Abstract
This single-group experimental, pre-test, post-test study examined the effect of Cognitive Retraining and Sex on 'On-Task' Behaviour and Level of Aspiration of sixteen fifth class children from three schools, with learning problems in mathematics (N = 8 male subjects & 8 female subjects). Subjects' academic and non-academic 'on task' and 'off task' time, behaviour and level of aspiration was studied, along with the kind of problem the subjects experienced in Maths. The subjects performed poorly, especially in the area of word problems as well as had a problem in remaining 'on task' during academic tasks and spent most of the time "off task' exhibiting irrelevant behaviour; whereas non-academic tasks had no difficulty in keeping the subjects 'on task'.
A comparison of the male and female subjects showed that the female subjects' academic 'on task' time was greater, whereas the male subjects remained more 'off task' than 'on task'. But both male and female subjects' performance in Maths, especially word-problems was poor. However, the male subjects' level of aspiration was greater than that of the female subjects.
Cognitive retraining was carried out in the area of Numerical and Word problems, academic 'on task' time and level of aspiration. The strategy which was used encompassing all the above areas was S P E A K - S = See, read and understand, P = Plan and Think, E = Examine and Verbalize, A = Answer and K = check. After receiving cognitive training for thirty days the subjects were post-tested. An analysis of the subjects' data showed that their mathematical performance improved significantly. Their academic 'on task' time also showed significant improvement whereas their 'off task' time and behaviours decreased significantly both for academic and non-academic tasks. However, the improvement for non-academic 'on task' time was not as significant as in the case of academic 'on task' time. All this was translated into an increased level of aspiration.
Cognitive retraining improved the male and female subjects' performance in Maths equally. But the male and female subjects differed in their academic and non-academic 'on task' and 'off task' time. Both showed equal improvement in the behaviours exhibited during 'off task'. The male and female subjects differed significantly in their level of aspiration even after the treatment. The effect of instruction was generalised to the classroom setting where a significant spill over effect of the cognitive retraining revealed an improvement in the scholastic performance of the subjects in Maths.
The need to 'learn more about learning' has grown from whisper to a cry of greater intensity (Bruner, 1966, Krumboltz, 1965) A number of professional groups, in a manner, never previously realised, are deeply concerned about how children learn and why they do not learn ?
Schools are considered to train young people to be effective learners. Acquiring knowledge in schools is a lengthy and difficult process demanding a great deal of time and effort on the part of the student. Most children are able to learn without much difficulty but there are some who find it hard to cope with the school curriculum. These children when presented with instructional material fail to learn optimally. All these children share a common problem. They are unable to meet independently the academic and organisational demands of school. Being able to work independently is a skill that becomes increasingly important as students move through grades.
According to Ager and Cole (1991) cognitive behavioural interventions differ from traditional operant techniques in that attempts are made to influence the cognitive processes of participants in order to bring about behavioural change. Cognitive behavioural instructions attempt to modify behaviour by bringing changes in individual's intellectual or social cognition. The cognitive approach to instruction stresses on interactive learning between the teacher and the learner. Deluke and Knoblock (1987) point out that thinking is a buffer between feelings and behaviour. Strategies such as coaching, modeling, self-instruction, self talk and social problem solving activities teach youngsters to think before they act. Thus, training in learning strategies can improve performance, motivation and 'on task' behaviour. Strategies are secret algorithms for learning (Duffy, 1982) Strategies are different from skills in that strategy has a purpose, it has a sequence of activities and is more readily modified to suit the consent, whereas a skill is more specific and reflexive. The trick is to provide strategy training so that task time increases, the motivation deserved from the relevance and completeness of the activity carves the pathway to academic achievement and success.
Mathematics learning has been reconceptualised as a constructive process through which learning to previously acquired concepts is restructured and reorganised. The premise of this perspective is that individuals set goals that lead to the construction of new goals and new knowledge, thus producing a spiral effect in learning (Saxe 1991). In this view, not only cognitive development but also social interactions, affective development and the context for learning, are regarded as influential factors in mathematical learning.
The purpose of the present study was to identify the type of learning problems that children, encounter in Mathematics. Children's ability to remain "On task" was examined in two contexts; academic tasks and non-academic tasks. Academic tasks included numerical and word problems in Mathematics whereas non-academic tasks included simple tasks like coloring, to complex tasks like fitting a 25 piece puzzle. Each of the tasks were timed and recordings were made in respect of -
The investigations included the inter play of factors associated with learning and performance such as, level of aspiration, "on task" time and behavior.
