Research in the field of Automated Planning is largely focused on the problem of constructing plans or sequences of actions for going from a specific initial state to a goal state. The complexity of this task makes it desirable to find "generalized" plans which can solve multiple problem instances from a class of similar problems. Most approaches…

Pedagogic approaches to TVET offer a limited range of teaching strategies which make use of experimental learning. Thus experiments were developed for teachers of structural engineering and timber processing technologies and were subject to empirical evaluation by a researcher at the Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg and Kassel University.…

The impact of touch-screen technology on spatial cognitive skills as related to molecular geometries was assessed through 102 one-on-one interviews with undergraduate students. Participants were provided with either printed 2D ball-and-stick images of molecules or manipulable projections of 3D molecular structures on an iPad. Following a brief…

Although high-fidelity digital models of human anatomy based on actual cross-sectional images of the human body have been developed, reports on the use of physical models in anatomy teaching continue to appear. This article aims to examine the common features shared by these physical models and analyze their educational value based on the…

Computer-supported collaboration by spatially distributed group members still involves interaction problems within the group. This article presents an empirical study investigating the question of whether computer-supported collaborative problem solving by spatially distributed group members can be fostered by evoking knowledge and information…

More and more things that humans used to do can be automated on computer. In each case, complex tasks have been automated -- not to the extent that they can be done as well as humans, but better. I will draw and develop parallels to education -- showing how and why advances in the Structural Learning Theory (SLT) and the AuthorIT development and…

People use external knowledge representations (KRs) to identify, depict, transform, store, share, and archive information. Learning how to work with KRs is central to be-coming proficient in virtually every discipline. As such, KRs play central roles in curriculum, instruction, and assessment. We describe five key roles of KRs in assessment: (1)…

The goal of this article is to contribute fragments of concrete understanding to the on-going search for meaning in ideas associated with the learning sciences (Sawyer, 2006b) by adding to the repertoire of domain specific studies pertaining to this relatively new field. The learning sciences are first characterized as a system of learning…

Introduction: Representations play an essential role in mathematical thinking. They favor the understanding of mathematical concepts and stimulate the development of flexible and versatile thinking in problem solving. Here our focus is on their use in optimization problems, a type of problem considered important in mathematics teaching and…

This paper introduces an applied problem-solving task, set in the context of cryptography and embedded in a network of computer-based tools. This designed learning environment engaged students in a series of collaborative problem-solving activities intended to introduce the topic of functions through a set of linked representations. In a…

This study examines the specificity of information provided by structural assessment of knowledge (SAK). SAK is a technique which uses the Pathfinder scaling algorithm to transform ratings of concept relatedness into network representations (PFnets) of individuals' knowledge. Inferences about individuals' overall domain knowledge based on the…

In the present article, we articulate three assumptions underlying theories proposing that restructuring processes play a key role in insightful problem solving: representational difficulty, representational change, and discontinuity in solution processes. We argue that these assumptions need empirical validation to justify the proposition of…

From a theoretical viewpoint, educational interfaces that facilitate communicative actions involving representations central to a domain can maximize students' effort associated with constructing new schemas. In addition, interfaces that minimize working memory demands due to the interface per se, for example by mimicking existing non-digital work…

We examine whether the array representation can support children's understanding and reasoning in multiplication. To begin, we define what we mean by understanding and reasoning. We adopt a "representational-reasoning" model of understanding, where understanding is seen as connections being made between mental representations of concepts, with…

It is generally believed that students should use multiple representations in solving certain physics problems, and earlier work in PER has begun to outline how experts and novices differ in their use of multiple representations. In this study, we build on this foundation by interviewing expert and novice physicists as they solve two types of…