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THE EFFECTS OF PRIOR KNOWLEDGE ACTIVATION ON LEARNER RETENTION OF NEW CONCEPTS IN LEARNING OBJECTS
Title
THE EFFECTS OF PRIOR KNOWLEDGE ACTIVATION ON LEARNER RETENTION OF NEW CONCEPTS IN LEARNING OBJECTS.
Creator
Henderson, Kelsey, Hirumi, Atsusi, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Establishing relationships between a learner's prior knowledge and any new concepts he or she will be expected to learn is an important instructional activity. Learning objects are often devoid of such activities in an attempt to maintain their conciseness and reusability in a variety of instructional contexts. The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of using questioning as a prior knowledge activation strategy in learning objects. Previous research on the use prior...
Show moreEstablishing relationships between a learner's prior knowledge and any new concepts he or she will be expected to learn is an important instructional activity. Learning objects are often devoid of such activities in an attempt to maintain their conciseness and reusability in a variety of instructional contexts. The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of using questioning as a prior knowledge activation strategy in learning objects. Previous research on the use prior knowledge activation strategies supports their effectiveness in helping to improve learner retention. Approaches such as questioning, advance organizers, and group discussions are examples of techniques used in previous studies. Participants enrolled in a Navy engineering curriculum were randomly assigned to two groups (experimental and comparison). The experimental group was exposed to a prior knowledge activation component at the start of session I, while the comparison group received no treatment. Participants in both groups were tested at three different times during the course of the study– the pretest, at the start of session 1, posttest I, at the conclusion of session1, and posttest II, during session 2. The findings indicate that the prior knowledge activation strategy did not result in statistically significant differences between the levels of retention gained by the experimental and comparison groups. Due to administrative constraints experienced during the course of the study, statistical power was not achieved due to an insufficiently sized sample. Potential limitations and implications for future research directions are described.
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Date Issued
2007
Identifier
CFE0001739, ucf:47307
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001739
The Relationship Between Comprehension of Descriptive and Sequential Expository Texts and Reader Characteristics in Typically Developing Kindergarten Children
Title
The Relationship Between Comprehension of Descriptive and Sequential Expository Texts and Reader Characteristics in Typically Developing Kindergarten Children.
Creator
Zadroga, Cheran, Schwartz, Jamie, Kent-Walsh, Jennifer, Nye, Chad, Lieberman, Rita, Hahs-Vaughn, Debbie, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Researchers have found that children need to be proficient in reading and writing expository text to succeed academically as well as in their future careers. More than ever before, children in primary grade classrooms are being exposed to and expected to comprehend a variety expository text types. However, empirical evidence to support the use of expository texts in kindergarten classrooms, in particular, is sorely lacking. To begin to fill this gap, this study was conducted to investigate...
Show moreResearchers have found that children need to be proficient in reading and writing expository text to succeed academically as well as in their future careers. More than ever before, children in primary grade classrooms are being exposed to and expected to comprehend a variety expository text types. However, empirical evidence to support the use of expository texts in kindergarten classrooms, in particular, is sorely lacking. To begin to fill this gap, this study was conducted to investigate kindergarten children's comprehension of two types of expository text structures (i.e., descriptive and sequential) commonly found in kindergarten classrooms. Specifically, the aims of the study were three fold: (1) to investigate if there is a relationship between prior knowledge and the comprehension of descriptive or sequential expository text; (2) to determine if the comprehension of descriptive and sequential expository text are important predictors of performance on the Token Test for Children-2 (TTFC-2) and the Assessment of Literacy and Language (ALL); and (3) to determine if there is a correlation between the descriptive and sequential expository text comprehension measures (i.e., retelling of expository text and answering comprehension questions) on the researcher created Expository Text Protocol.The sample included 45 typically developing kindergarten children (ages 5 years, 8 months to 6 years, 10 months). All children passed a vision and a hearing screening; were enrolled in kindergarten for the first time (no history of retention); scored within the normal range on a non-verbal intelligence screener; and, were not receiving services in the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) program or the Exceptional Student Education (ESE) program. Each child participated in two, one-hour, assessment sessions on two separate days. During the sessions, children were administered formal (i.e., TTFC-2 (&) ALL) and informal (i.e., Expository Text Protocol) assessments, counter balanced across the sessions. The standardized tests were administered in the prescribed manner. During administration of the researcher created Expository Text Protocol children listened first to either an illustrated descriptive expository text or an illustrated sequential expository text read aloud by a researcher. After the reading, the children either first retold the text without the use of the corresponding expository text or answered a set of 12 comprehension questions for each type of expository text (i.e., descriptive and sequential). The order of the retelling and comprehension questions were counter balanced across children. Simple linear regressions, multiple linear regressions, and partial correlational analyses were used to assess the data obtained in this study. The research findings indicated that a statistically significant relationship exists between the comprehension of expository text and the following reader characteristics: listening comprehension ability, language ability, and literacy ability. However, a statistically significant relationship was not found between the comprehension of the expository text types and prior knowledge. In addition, a statistically significant relationship was found between each of the two types of comprehension measures: retelling of descriptive and sequential expository texts and answering comprehension questions related to each type of text.This investigation revealed that the incorporation of descriptive and sequential expository text structures into the kindergarten curricula is appropriate and the exposure to expository texts may facilitate language and literacy growth and build upon kindergarten children's existing prior knowledge. In turn, exposure to expository texts also may be beneficial in expanding children's use of expository language found in these types of texts. Future research is needed to examine kindergarten children's comprehension of other types of expository text structures found in kindergarten classrooms.
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Date Issued
2016
Identifier
CFE0006426, ucf:51479
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006426