Do learning protocols support learning strategies and outcomes? The role of cognitive and metacognitive prompts

doi:10.1016/j.learninstruc.2007.09.007

Learning and Instruction

Volume 17, Issue 5, October 2007, Pages 564-577

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2007.09.007 Get rights and content

Abstract

Although writing learning protocols is an effective follow-up course work activity, many learners tend to do it in a rather suboptimal way. Hence, we analyzed the effects of instructional support in the form of prompts. The effects of different types of prompts were investigated in an experiment with four conditions: cognitive prompts, metacognitive prompts, a combination of cognitive and metacognitive prompts, or no prompts (N = 84 undergraduate psychology students). We found that the prompts stimulated the elicitation of cognitive and metacognitive learning strategies. The provision of purely metacognitive prompts did not, however, improve learning outcomes. Only the groups who had received cognitive, or a combination of cognitive and metacognitive, prompts learned more than the control group. This effect was mediated by cognitive learning strategies. The learners in the successful groups did not perceive the prompted learning strategies as more helpful than the learners of the group without prompts. It can be concluded that cognitive prompts—alone or in combination with metacognitive prompts—are an effective means to foster learning. However, additional means should be employed in order to convince the learner of the usefulness of such prompts.

Introduction

Typically, the contents of lessons and lectures “evaporate” rather quickly. After the learners have left the classroom or the lecture auditorium, few continue to organize or elaborate the material to which they were just exposed. As a consequence, a lack of understanding and poor long-term retention can result. Furthermore, illusions of understanding are likely to occur. A learning method that may help to overcome these shortcomings is the writing of learning protocols as follow-up course work. In a learning protocol, the learners are supposed to apply cognitive and metacognitive strategies. Again, however, many learners do not engage in such strategies to the expected extent. Against this background, we experimentally analyzed the effects of varying sets of prompts for writing a learning protocol on understanding and retention.

Section snippets

Learning protocols and learning journals

A learning protocol—as conceptualized in this article—is a writing assignment for learners to be performed as a follow-up course work activity. Learners are instructed to write down a text in which they reflect on the previously presented learning contents. In addition, they should ask themselves what they do not understand, why not, and finally, what can be done to bridge the gap in understanding. When a series of learning protocols is written over a longer period of time, it is termed

Cognitive and metacognitive strategies in writing learning protocols

Typically, a learning protocol is not merely a documentation of a writer's learning outcomes and learning processes elicited in a preceding learning episode (e.g., a lecture or seminar session). Rather, it is an opportunity to engage in planning, drafting, and revising (see Hayes & Flower, 1980). Such writing activities contribute to learning by transforming the writer's knowledge (Bereiter, 1980, Bereiter and Scardamalia, 1987). For example, a writer can evaluate a preliminary draft in order

Effects of learning protocols and learning journals

Although keeping some type of learning journal is a common requirement in many instructional courses in North America, little empirical research has been conducted on whether these practices actually increase learning, and if so, how (Connor-Greene, 2000, Garmon, 1998). While some studies on the effectiveness of writing learning journals have been conducted, the bulk are characterized by an assessment of attitudinal indicators rather than learning processes and learning outcome measures.

Supporting the writing of learning protocols by prompts

Prompts are questions or hints that induce productive learning processes. They are designed to overcome superficial processing (King, 1992, Pressley et al., 1984, Wong, 1985). We conceive of prompts as strategy activators (Reigeluth & Stein, 1983) because they induce learning strategies that the learners are, in principle, capable of, but do not spontaneously demonstrate, or demonstrate to an unsatisfactory degree. King, 1992, King, 1994 obtained positive results with prompts for follow-up

Research questions

Although the writing of learning protocols is a successful type of follow-up course work, cognitive and metacognitive processing in “naïve” learning protocols have turned out to be suboptimal (Nückles et al., 2004). Therefore, learners should be supported in order to exploit the full potential of this learning method. It is sensible to use prompts to elicit cognitive and metacognitive strategies. However, previous research on learning protocols did not analyze systematic variations of cognitive

Design and participants

A one-factorial laboratory experiment with repeated measurements was conducted. The participants were 84 undergraduate students of psychology (65 females, 19 males). By their participation, the students could fulfill part of the psychology program's requirement to participate in empirical studies. About 75% of the participants were first-semester students. The experimental groups did not differ with respect to the number of terms at university and attended seminars and lectures in Developmental

Results

Table 2 presents the mean scores and standard deviations for each experimental group on the pretest, the learning strategy measures of the protocols, the outcome measures, and the perceived helpfulness. Furthermore, the mean Fisher-Z correlations representing the accuracy of self-assessment were included in Table 2. These dependent measures were subjected to analyses of variance that answered our research questions. According to the recommendations of Rosenthal and Rosnow (1985); (see also

Discussion

We systematically varied cognitive and metacognitive prompts and analyzed their effects on learning strategies, learning outcomes, accuracy of self-assessment, and perceived helpfulness. The results revealed five contributions to the literature on writing learning protocols and learning journals as follow-up course work: (1) It was possible to prompt cognitive and metacognitive learning strategies by means of prompts. (2) The elicitation of cognitive learning strategies or cognitive and

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¹: Current address: Department of Psychology, Instructional and School Psychology, University of Goettingen, Germany.

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