Cognitive Factors in Learning and Retention of Procedural Tasks
Abstract
Procedural tasks, the most important and necessary type of task for Navy mission readiness, consist of an ordered sequence of steps or operations performed on a single object or in a specific situation. They involve few decisions, are generally performed the same way every time, and are frequently not well retained. In Navy technical ratings, personnel must maintain high levels of procedural skill and knowledge to able to perform their jobs successfully. This effort was conducted to: (1) develop a taxonomy of qualitative explanations for teaching procedural tasks and (2) test the effects of qualitative explanations on learning, initial performance, and retention of an assembly procedural task. A literature review identified and defined three types of qualitative explanations--linear, structural, and functional--as well as four types of procedural tasks--operator, maintenance/repair/assembly, paper- based, and locating information and/or objects. The hypotheses generated by the taxonomy of qualitative explanation and procedural tasks were tested empirically using a procedural assembly task. The results suggest the importance of prior knowledge and experience when prescribing guidelines for instructional development.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1986
- Accession Number
- ADA176105
Entities
People
- John A. Ellis
- Paula J. Konoske