Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
taught. Connecting ideas reduces the load, makes the information more meaningful,
and increases learning by providing more places to attach new information.
Meaningfulness also has implications for learners. When we study, we should
look for relationships in the content instead of studying ideas in isolation. This
explains why memorizing definitions and other individual items of information is
an ineffective study strategy.
Schemas as Scripts
. In addition to organizing information, schemas can also
guide our actions. For example, when we first enter a college class, we often ask
questions such as the following:
•
What are the instructor's expectations?
•
How should I prepare for quizzes and other assessments?
•
How will I interact with my peers?
Answers to these questions come from scripts, which can be thought of as
schemas for events, developed over years of experience (Nuthall, 2000; Schank &
Abelson, 1977). For example, you have a script that guides your behavior as you
anticipate attending a party. You know that you must talk to the other partygoers,
avoid drinking too much, pay attention to your spouse or date, and thank your host
when you leave. In this regard, scripts also contain procedural knowledge, which we
consider next.
Representing Procedural Knowledge in Long-Term Memory
The effectiveness of procedural knowledge depends on both declarative and con-
ditional knowledge (Anderson, 2005; Star, 2004). For example, think back to the
problems with fractions. Your ability to add them depended on your declarative
knowledge of the rules for adding fractions and your conditional knowledge, so you
knew when finding a common denominator was necessary and when it was not.
Developing Procedural Knowledge: Implications for Learning.
The goal in
developing procedural knowledge is to reach automaticity, which requires a great
deal of time and effort (Star, 2005; Taraban, Anderson, & DeFinis, 2007). This sug-
gests that we need to spend a great deal of time practicing the skill we are trying to
develop.
Also, the way procedural knowledge is developed helps us understand why
context is so important (Star, 2004). For example, students should practice their
grammar, spelling, and punctuation in the context of their writing instead of prac-
ticing on isolated sentences. And, math students should develop their skills in the
context of word problems that require a variety of operations, so students learn
to identify different conditions and apply the appropriate actions (Bransford et al.,
2000).
The development of procedural knowledge also has implications for teachers'
growth. Skills, such as questioning, will improve even after years of teaching, and
with experience they learn to recognize different learning conditions that require
different strategies.
