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Cognitive theory: an exploration of learning techniques to enhance student motivation and information retention in anatomy and physiology
Author(s) -
Bruzzini Kristen Blake
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.21.5.a222
Subject(s) - presentation (obstetrics) , variety (cybernetics) , cognition , interactive learning , psychology , peer learning , active learning (machine learning) , mathematics education , multimedia , computer science , medicine , neuroscience , artificial intelligence , radiology
Cognitive psychology stresses that memory is strongly influenced by learners' actions as they attempt to interpret new information. Students' ability to learn and remember material presented in anatomy and physiology is largely due to their prior knowledge, personal objectives, and the learning strategies they use. Cognitive theory supports a more interactive approach to learning. This study examines a variety of learning strategies that minimize student passivity, focus on individual students' needs, and provide a more interesting presentation in hopes of improving the typical lecture format. The study focuses on a group of two second semester anatomy and physiology courses with a total of 65 students. Interactive strategies such as small group discussions, peer teaching, and group projects were implemented to encourage students to use information from past experiences to help them to actively process the new information presented in lecture. Students answered several questions related to the interactive learning techniques assigned through out the course of the semester on a scale system from one to three. They were then asked to provide additional feedback on the strategies. Overall, students were receptive to the interactive learning techniques that took place in and out of lecture. Student performance improved and retention increased over the course of a six‐month period.