Self-Explanation Prompts on Problem-Solving Performance in an Interactive Learning Environment.

This study examined the effects of self-explanation prompts on problem-solving performance. In total, 47 students were recruited and trained to debug web-program code in an online learning environment. Students in an open self-explanation group were asked to explain the problem cases to themselves, whereas a complete other-explanation group was provided with partial explanations and asked to complete them by choosing correct key-words. The results indicate that students in the open self-explanation condition (a) outperformed in a debugging task, (b) perceived higher confidence for their explanations, and (c) showed a strong positive relationship between the quality of their explanation and their performance. These results demonstrate the benefits of the open self-explanation prompts. Cognitive load of self-explanation and quality of explanation are discussed.

[1]  B. Bloom.  Taxonomy of educational objectives , 1956 .

[2]  B. Bloom,et al.  Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. Handbook I: Cognitive Domain , 1966 .

[3]  R. Glaser.  Advances in Instructional Psychology , 1978 .

[4]  Michelene T. H. Chi,et al.  Self-Explanations: How Students Study and Use Examples in Learning To Solve Problems. Technical Report No. 9. , 1987 .

[5]  John Sweller,et al.  Cognitive Load During Problem Solving: Effects on Learning , 1988, Cogn. Sci..

[6]  Margaret M. Recker,et al.  Learning Strategies and Transfer in the Domain of Programming , 1994 .

[7]  Michelene T. H. Chi,et al.  Eliciting Self-Explanations Improves Understanding , 1994, Cogn. Sci..

[8]  Ann L. Brown,et al.  Training in Self-Explanation and Self-Regulation Strategies: Investigating the Effects of Knowledge Acquisition Activities on Problem Solving , 1995 .

[9]  Alexander Renkl,et al.  Learning from Worked-Out-Examples: A Study on Individual Differences , 1997, Cogn. Sci..

[10]  O'Reilly,et al.  A Comparison of Self-Explanation and Elaborative Interrogation. , 1998, Contemporary educational psychology.

[11]  F. Paas,et al.  Cognitive Architecture and Instructional Design , 1998 .

[12]  Vincent Aleven,et al.  An effective metacognitive strategy: learning by doing and explaining with a computer-based Cognitive Tutor , 2002, Cogn. Sci..

[13]  Regina M. F. Wong,et al.  The Effects of Self-Explanation Training on Students' Problem Solving in High-School Mathematics. , 2002 .

[14]  R. Siegler.  Microgenetic Studies of Self-Explanation , 2002 .

[15]  R. Atkinson,et al.  Structuring the Transition From Example Study to Problem Solving in Cognitive Skill Acquisition: A Cognitive Load Perspective , 2003 .

[16]  R. Atkinson,et al.  Transitioning From Studying Examples to Solving Problems: Effects of Self-Explanation Prompts and Fading Worked-Out Steps. , 2003 .

[17]  Richard E. Mayer,et al.  Multimedia learning in an interactive self-explaining environment: What works in the design of agent , 2003 .

[18]  L. Ball,et al.  Self-Explanation, Feedback and the Development of Analogical Reasoning Skills: Microgenetic Evidence for a Metacognitive Processing Account , 2005 .

[20]  J. Sweller,et al.  Cognitive Load Theory and Complex Learning: Recent Developments and Future Directions , 2005 .