Does the Use of Diagrams as Communication Tools Result in their Internalization as Personal Tools for Problem Solving? (original) (raw)
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csjarchive.cogsci.rpi.edu
This study investigated how providing students with opportunities to use diagrams in interactive communication with peers might affect their diagram use and problem solving processes. The participants were 42 junior high school students who were assigned to a condition with peer instruction opportunities (experimental) or without (control). The peer instruction opportunities were designed to facilitate students' diagram use in communication. The results revealed that, in post-instruction assessments, the experimental participants spontaneously used more diagrams and were more successful in problem solving. No differences were found in the timing with which participants started using diagrams. However, the experimental participants used more appropriate types of diagrams that also incorporated more relevant information. The findings therefore indicate that opportunities for peer communication with diagrams facilitate not only enhanced spontaneity in diagram use but also the construction of more appropriate, detailed diagrams, and these in turn likely contribute to better problem solving performance outcomes.
Peer instruction as a way of promoting spontaneous use of diagrams when solving math word problems
Proceedings of the 29th Annual …, 2007
Although using diagrams is generally considered one of the most effective strategies for solving math word problems, research and educational practice reports indicate that students lack spontaneity in their use of diagrams. In an attempt to address this problem, the present study investigated the hypothesis that creating situations whereby students have to teach other students how to solve math word problems with the use of diagrams would promote those students' subsequent spontaneous use of diagrams. Experimental classes were conducted with 57 8th-grade students for five days. Participants in the experimental condition were all given opportunities to explain to other students in their group their way of solving the math word problems given. In contrast, in the control condition, only some of the students were given opportunities to make presentations in front of the class about their way of solving the problems. In both conditions, the teacher encouraged diagram use during the instructions provided. The main finding was that, in the post-instruction assessment, those in the experimental condition evidenced greater spontaneous use of diagrams in attempting to solve the math word problems given. This finding suggests that, as a consequence of the peer teaching experience -which provided opportunities for the use of diagrams as communication tools -participants internalized diagrams as tools for problem solving. The protocol of peer interaction was also analyzed to better understand the mechanisms involved in this effect.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2016
This study investigated the efficacy of providing a hint, instruction, and practice in promoting spontaneous diagram use in the written work of 21 students undertaking an undergraduate course in education. The course required the students to regularly produce for homework a one-page explanation of what they had learned. In the first few weeks of the course, they rarely included diagrams in their explanations. Following a hint to use diagrams (provided as comment/feedback on their homework), diagram use significantly increased. When instruction in effective use of diagrams was provided, the level of diagram use maintained but did not increase. However, when practice in using diagrams was additionally provided, further significant increases in diagram use followed, which maintained over the ensuing weeks of the course. These findings suggest that to spontaneously use diagrams in their written work, students need to be provided a combination of advice, instruction, and practice in such use.
THE USE OF DIAGRAMS IN SOLVING NON ROUTINE PROBLEMS
2004
This paper explores the role of diagrams in a specific problem solving process. Two types of tests were administered to 194, 12 year old students, each of which consisted of six non-routine problems that could be solved with the use of a diagram. In Test A students were asked to respond to the problems in any way they whished whereas in Test B problems were accompanied by diagrams and students were asked to solve these problems with the use of the specific diagrams presented. The results revealed that there was no statistical significant difference between the two tests. The result also revealed that it was not the same group of students that were successful in the two tests.
Science and engineering students’ use of diagrams during note taking versus explanation
Educational Studies, 2013
The use of diagrams in learning and communication is generally considered efficacious and an important skill to cultivate, especially among science students. At the same time, previous research has revealed many problems in student diagram use, including a lack of spontaneity in such use, but the extent to which these problems persist into the tertiary level had not been investigated. The present study examined science and engineering university students’ use of diagrams in note taking to learn information from a written passage, and in a subsequent task of constructing an explanation of that information for another person. The results showed that the students used significantly fewer diagrams in explaining compared to when they were note taking, suggesting that many students may lack awareness of the usefulness of diagrams in effectively communicating information to others. The results also revealed that the students used significantly more diagrams in taking notes from and explaining a passage with higher imageability (i.e. easier to visually imagine) compared to one with lower imageability. Educational implications of the findings are discussed.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2022
Diagrams are considered a powerful strategy for understanding and problem-solving. Self-explanation is believed to be behind the effectiveness of diagrams. However, it is not clear to what extent students engage in self-explanation. The possibility that students do not always engage in self-explanation is suggested by empirical studies showing that diagrams do not always produce efficacious outcomes. Ichikawa [1] also argued that it is unclear how students interpret diagrams and discussed the need to have students explain themselves using diagrams. In science learning, diagrams effectively help students learn the principles behind phenomena. Having students use diagrams to explain phenomena may help them understand the principles of the phenomena correctly and integrate their knowledge effectively across subject areas. Therefore, in this study, we developed lesson instructions in which students were required to explain the phenomenon using diagrams after the teacher had explained it. Students were also given the opportunity to solve the problem collaboratively after the explanation had been provided. The study involved 71 8th-grade students in one school. Fifty-eight same grade students from a traditional public school also participated in the study and served as the control group. A "basic knowledge test", which tested students' knowledge in a fill-in-the-blank format, and a "principle understanding test" and "transfer test," which tested students' knowledge in an explanation format, were administered. The results demonstrated no significant difference in the basic knowledge test, but the score in the principle understanding test and the transfer knowledge test was higher for the students who received the experimental instruction. This study indicates that deeper understanding is facilitated by combining the experience of using diagrams with peer explanation.
Mental Representations of Diagrams, Views about Diagrams, and Problem Solving
palm.mindmodeling.org
This study investigated people's mental representations of diagrams and whether these related to views about diagrams and problem solving performance. The participants were 93 undergraduate students who were asked to complete a questionnaire which included free writing on the topic of diagrams, and problem solving. Analysis of the statements and ideas that the students wrote revealed four categories through which diagrams may be mentally represented: uses/purposes, exemplars, personal opinions, and structure. Personal opinions responses were found to negatively correlate with views about the usefulness of diagrams, and with experiences and confidence in using diagrams. In contrast, responses about the uses/purposes of diagrams positively correlated with confidence in using diagrams. Evidence was also found suggesting that, among students studying math, greater knowledge about the uses/purposes of diagrams facilitated better problem solving performance.