The Effects of Student Practice on Several Types of Learning in a Functional Marriage Course

Abstract

principles to specific situations by providing practice in moving between the concrete and the abstract. This is a useful finding, as it can help functional courses be more actually functional-helping students see how knowledge is relevant to everyday life. It suggests that it can be worthwhile to spend effort and time in preparing and implementing such practice. The study suggests that this type of practice does not, however, necessarily produce substantial improvement in definitional knowledge, behavior, belief in the usefulness of the principles, or the quality of a close relationship. It may be that more practice on definitional knowledge and behavioral activities would help, but the present study cannot determine this. The workbook was about equally helpful for students involved in dating, engagement, or marriage relationships and for those who were dating infrequently or not at all, suggesting that this practice is useful for groups with a variety of relationships. It is also useful to know that the workbook was particularly helpful for those with less happy family backgrounds, as family life educators are especially interested in this group. The interaction between practice and quality of previous family life suggest that more attention be paid to the contributions of a student's own background. We believe the inquiry begun in this study should be extended by further development and research on different kinds of practice, such as more practice on definitional knowledge items and actual behavioral practice; practice with different types of feedback; practice focusing on different subject-matter areas within family life education, and practice through other media than a workbook (e.g., experimentation with helping students provide their own application exercises, and development of a structured discussion technique or other media which provide practice.) It would also be helpful to use a variety of subjects representative of the different kinds of audiences to which family life education addresses itself. Further refinements on the practice variable could include attempts to improve a written workbook of the type used in this study. Improvement of research instruments is also a need. Such endeavors can add to our knowledge about the effects of various aspects of family life education and help it better accomplish its purposes.