This study sought to determine the effects of prior knowledge and other personal variables on the achievement of undergraduates in an economics course at the Open University of the Netherlands (OuN). A total of 100 law and 100 economics students enrolled in "Economics and Money" were tested on subject mastery at the end of the course.…

The purpose of this manual, which accompanies a video program, is to provide general background information for foreign language teachers who are, or soon will be, teaching in total, partial, or two-way immersion classrooms. Part of a series of video programs, this manual highlights techniques, strategies, and special considerations that immersion…

The technology, symbol systems, and processing capabilities of a medium interact to provide unique opportunities for information access. This exploratory study examines the way that learners process videotaped materials on a familiar or unfamiliar topic as informed by text-based research. A variation of the think-aloud method of assessing…

Computer-based instruction opens new avenues for increasing the variety of possible feedback strategies that a teacher may employ to optimize learner performance. Feedback effectiveness is influenced by the nature of learning task and student ability. This study investigates the effects of digitized feedback and ability on the achievement of…

In educational psychology research the concept "prior knowledge" is not always clearly described, but it is important to distinguish prior knowledge state (PKS) components as well as possible and to elucidate the relations among these elements. An in-case-study was conducted into the operationalizing of the concept of prior knowledge and…

This publication contains two papers from the 1993 National Institute on the Assessment of Experiential Learning. "In Support of Prior Learning Assessment" (Rebecca C. Hull) highlights arguments in opposition to the acceptance of prior learning assessment and the responses that might best counter these arguments. "Outcomes Assessment of Prior…

A study examined the relationship between two variable sets: (1) epistemological beliefs (Quick Learning, Simple-Certain Knowledge, and Innate Ability) and performance goals; and (2) conceptual understanding and application reasoning in conceptual change learning. In addition, effects of different kinds of prior knowledge on conceptual change…

Based on a Making Experience Count (MEC) project, this book examines current trends in learning from experience. Chapter 1 discusses key theoretical elements that underpin work in the field of experiential learning and analyzes the contribution of the andragogic approach to adult learning. Chapter 2 offers an alternative model--gynagogy--and…

The experience-oriented approach to early childhood learning assumes that the way children see, understand, and conceptualize is more basic than skills and knowledge, and that preschools should systematically work on developing children's awareness of different phenomena in the world around them. Content areas in this approach foster children's:…

A study determined the effectiveness of strategy instruction for children with reading problems. Subjects, 24 Dutch children in grades 4 to 6 from 2 schools for special education associated with a clinic for intensive child care, were divided into a control group and an experimental group. The experimental program consisted of 13-14 lessons, each…

This monograph offers perspectives that challenge the increasingly taken for granted assumptions about the renewed interest in experiential principles and methods. Chapter 1 identifies the different dimensions of experiential education. It describes contemporary examples to demonstrate the political, economic, and ideological differences in their…

This paper addresses the value and components of developing prereading skills to improve students' reading comprehension. Prereading activities are seen to prepare the student to both read and comprehend the story and involve cognitive engagement with ideas crucial to comprehension of the reading material. Teachers are urged to develop the…

"Text Sets" is a curricular strategy that highlights intertextuality, the process of searching for connections among reading texts and personal experiences. The strategy consists of gathering groups of related books and engaging small groups of students in a discussion of how the books interrelate. Three teachers assembled Text Sets for…

This guide was developed in Great Britain to help colleges develop programs for assessment of prior learning (APL) for adult students. (APL involves careers and educational guidance, access to particular courses despite possible lack of traditional certification, accreditation, formal credit toward a particular qualification, and exemption from…

The effects of mobilizing prior knowledge on information processing were studied. Two hypotheses, the cognitive set-point hypothesis and the selective attention hypothesis, try to account for the facilitation effects of prior knowledge activation. These hypotheses predict different recall patterns as a result of mobilizing prior knowledge. In…