In natural learning, elemental and higher-order habits develop together, so the most economic method is to practice with the highest-order habits possible¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · theoretical r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 1908 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? None of the elementary habits reach complete maturity before the next higher-order habits become possible; the various associations develop together. → Book 1908 q2 i? Bryan and Harter found higher-order habits lead to greater accuracy in detail, with more mistakes receiving disconnected letters than words, and disconnected words than connected discourse. → Book 1908

Evidence¶

Book 1908¶

Book, William Frederick. (1908). The Role of the Teacher in the Most Expeditious and Economic Learning. The Journal of Educational Psychology. https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=The+Role+of+the+Teacher+in+the+Most+Expeditious+and+Economic+Learning

q2 · i? · theoretical · r2

Later studies of learning, including the typewriting work, showed that in natural learning "the lower-order habits are perfected in and through the formation of the higher," refuting the logical method of perfecting elements first. The article cites Bryan and Harter's telegraphy findings as supporting evidence.

"the lower-order habits are perfected in and through the formation of the higher even as the further development of the higher is dependent upon the perfection of the lower"

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Experimental work on method has concentrated in the habit group of studies, with extension to other curriculum subjects as the next step — related
• Lower-order habits persist after being superseded and resist new ways of working, requiring constant effort to overcome — related
• Learning-curve plateaus were caused by learners' failure to overcome specific difficulties at critical stages, not by the order in which habits developed — related
• New adaptations in skill learning were made unintentionally and required intense, carefully applied effort under favorable conditions — related
• Dynamic psychology research on habit formation is replacing vague verbal maxims of applied psychology with definite insights, including when practice makes perfect and when it does not. — a broader claim this one bears on
• Practice curves in computation and reasoning would resemble the learning curves of Bryan and Harter and Book — related