When Students Can Choose Their Practice (Exploration of Practice Formats in Context of High School Geometry)

• In Event: Roundtable Session 20
  In Roundtable Session: Intervening in Algebra

Abstract

This experiment investigated the effects of different practice formats on high school students’ performance in geometry. Participants were self-rating their knowledge of geometry subtopics, and then pre-tested on the same subtopics. Afterward, a deliberate practice group was presented with geometry problems targeting their weak areas, while a self-choice group was choosing their practice problems from the same booklet. Feedback on each of the solutions was provided to both groups. Preliminary findings indicate that the benefits of the practice format are conditional upon the learners level of prior knowledge; and depending on this level one or the other format should be recommended. The instructional implications and directions for future research are discussed in light of a deliberate practice paradigm

Author

• Mariya Pachman, Macquarie University