment Was to Assess the Effects of Textual Errors on Dyadic and Individual Learning. One Hundred Undergraduates Were Taught a Four-Step Learning Strategy, after Which They Studied a Text Passage Either Dyadically or Individually. Half of the Passages within Both Conditions Contained Syntactic Errors. Total Recall Measures Indicated that Dyads Performed Better Than Individuals on Recall of Text in Sections Not Containing Errors, Whereas the Groups Did Not Differ on Recall of the Material in Text Sections Containing Errors. Further, Dyads Outscored Individuals on Measures of Recall of Error Location, Error Frequency, and Perceived Difficulty of the Text Sections Which Contained Errors. in Addition, Subjective Processing Measures Indicated that Motivation and Interest Were Strongly Related to Recall. © 1989, SAGE Publications. All Rights Reserved

Promoting Functional Literacy through Cooperative Learning

The Effects of Cooperative Learning Strategy Manipulations on the Enactment and Recall of a Medical Procedure Were Explored. One Hundred and Twenty-Three College Students Completed the Experiment. during Training, Participants Were Randomly Assigned to a Dyad in One of Four Conditions: (A) No-Strategy, (B) Baseline Strategy, (C) Prompting Strategy, and (D) Planning Strategy. during Testing, Participants Both Performed and Produced Written Recalls of the Procedure Instructions. Test Order Was Counterbalanced within Dyad. Training and Test Performances Were Videotaped. the Planning Group Produced the Best Recalls and Recalled More Conditions of the Procedure. the Prompting Group Performed Best. Recall of the Procedure in All Groups Was Enhanced by Prior Performance. However, Performance Was Enhanced by Prior Recall in Only Two Groups. the Groups Differed Also in the Nature of the Transition from Training to Testing. Theoretical and Applied Implications of These Findings Are Discussed. © 1988, SAGE Publications. All Rights Reserved

Knowledge Maps and the Presentation of Related Information Domains

An Experiment Was Conducted to Assess the Relative Effectiveness of Multiple-Relationship Knowledge Maps and Traditional Text for the Presentation of Related Information Domains. a Secondary Purpose Was to Investigate Comparative Versus Sequential Presentations. Knowledge Maps Were Found to Be Superior to Traditional Text in Acquisition and Affect Associated with Studying for One Type of Material. Moreover, Students in the Map Groups Reported Gaining More Knowledge About their Information Processing and Study Strategies that Would Help Them in Future Learning Than Did Those in the Text Groups. However, These Results Were Not Replicated with Respect to a Second Sample of Text on a Different Topic. Subject Matter and Structural Parameters that Might Account for the Inability to Replicate the Knowledge Map Effect Across Passages Are Identified. © 1992 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

The Cooperative Learner

The Purpose of This Article is to Review a Series of Investigations Conducted to Assess the Role that Individual Learner Characteristics Play in Scripted Cooperative Learning. These Results Point to Three General Conclusions. First, Individual Differences Have Consistently Been Found to Play an Important Role in Determining the Effectiveness of Scripted Cooperation. Students Strong in Cognitive Skills, High in Extroversion, and Average in Test Anxiety Appear to Benefit Most from This Method. Second, the Efficacy of This Learning Tool Can Be Enhanced through the Consideration of Learner Characteristics. for Example, Those Low in Cognitive Abilities Benefit Most from Scripted Cooperation When Paired with a Partner Who is Strong in Such Skills. Third, Dansereau\u27s (1986, 1988) CAMS Model for Group Problem Solving Processes is Largely Supported by These Results, in that Three of the Four Components of the Model (I.e., Cognition, Affect, and Social Processes) Appear to Have a Significant Impact in Determining the Effectiveness of Cooperative Learning, in Terms of Individual Differences. © 1990

Effects of Scripted Cooperation and Knowledge Maps on the Processing of Technical Material

This Study Replicates and Extends Prior Investigations of Scripted Cooperation and Knowledge Maps by Examining (A) their Independent and Interactive Effects on Procedural Knowledge Acquisition and (B) the Transfer of These Effects to Individual Learning. One Hundred Four Subjects, Randomly Assigned to Knowledge Map/dyad, Knowledge Map/individual, Text/dyad, and Text/individual Conditions, Studied Two Acquisition Procedures in the Experimental Conditions and a Transfer-Text Procedure in an Individual, Unscripted Manner. Subjects Completed Delayed Free-Recall Tests over Each Procedure. during Acquisition, Knowledge Maps Had Positive Effects on Recall of Main and Intermediate Ideas. There Were No Significant Treatment Effects on Transfer Recall. the Instrumental Uses and Limitations of Knowledge Maps Are Discussed

