The use of a cognitive tutoring system in the improvement of the abstract reasoning component of word problem solving

Abstract

This study evaluated the Word Problem Solving (WPS) Tutor's ability to improve the abstract reasoning component of word problem solving. Six hundred and thirty-two ninth grade students were assigned to three groups: a control group exposed to traditional group instruction, a placebo group exposed to traditional group instruction plus a computerized word problem solving environment with no active tutoring, and an experimental group exposed to traditional group instruction and a computerized word problem solving environment with active tutoring. A paper and pencil test was administered to students at the beginning of the school year, at mid-term, and at the end of the school year and was used to compare the performance of the three groups on the concrete and abstract components of word problem solving. Results indicated that WPS-Tutored students improved significantly more than either the control group or the placebo group on both the abstract and concrete reasoning subtests. However, performance gains on the abstract subtest were not as large as the gains on the concrete subtest. Implications for math education and suggestions for future research and development efforts are discussed.