The Jasper Series, and perspectives on students with disabilities.

Anchored instruction situates the lesson in a real-world, problem-rich environment (CTGV, 1992a) Using generative techniques (using the concepts over and over) and with an eye to both cooperative work and promoting independent thinking, the Jasper Series is most definitely anchored.
CTGV (1992a, 1992b) reports strong results in student populations in basic math concepts, word problems, generative problems, and attitudes. Students without disabilities showed a marked increase in post test scores, and heightened abilities in a related math areas. However, students with disabilities experienced different results. While the authenticity of the Jasper Series was sufficient to encourage these children to continue trying, there were some findings that are not that perhaps suggest caution in exploring Anchored Instruction with children with learning disabilities. The children with disabilities often solved the simpler aspects quickly enough, but lost interest in the more complicated multi-step problems. The study showed that these students often received too much OR too little help. The conclusion suggest that while able students benefitted wholesale from the Jasper Series, the disabled students required a carefully controlled level of guidance and encouragement in order to show improvements (Bottge et al., 2002).
Pellegrino (2008)
suggests the SMART (Scientific and Mathematical Arenas for Refined Thinking) Model with its scaffolding and visual aids components that would help refine student thinking. While not specifically addressing the learning needs of disabled students, this is still a way to increase the depth of understanding in an AI environment. Biswas et al. (2001) focus on learning more thoroughly by preparing to teach, implementing instruction, and monitoring feedback. But an AI situation can still be problematic for learning disabled students.

References

  • Biswas, G. Schwartz, D. Bransford, J. & The Teachable Agent Group at Vanderbilt (TAG-V) (2001). Technology support for complex problem solving: From SAD environments to AI. In K.D. Forbus and P.J. Feltovich (Eds.)Smart Machines in Education: The Coming Revolution in Education Technology. AAAI/MIT Press, Menlo, Park, CA.
  • Bottge, BA, Heinrichs M, Mehta, ZD, Hung, Y. (2002). Weighing the benefits of anchored math instruction for students with disabilities in general education classes. Journal of Special Education, 35, 186-200. http://ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login?url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/002246690203500401
  • Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbilt (1992a). The Jasper experiment: An exploration of issues in learning and instructional design. Educational Technology, Research and Development, 40(1), 65-80. http://ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login?url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF02296707
  • Cognition and Technology Group at Vanderbilt (1992b). The Jasper series as an example of anchored instruction: Theory, program, description, and assessment data. Educational Psychologist, 27(3), 291-315. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=18982115&site=ehost-live
  • Pellegrino, J.W. & Brophy, S. (2008). From cognitive theory to instructional practice: Technology and the evolution of anchored instruction. In Ifenthaler, Pirney-Dunner, & J.M. Spector (Eds.) Understanding models for learning and instruction, New York: Springer Science + Business Media, pp. 277-303. http://ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login?url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-76898-4_14

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