Low variability materials enhanced learning regardless of guidance; expertise reversal found for variability in Experiment 2¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2019 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? In Experiment 1, low variability instructional materials enhanced learning regardless of level of instructional guidance (worked examples vs. unguided problem-solving); in Experiment 2, a disordinal aptitude-treatment interaction indicated an expertise reversal effect, with low prior knowledge students who solved problems with low variability outperforming those with high variability, and the opposite pattern for higher prior knowledge students. → Paul Ginns & Jimmie Leppink 2019

Evidence¶

Paul Ginns & Jimmie Leppink 2019¶

Paul Ginns & Jimmie Leppink. (2019). Special Issue on Cognitive Load Theory: Editorial. Educational Psychology Review, 31, 255–259. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-019-09474-4

q2 · i? · review · r2

Two experiments investigating variability in instructional task features combined with instructional guidance (Experiment 1) and learner expertise (Experiment 2), summarized in the editorial. The editorial reports a "disordinal aptitude-treatment interaction" and the quoted expertise reversal contrast. No effect size value is printed.

"students with low prior knowledge who solved problems with low variability outperformed those who solved problems with high variability on a subsequent test, but the opposite pattern of results was found for students with higher prior knowledge."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Prior Knowledge — moderator: an instructional effect differs with it

Related Claims¶

• The relative effectiveness of instructional methods reverses as levels of learner knowledge in a domain change (the expertise reversal effect) — a broader claim this one bears on
• The effectiveness of instructional techniques and procedures interacts with levels of learner prior knowledge, a pattern known as the expertise reversal effect — a broader claim this one bears on
• Minimal guidance is less effective for novices than explicit instruction — related
• The worked example effect is explained by reduced element interactivity relative to problem solving, and reverses with expertise — related
• ATI research using static aptitude measures has yielded remarkably sparse robust results — related