title: Promoting transfer: effects of self-explanation and direct instruction.
abstract: Explaining new ideas to oneself can promote transfer, but how and when such self-explanation is effective is unclear. This study evaluated whether self-explanation leads to lasting improvements in transfer success and whether it is more effective in combination with direct instruction or invention. Third- through fifth-grade children (ages 8-11; n=85) learned about mathematical equivalence under one of four conditions varying in (a) instruction on versus invention of a procedure and (b) self-explanation versus no explanation. Both self-explanation and instruction helped children learn and remember a correct procedure, and self-explanation promoted transfer regardless of instructional condition. Neither manipulation promoted greater improvements on an independent measure of conceptual knowledge. Microgenetic analyses provided insights into potential mechanisms underlying these effects.
authors.affiliation: Vanderbilt University, TN 37203, USA. bethany.rittle-johnson@vanderbilt.edu
authors.forename: Bethany
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rittle-Johnson
mesh_terms: D001521:Behavior Therapy; D002648:Child; D032882:Comprehension; D003210:Concept Formation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D008433:Mathematics; D011340:Problem Solving; D012057:Reinforcement, Verbal; D014163:Transfer, Psychology