Effects of Cooperative Script Manipulations on Initial Learning and Transfer

When Two People Study Cooperatively, their Expectations, Roles, and Prior Exposure to the Information to Be Discussed Can Potentially Affect Retention. in Addition, a Cooperative Experience Has the Potential to Facilitate Subsequent Individual Study. Four Cooperative Study Scripts Were Employed to Test their Effects on Initial Recall and on Transfer to an Individual Task. as Partners, Students Read and Studied Two Passages. in Group 1, Partners Each Read One Passage Only and Then Taught the Material to Each Other. They Did Not Expect to Be Able to Read their Partner\u27s Passage, Although They Were Later Given Time to Do So. Group 2 Was Identical to Group 1, Except that Partners in Group 2 Expected the Extra Reading Time. in Group 3, Partners Cooperated in Reading Both Passages by Alternating Summarizer and Listener Roles Four Times within Each Passage. in Group 4, Partners Played Summarizer and Listener Roles Only Once, at the End of Each Passage. All Participants Later Studied a Third Passage Individually (The Transfer Task). Recall Tests Revealed that Those using a Teaching Script (Groups 1 and 2) Outperformed Those using a Cooperative Learning Script (Groups 3 and 4) on the Initial Task But Not on the Transfer Task. Furthermore, Playing a Teacher Role Significantly Improved Recall. Frequency of Summarization and Expectancy Manipulations Were Not Found to Be Significant Factors. © 1988, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. All Rights Reserved

The Role of Individual Differences in the Cooperative Learning of Technical Material

Individual Differences in the Recall of Procedural and Structural/functional Information Was Investigated in Situations in Which Students Studied in Dyads or Alone. Three Hundred Undergraduates Completed a Series of Nine Individual Difference Measures and Learned a Four-Step Study Strategy. They Then Studied Passages that Included Both Structural/functional and Procedural Material Either in a Dyad or Alone. They Completed a Free-Recall Test of the Material 2 Days Later. Induction Ability Was Found to Be Significantly Predictive of the Dyadic Recall of Structural/functional Material. Social Orientation Was Negatively Related to the Recall of Procedural Material for Those Who Studied Individually. Furthermore, Those Who Studied in Dyads Recalled Significantly More Than Did Those Who Studied Alone. Theoretical Implications and Practical Applications of the Results Are Discussed

Learning Concrete Procedures: Effects of Processing Strategies and Cooperative Learning

We Examined the Efficacy of a Previously Developed Script for Learning Concrete Procedures with More Complex Procedures Than Had Previously Been Studied. the Experiments Examined the Efficacy of Peer Cooperation in Learning Concrete Procedures, the Effects of Learning About the Necessary Equipment Prior to Practicing the Procedure, and the Retention of Procedural Information over a 6-Week Delay. One Hundred Fourteen Students Participated in One of the Following Groups: No-Script Individuals, No-Script Dyads, Simultaneous-Script Dyads, or Successive-Script Dyads. the Simultaneous Group Performed Better, Described the Procedure More Thoroughly, and Recalled More Information Than Other Groups. Thirty Nine of the Original Participants Completed the Second Experiment, in Which They Again Produced Written Recalls of the Instructions. the Pattern of Differences Observed after the Initial Experiment Was Maintained after a 6-Week Interval

Dyadic Learning of Technical Material: Individual Differences, Social Interaction, and Recall

To Examine the Relationships among Individual Differences, Interaction, and Recall, Students Were Paired with Same-Sex Partners to Read and Study a Passage Describing a Piece of Technical Equipment. This Material Included Both Procedural Information ( How-To Statements) and Structural/functional Information (The Organization and Function of Parts of the Equipment). Both Partners Read the Material, Stopping Periodically to Summarize the Information to One Another. the Verbal Interactions of Each of the Pairs Were Audiotaped. Several Individual Difference Measures Were Administered as Well as Free- and Cued-Recall Tests over the Studied Material. Results Revealed that Verbal Ability and Field-Independence Were Positively Related to the Recall of Structural/functional Information Which Included Pictures of the Equipment. Also, Higher Scores on a Measure of Deep Processing (The Ability to Critically Evaluate and Compare and Contrast Information) Facilitated the Recall of Procedural Information. with Regard to Verbal Interaction, It Was Found that Those Verbal Utterances that Were Directly Related to the Content of the Passage Enhanced Recall of the Information Presented Visually. Several Interpretations and Implications of These Results Are Discussed. © 1990

Cooperative Procedural Learning: Effects of Prompting and Pre- Versus Distributed Planning Activities

The Effects of Cooperative Learning Strategy Manipulations on the Enactment and Recall of a Medical Procedure Were Examined. Ninety-Eight Participants Completed the Two-Session Experiment. Four Experimental Conditions Were Used: (A) No-Strategy Individuals; (B) Prompting-Only Dyads, Who Did Not Plan Prior to Practice; (C) Distributed-Planning-With-Prompting Dyads, Who Intermittently Planned How to Perform Prior to Practice; and (D) Preplanning-With-Prompting Dyads, Who Planned the Entire Procedure Prior to Practice. during Testing, Participants Performed and Recalled the Procedure. Test Order Was Counterbalanced. Distributed Planners Performed Best on a Variety of Measures, Including Performance and Oral Communication of the Procedure and Attitude towards their Partners. No Between-Groups Differences Were Found for Written Recall. as Expected, Written Recall of the Procedure Was Enhanced by Prior Performance and Performance Was Enhanced by Prior Recall. Theoretical and Applied Implications of the Results Are Delineated and Discussed in Terms of Prevalent Theories of Skill Acquisition