Transfer to Learning EDU 330: Educational Psychology Daniel Moos, PhD.
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Transcript of Transfer to Learning EDU 330: Educational Psychology Daniel Moos, PhD.
You are also a well decorated army general. It is your goal to capture an evil general in the middle of a small village. You will need the firepower of all your army to capture the general. Many roads lead to the general, but land mines lurk below their surface. Small number of soldiers can travel safely on the roads, but a large force will detonate the mines, killing those traveling on the road. How might you solve this problem so that all of your army can safely get to the middle of the small village to capture the evil general?
In addition to a well decorated general, you are a world-famous doctor. One of your patients has a malignant tumor on his heart. Your best option is to use radiation lasers to destroy the tumor. You will need to use high-intensity gamma ray lasers to completely remove it. However, this high-intensity laser will also kill the healthy tissue around the heart. At lower intensities, the gamma rays are harmless to healthy tissue, but they will not individually destroy the tumor either. How might you use the gamma rays to destroy the tumor without killing the healthy tissue?
Situated Cognition & Education (Anderson et al., 1996)
• Much of what is claimed is not theoretically sound• “Situated learning”
• Knowledge is tied to the context to which it is learned• Example: State months of year…• Example: State months of year, alphabetically• Example: Have you ever had trouble applying what you learn
to the “real world”?• Mismatch between school and real world situations
Instruction must be done in complex, social environments
Transfer of Learning Under what conditions do students transfer
learning? (1) Theory of Identical Elements: transfer depends on
the number of identical elements that two tasks share (Thorndike & Woodworth, 1901)
Suggests it is important to help students identify similarities between learning tasks, but…
What do novices and experts see? Experts’ knowledge also tied to their context…impossible
checkmate…difficult to remember?
Transfer of Learning Under what conditions do students transfer
learning? (2) Similarity (Theory of Identical Elements)
Original problem: Angi has 2 pieces of candy. Kim gives her 3 more pieces of candy. How many pieces does Angi have now?”
Which one would be more difficult? Why? Bruce had 3 pencils. His friend Orlando gave him 2 more.
How many pencils does Bruce have now? Sophie has 3 cookies. Daniel has 4 cookies. How many do
they have together? Real-world applications Meaningfulness
Importance of procedural knowledge being “overlearned” for automaticity
Integrated Conceptual Knowledge More likely to be transferred than isolated facts
Types of Transfer Positive Transfer
A situation in which prior learning aids subsequent learning
Negative Transfer A situation in which prior learning interferes with
subsequent learning Example: As quickly as you can find the answer to this
problem: 60 ÷ 0.50 Prior learning: division usually leads to a smaller number
Zero Transfer A situation in which prior learning has no effect on new
learning
Types of Transfer Specific Transfer
Situation in which prior learning aids subsequent learning because of specific similarities between two tasks
General Transfer Situation in which prior learning aids subsequent
learning due to the use of similar cognitive strategies
Initial Task Transfer TaskGroup 1 French SpanishGroup 2 Chinese SpanishGroup 3 Spanish
Possible Outcomes:
1 > 2 = 3 Specific
1 = 2 > 3 General
Types of Transfer Specific Transfer, example
French Spanishun unodeux dostrois tresquatre cuatrocinq cincosix seissept sietehuit ochonuef nuevedix diez
Types of Transfer Near Transfer
Knowledge domains similar Contexts basically the same Elapsed time between tasks relatively short
Far Transfer Knowledge domains and settings are perceived
to be dissimilar Elapsed time between tasks relatively long
Applying math skills over the course of a unit to solve “new” problems on the unit test
Applying math skills over the course of a unit years later to determine investment options
Types of Transfer Low-Road Transfer
Previously learned skill almost automatically retrieved and applied to similar task
High-Road Transfer Requires effortful formulation of an “abstraction”
that allows a connection to be made between two tasks
13 328+ 24 +192
How long did it take you to “figure” out college and its similarities/differences with hs?
Teaching Transfer: Implications Multiple opportunities for varied practices Solve problems that are similar to those they will
eventually have to solve Teach students how to formulate general rules,
strategies, or schemes (“heuristics”) for a variety of tasks What should I do if I have a question? How should I study for a test? How should I research for a paper?
Provide cues that will allow them to connect to prior knowledge within AND across classes How is what we are learning today similar to yesterday’s
topic? To another class?