Using computational simulations to discover optimal training paradigms

Abstract The organization of training is an important determinant of how well subjects learn a cognitive task. To understand why different training schedules produce different learned performance, we used a hippocampal model to compare three training paradigms for the hippocampally dependent cognitive task called transverse patterning. Simulations reproduce training effects seen in humans and rats. As in behavioral studies, progressive training produces robust learning while random training renders the task essentially unlearnable. The simulations predict that a third training paradigm, called staged learning, will produce more robust learning on average than the progressive paradigm used in published behavioral studies. Possible mechanisms underlying performance differences between paradigms are investigated and discussed.