Sketching and Self-Explanation for Diagram Comprehension in Math and Science: A Medium-Sized Empirical Research Proposal to REESE

天普大学这个项目的pi正在研究两种脚手架策略的认知机制，以提高学生对图表的理解。他们正在探索学习者在使用自我解释或素描来解释代数和生物学中的视觉表征时所得出的推断类型。他们与中学生合作，对学生在这些领域的问题上的表现进行了五次比较。他们正在研究这两种干预措施单独成功的机制，以及结合数学和科学问题来确定这两种机制是多余的还是互补的。他们正在研究由这两种技巧引发的推理的本质，并研究具有较高空间能力的学生使用这两种策略的方式的差异。他们用类似的策略跟踪学生第二年在其他任务上的表现，以检验学生的素描和自我解释技能与长期科学和数学学习之间的关系。三组参与者分别完成基于计算机的课程，包括空间能力、工作记忆、绘画和空间任务的动机，以及使用素描和/或自我解释解决一系列数学和科学问题。根据测试前的测量，分析了学生在问题上的表现。一组200名六年级到八年级的学生正在接受纵向研究，以了解随着时间的推移，写生和自我解释有效的原因发生了变化。第二组200名8年级学生在项目的第一年完成测量，以提供横断面年龄比较。一组新的六年级学生在这个项目的第二年解决问题时被录音，以便在更精细的层面上理解认知过程。分析包括横断面t检验、回归模型、纵向增长曲线建模和对录音会议口头协议的分析。研究活动包括开发低和高空间数学和科学问题，以及许多不同类型推理的编码方案。三名博士生在项目过程中接受校本研究、口头协议数据收集、编码和数据分析方面的培训。该团队由经验丰富的心理学研究人员组成，并由专家顾问委员会提供年度评估。研究成果包括低空间和高空间问题集、推理编码方案以及报告研究结果的学术论文。除了600名学生外，这些学生的数学和科学老师还参与了暑期工作，协助编写学生作业。该项目对教师在许多层面（从小学到研究生教育）使用自我解释和/或素描产生了影响。这些发现有助于指导教师在什么时候和谁一起使用素描和/或自我解释，从而更好地学习科学和数学。

The PIs in this project from Temple University are examining the cognitive mechanisms that undergird two scaffolding strategies to improve student comprehension of diagrams. They are exploring the types of inferences that learners draw when they use self-explanation or sketching to explain visual representations in algebra and in biology. Working with middle school students, they are testing five comparisons of student performances on problems in those domains. They are examining the mechanisms underlying the success of these two interventions alone and in combination for mathematics and science problems to determine whether the two mechanisms are redundant or complementary. They are examining the nature of the inferences that are prompted by the two techniques and examining the differences in the ways that students with higher spatial ability use the strategies. They follow the performances of the students in a second year on other tasks using similar strategies to examine the how student sketching and self-explanation skills relate to long-term science and math learning. Three groups of participants are completing individual computer-based sessions that include measures of spatial abilities, working memory, motivation for drawing and spatial tasks, and solving a series of math and science problems using sketching and/or self-explanation. Student performance on the problems are analyzed in terms of the pretest measures. One group of 200 students is being studied longitudinally in 6th through 8th grades to understand changes over time in the reasons why sketching and self-explanation are effective. A second group of 200 8th graders complete the measures in the first year of the project to provide a cross-sectional age comparison. A new group of 6th graders are being audiotaped while solving the problems in the 2nd year of the project in order to understand cognitive processes in finer-level detail. Analyses include cross-sectional t tests, regression models, longitudinal growth curve modeling, and analyses of verbal protocols from the audiotaped sessions. Research activities include developing low- and high spatial math and science problems and a coding scheme for the many different types of inferences. Three doctoral students are trained over the course of the project in school-based research, collection of verbal protocol data, coding, and data analysis. The team consists of experienced psychology researchers, with an expert advisory board providing an annual evaluation. The products of the research are the low- and high-spatial problem sets, inference coding scheme, and scholarly papers reporting the results of the research. In addition to 600 participating students, the math and science teachers of those students are involved in summer work assisting with coding the student work. The project has an impact on teachers' use of self-explanation and/or sketching at many levels--from elementary through graduate education. The findings help point teachers towards when and with whom to use sketching and/or self-explanation, which leads to better learning in science and math.