Response process validity evidence provides a window into a respondent's cognitive processing. The purpose of this study is to describe a new data collection tool called a whole-class think aloud (WCTA). This work is performed as part of test development for a series of problem-solving measures to be used in elementary and middle grades. Data from…

This paper argues that development of students' evaluative judgement capability, which encapsulates a range of cognitive and social skills, should be considered as a primary objective of the collaborative problem-solving assessment practices in engineering. This is a response to call for preparing job-ready students. To meet the multiple demands…

Spaced and interleaved practices have been identified as effective learning strategies which sometimes are conflated as a single strategy and at other times treated as distinct. Learning sessions in which studying information or practicing problems are spaced in time with rest-from-deliberate-learning periods between sessions generally result in…

How do people use information from others to solve complex problems? Prior work has addressed this question by placing people in social learning situations where the problems they were asked to solve required varying degrees of exploration. This past work uncovered important interactions between groups' "connectivity" and the problem's…

The study focuses on assessing the proficiency levels of higher education students, specifically the physics achievement test (PHY 101) at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN). This test, like others, evaluates various aspects of knowledge and skills simultaneously. However, relying on traditional models for such tests can result in…

Teachers are often perplexed realizing students ending up with different understandings of the same lesson after attending the same class. This study investigates the use of Variation Theory as a pedagogical design tool in improving students' problem-solving skills in trigonometry. This action research utilizing the 'Learning Study' approach was…

Mathematical problem-solving is a core content of primary school education. Therefore, it is necessary to provide all students with a meaningful way of acquisition of problem-solving skills. The objective of this research was to verify the effectiveness of a problem-solving routine based on the Pólya's model and the use of cognitive strategies…

A quantitative literacy course titled "Computational Geology" has been taught at the University of South Florida for over 20 years at the undergraduate level, largely by the same professor. Due to the extended course tenure, a unique opportunity presented itself to qualitatively study what the perceived broader impacts of the course were…

Collaborative drawing is a multimodal approach to examining problems within small groups of individuals when the perspectives of multiple stakeholders should be considered. Collaborative drawing can be useful for helping students visualize and analyze a challenging problem from different world views and provide opportunities to confront, discuss,…

Self-explanation is a process by which learners generate inferences about causal connections or conceptual relationships. A meta-analysis was conducted on research that investigated learning outcomes for participants who received self-explanation prompts while studying or solving problems. Our systematic search of relevant bibliographic databases…

Due to the nature of the teaching environment, students may often develop perceptions of their lecturers' ability as mathematicians, based on the pre-prepared and well-rehearsed content they present. In reality, performing mathematical calculations and solving problems is a difficult skill, and students may compare their own experiences…

Mathematical proficiency is essential to supporting students' success in learning mathematics. It is the ability to use conceptual understanding, procedural fluency, strategic competence, adaptive reasoning, and productive disposition in problem-solving. Cognitive independence shows students' ability to process information. Meanwhile, motivation…

Efficient collaborative learning relies on productive interaction among learners. Previous studies have suggested that group gender composition might affect the group dynamics. While previous studies have generally focused on the learning performance of different gender groups, relatively little effort has been devoted to scrutinising the learning…

Meta-reasoning refers to processes by which people monitor problem-solving activities and regulate effort investment. Solving is hypothesized to begin with an initial Judgment of Solvability (iJOS)--the solver's first impression as to whether the problem is solvable--which guides solving attempts. Meta-reasoning research has largely neglected…

When incorporating the environment into mental processing (cf., "cognitive offloading"), one creates novel cognitive strategies that have the potential to improve task performance. Improved performance can, for example, mean faster problem solving, more accurate solutions, or even higher grades at university. Although cognitive…