Effects of Two Treatments on Cognitive Achievement of Students Varying in Problem-Solving Ability

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to ascertain the effects of Treatment TP (Prerequisite Principles) and Treatment TC (Conceptualization) on cognitive achievement of high school students varying in problem-solving ability. Treatment TP was designed according to Gagne’s hierarchy of learning, whereas Treatment TC was modified to include examples, analogies, mediators, cues, etc., to facilitate conceptualization. A sample of 80 high school students out of a group of 123. 33% with top problem-solving ability (PSA) scores and 33% with low PSA scores, was selected and randomly assigned to the two treatment groups. The scores on a final test of cognitive achievement served as the criterion measure (CM) of students’ achievement. A two-way ANOVA was used for analysis of the data.Results indicated that students with high problem-solving ability (HPSA) scored significantly higher on CM than did students with low problem-solving ability (LPSA). No significant difference was found in the two treatments. However, ...