Title
Physically distributed learning: adapting and reinterpreting physical environments in the development of fraction concepts.
Abstract
Five studies examined how interacting with the physical environment can support the development of fraction concepts. Nine- and 10-year-old children worked on fraction problems they could not complete mentally. Experiments 1 and 2 showed that manipulating physical pieces facilitated children's ability to develop an interpretation of fractions. Experiment 3 demonstrated that when children understood a content area well, they used their interpretations to repurpose many environments to support problem solving, whereas when they needed to learn, they were prone to the structure of the environment. Experiments 4 and 5 examined transfer after children had learned by manipulating physical pieces. Children who learned by adapting relatively unstructured environments transferred to new materials better than children who learned with "well-structured" environments that did not require equivalent adaptation. Together, the findings reveal that during physically distributed learning, the opportunity to adapt an environment permits the development of new interpretations that can advance learning.
Year
DOI
Venue
2005
10.1207/s15516709cog0000_15
COGNITIVE SCIENCE
Keywords
Field
DocType
action,mathematics learning,fractions,manipulatives
Data interpretation,Cognitive psychology,Psychology,Distributed learning,Cognition,Cognitive development
Journal
Volume
Issue
ISSN
29
4.0
0364-0213
Citations 
PageRank 
References 
43
3.74
8
Authors
2
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Taylor Martin1445.11
Daniel L. Schwartz244352.94