Discussion prompt
20 minutes. Pick one idea from your own course. In 150 to 200 words, write one why question and answer it, give a concrete example, and say what a teaching test would need to show.
Private: nothing you type here is sent or stored.
This course has no discussion board yet, so the prompt is a private reflection.
Recap
- Elaboration links new facts to prior knowledge through why, how and what-if questions.
- Novices learn from worked examples when they explain each step, and support fades with skill.
- Concrete examples and rough diagrams give extra routes back to an idea.
- The teaching test and your own questions reveal gaps that fluent reading hides.
Module notes
Key terms. Elaboration: adding meaning by explaining and connecting. Worked example: a problem with its steps shown. Self-explanation: saying why each step is taken. Fading: removing support gradually. Dual coding: storing an idea as words and images.
Rules and formulas. Average = sum / count. Completion problems = total − worked − full. Session total = sum of the parts. Simple interest for one year = rate x amount.
Limits of this module. The example numbers and sessions are invented to show the arithmetic. Evidence for elaboration and worked examples is strongest for structured subjects, depends on prior knowledge and does not support fixed learning styles.
Next
Continue to Module 6: Sleep, Energy and the Study Environment. You can also return to the course overview or the University Track.
References and further reading
- Sweller, J. and Cooper, G. A. (1985). The use of worked examples as a substitute for problem solving in learning algebra. Cognition and Instruction.
- Chi, M. T. H., Bassok, M., Lewis, M. W., Reimann, P. and Glaser, R. (1989). Self-explanations: how students study and use examples in learning to solve problems. Cognitive Science.
- Paivio, A. (1986). Mental representations: a dual coding approach. Oxford University Press.
- Dunlosky, J., Rawson, K. A., Marsh, E. J., Nathan, M. J. and Willingham, D. T. (2013). Improving students’ learning with effective learning techniques. Psychological Science in the Public Interest.
- Specialty Digest encyclopedia: Working memory and Retrieval practice.