Evaluating the efficacy of a learning trajectory for early shape composition

Although basing instruction on learning trajectories (LTs) is often recommended, there is little direct evidence regarding the premise of a LT approach—that instruction should be presented (only) one LT level beyond a child’s present level. We evaluated this hypothesis in the domain of early shape composition. One group of preschoolers, who were at least two levels below the target instructional LT level, received instruction based on an empirically-validated LT. The counterfactual, skip-levels, group received an equal amount of instruction focused only on the target level. At posttest, children in the LT condition exhibited significantly greater learning than children in the skip-levels condition, mainly on near-transfer items; no child-level variables were significant moderators. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

尽管以学习轨迹（learning trajectories，LT）为基础开展教学常被推荐，但针对LT教学法的核心前提——即教学应仅在儿童当前水平之上推进一个LT层级——的直接实证证据却十分匮乏。本研究在早期图形组合领域对该假设进行了验证：一组当前水平至少较目标教学LT层级低两个层级的学龄前儿童，接受了基于经实证验证的LT开展的教学；另一组为跳级教学组，他们接受了等量且仅聚焦于目标层级的教学。在后测中，LT教学组儿童的学习成效显著优于跳级教学组，该差异主要体现在近迁移项目上；且未发现儿童个体层面的变量发挥显著调节作用。本研究最后讨论了其对理论与实践的启示。