Learning Theory and the Study of Instruction

Abstract : This article examines the articulation of learning theory that is emerging from studies that take principled approaches to the design of instruction of complex forms of knowledge and skill. The representative studies discussed here are experimental instructional interventions that focus on: a) The acquisition of proceduralized skill, b) The development of regulatory and monitoring strategies of comprehension, and c) The acquisition of organized structures of knowledge. The programs' implications for learning theory are examined through an analysis of their theoretical backgrounds and the principles of learning that they reflect. The authors conclude by suggesting that studies of instruction can now address questions about the integration of the competences fostered separately by such programs and thereby contribute to the development of more comprehensive theories of the acquisition of knowledge and skill. Keywords: Experimental instructional intervention; Competence; Procedural skill; Self-regulatory strategies; Knowledge acquisition; Knowledge engineering; Socially shared cognition; Mental models; Learning theory; Instructional theory.