M.V.J. Veenman

Metacognitive activities in text-studying and problem-solving: Development of a taxonomy

This article describes the construction of a hierarchical taxonomy of metacognitive activities for the interpretation of thinking-aloud protocols of students in secondary education, who studied texts on history and physics. After testing an initial elaborate taxonomy on a restricted number of protocols by multiple raters, it appeared that the interrater correspondence was well below par. The categories in the taxonomy were too highly specified. Categories were combined and tested on new protocols in a cyclic fashion. The revised taxonomy was then used for coding 16 history protocols and 16 physics protocols. Frequencies of occurrence of metacognitive activities were obtained, as well as judgements of the quality of the metacognitive activities of the participants. There is a reasonable correlation between the frequency method and the quality method for coding thinking-aloud protocols. Also, there is a substantial covariation of the number of metacognitive activities across both tasks.

Metacognitive mediation in learning with computer-based simulations

The objective of this study was to determine whether providing students with metacognitive instructions during experimentation in a computer simulation environment results in better learning outcomes than unguided discovery learning. High and low intelligent students worked in either a metacognitive-mediated (MM) or unguided discovery (UD) environment for learning principles of electricity. Analyses of thinking-aloud protocols showed that MM subjects exhibited a better working method than subjects in the UD condition. MM subjects performed better than UD subjects on a posttest tapping qualitative knowledge, but on a posttest of quantitative problems only low intelligent MM subjects showed enhanced performance. No learning effects of metacognitive instruction were detected in the analyses of the retention tests. These results are discussed in relation to the nature of metacognitive activities.

Relation Between Intellectual Ability and Working Method as Predictors of Learning

Abstract The relation between intellectual ability, working method, and learning was investigated, with simulations, in two different learning environments. By conducting experiments, students had to discover principles of physics theory. A structured condition offered students guided experimentation and a structured learning sequence, whereas an unstructured condition allowed for unguided discovery learning. Thinking-aloud protocols of high- and low-intelligence subjects were analyzed on quality of working method. The results indicated that both intellectual ability and working method are predictors of learning, but that their mutual relation is an intricate one. No learning effects caused by structuredness of learning environment could be detected.

Intellectual ability and working method as predictors of novice learning

Abstract A first objective of this study was to clarify the relation between intellectual ability and working method as predictors of novice learning. A second objective was to determine whether instructional aid instead of unguided learning by discovery, might compensate for lack of ability. High and low intelligent students worked in either a structured or unstructured simulation environment for learning correlational principles. Analyses of thinking-aloud protocols showed that high intelligent subjects exhibited a better working method than low intelligent subjects. Working method also appeared to be a strong predictor of learning, independent of intellectual ability. No learning effects due to structuredness of learning environment could be detected.

Using the computer as a help tool during learning by doing

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the extent to which students are capable of using computerized help tools while learning to solve thermodynamics problems, in relation to their prior knowledge and intellectual ability. University students could voluntarily consult a facility with various levels of help that incorporated a systematic problem-solving approach. Think-aloud protocols were analysed on the quality of help usage and on the effectiveness of help as indicated by adoption of the Systematic Approach to Problem-solving. These measures of help usage were related to learning outcomes and student characteristics (level of expertise and intellectual ability). The results show that advanced subjects and relatively high-intelligent novices are quite capable of using the computer as a help tool. However, relatively low-intelligent novices evidently need direction in choosing the appropriate help.

Determinants of Learning in Simulation Environments across Domains

A first objective of this study was to determine the nature of the relation between intellectual ability and metacognitive skill as predictors of novice learning. More specifically, the invariability of this relationship across domains was investigated. A second objective concerned the impact of domain knowledge on the relation between intellectual ability and metacognitive skill. Twenty-eight high or low intelligent psychology students passed through three different simulation environments: Heat lab; Stat lab, and a fictitious Deton (ation) lab. They were either novice or advanced in the domain of heat theory, whereas all of them were novices in the other domains. Thinking aloud protocols were analyzed on quality of working method (an operationalization of metacognitive skillfulness). Several measures of learning assessed the declarative and procedural knowledge for each domain. Results showed that the working method of novices had a reasonable amount of common variance across domains. Furthermore, it appeared that their working method, although related to intellectual ability, partly contributed to learning independent of intellectual ability. No such relationship was established for advanced students in the domain of heat theory. Their working method in Heat lab was unrelated to intellectual ability but it was related, however, to the level of prior knowledge about heat theory.

Structure of Learning Environments and Individual Differences as Predictors of Learning

The relation between intellectual ability, working method and learning was investigated in two different simulation-based learning environments. By conducting experiments, students had to discover principles of physics theory. A structured condition offered the students guided experimentation and a structured learning sequence. An unstructured condition allowed for unguided discovery learning. Think-aloud protocols of high and low intelligent subjects were analysed on quality of working method: orientation, systematical orderliness, evaluation and elaboration. The results indicated that both intellectual ability and working method are predictors of learning, but that their mutual relation is an intricate one. No learning effects due to structure of learning could be detected.