1. Introducing Desirable Difficulties for Educational Applications in Science Robert A. Bjork, Lindsey Richland, Matt Hays, and Jason Finley UCLA Marcia C. Linn, Britte Cheng UC Berkeley Thanks to RAs: Dan Fink, Greg Cragg, Katy Cohanshohet, Asako Kumeya, Francis Yau, Kitty Goss, Tabby Dadvand www.psych.ucla.edu/iddeas

2. Desirable Difficulties Design principles that have been found, in laboratory research, to impair performance during training but enhance performance at a delay

3. IDDEAS Introducing Desirable Difficulties for Educational Applications in Science Broad Goals: extend laboratory research on learning and memory to classroom environment, explore interactions b/w DDs Narrower Goal: Implement desirable learning difficulties in a web-based science module (WISE) for 8th graders, with aim of improving effectiveness of such modules

4. Presentation Schedule ExamplePerformance during training Performance at a delay MassedA,A,A,A,Abetterworse SpacedA, A, A, A, Aworsebetter Spacing Effect

5. Presentation Order ExamplePerformance during training Performance at a delay BlockedA,A,A,A,A,B,B,B,B,Bbetterworse InterleavedA,B,B,A,B,A,A,B,A,Bworsebetter Interleaving Effect

6. Theories Explaining Interleaving Contextual Interference (Battig, 1972, 1979) Reloading/ Reconstruction (e.g. Lee & Magill, 1983, 1985) Development of higher order framework/ Elaboration (Shea & Zimny, 1983, 1988) “It’s just the spacing effect”

7. Web-based Inquiry Science Environment (WISE) A system/tool for scientific instruction Promotes knowledge integration, collaborative learning, visible thinking Contains modules on a wide variety of topics, with options to customize and to create new modules Plus: a useful research tool!

9. IDDEAS WISE Exp 3 Motivations Extend laboratory studies on interleaving to realistic educational material Focus on contextual interference as possible mechanism for interleaving effect

10. Learning Materials 2 Sets of Learning Stimuli –Planet Formation –Star Formation Examples –“Planets form in a disk of material around a star. This circumstellar disk contains gases and tiny particles of metals; the total mass is several thousand times that of the planets that emerge from it.” –“Solar systems, and the stars at their centers, begin as giant molecular clouds. These clouds are primarily made of hydrogen gas, but can also contain water vapor, nitrous oxide, ethanol, and molecules with carbon rings.”

11. 2 Independent Variables 1.Presentation Order –Blocked (P,P,P,P,S,S,S,S) –Interleaved (P,S,S,P,S,P,P,S) 2.Competition due to Arrangement –Greater Competition (more similar slides arranged together) –Less Competition (more similar slides arranged apart)

12. Dependent Variable Performance on Post-Test (2-day delay) –Multiple-choice Qs –Fill-in-the-Blank Qs –Sorting Task

13. Design Overview 2 sets of learning stimuli Planet Formation (P) Star Formation (S) Presentation Order: Blocked (P,P,P,P,S,S,S,S) vs. Interleaved (P,S,S,P,S,P,P,S) Competition by Arrangement: Greater vs. Less Post-Test 48 hour delay Metacognition –Questionnaire given after learning and after test

14. RESULTS!!!

16. Metacognition

17. Future Directions? Different Material Interleaving w/ other Desirable Difficulties?