METHOD
The participants were 16 fifth grade students with learning problems attending regular schools in the metropolitan city of Mumbai. Subject selection was made following a stepwise criteria: (1) Identification of the children with learning problems was done by selecting all students scoring below Mean - 1.5 SD in school examination in Mathematics. (2) To eliminate the effect of reading comprehension on achievement in Math. from the identified sample of subjects at stage 1, only those students who scored above group mean on Test of Reading Comprehension were included; (3). Considering that poor performance could be due to several other factors, the Test of Mathematical Ability (TOMA) Form A was administered and all subjects scoring below Mean - 1 SD on TOMA From A were selected to constitute the final sample. These were the children with learning problems in Mathematics.
Table: Stages of Sample Selection
| Sr No | School | No of students in the class | stage I | stage II | stage III | stage IV |
| 1 | A | 253 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 4 males |
| 2 | B | 235 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 4 females |
| 3 | C | 301 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 8 - 4 males 4 females |
| Total | 789 | 39 | 39 | 30 | 16 |
The subjects who were pre tested on TOMA Form A (N = 16) were tested individually on academic and non-academic tasks. Academic tasks consisted of TOMA (Form B) with section A and C comprising of numerical problems and section B, D consisting of word problems. The Non-Academic tasks were coloring, sorting and fitting of a puzzle. Each Academic Task was followed by a Non-Academic task and data was recorded for each subject:
The level of Aspiration Coding Test was administered individually to determine the aspiration level of the subjects.
The Experimental treatment consisted of strategy training provided to the subjects in groups of 4 each in solving numerical problems and word problems in Math for a period of 15 hrs., for 12 days spread over 5 weeks. Strategy instruction in the strategy called S P E A K was carried out in the following steps: -
After the treatment the subjects were individually post tested on Academic and Non-Academic tasks. The subjects were also post tested on the test of level of aspiration after the treatment.
STRATEGY TRAINING
The strategy S P E A K was taught to the subjects to enable them to solve mathematical problems given in TOMA. S P E A K comprised of the following steps: -
Instruction emphasized the student's role of an active collaborator. The steps were explicitly and overtly modeled by the researcher with responsibility placed on the student for recruiting and applying the strategy gradually. The goals of instruction and significance of the strategy and accompanying self-instruction was also emphasized. Mastery at each step was ensured before moving on to the next step.
The strategy was first applied to numerical problems and then to word problems. Strategy instruction was typically 30 minutes long and occurred 3 times a week for 5 weeks. Ten to fifteen minutes after each of the sessions were reserved for discussion and reflection and views of the subjects.
RESULTS
The results of this study were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. The results showed that the cognitive strategy training had a significant positive effect on the performance of the subjects at post test on the academic task TOMA Form B. A significant difference between the two means obtained at pre-, and post-test (t = 7.07 P < .01, and F = 36.00 P < .01) showed the significant effect of strategy training on the performance of the subjects at the post-test. Strategy usage by the subjects enhanced the "on task" time (t = 5.79, and F = 62.50) from pre-, to post test. The "off task" behaviour also decreased (F = 52.25) at the post test.
Though the improvement was observed on non-academic tasks too, the difference from pre-, to post test was not statistically significant. The "off task" time (t = 1.83) did not show a significant improvement.
Perhaps, the anxiety that was experienced by the subjects was less during non-academic tasks and therefore the time spent on task was less even before strategy training. The non-academic 'off task' time decreased significantly (t = 6.30 P < .01) because the subjects became more organised as a result of strategy training.
The total time spent for both academic tasks (t = 5.30 P < .01) and non-academic tasks (t = 6.30 P < .01) decreased significantly from pre-, to post test. Probably, the subjects became more task oriented. All this had a positive effect on the motivation of the subjects, and the level of aspiration increased significantly from pre-, to post test (t = 20.30 P < .01, F = 428.16 P < .01).
The male and female subjects did not differ significantly at the post-test (F = 2.59) on TOMA . But on academic "on task" time and "off task" time the male and female subjects differed significantly (F =989.00, P < .001 F = 18.88 P < .001 respectively). Moreover, for non-academic tasks the male and female "on task" time was not significantly different (F = 25.39 P < .001). The total time spent for academic (t = 5.97 P < .01) and non-academic tasks (t = 5.83 P < .01) was different for male and female subjects.
For both academic and non-academic "off task" behaviors (F = 1.03, 0.63 respectively), the spill over effect of the strategy training was observed in the subject's scholastic achievement. All the subjects showed significant improvement from first term examination to the second term examination (t = 9.58, P < .01). This indicated that the strategy training had helped the subjects become independent learners and be able to take the school examination successfully.
DISCUSSION
The fifth graders selected for the study were identified as showing poor performance in mathematics, decreased "on task" time, greater "off task" time and behaviour and low level of aspiration. The subjects showed inability to receive, attend, organize, integrate and receive information at the required time.
Strategy training and its usage by the subjects resulted in improved performance and corresponding increase in "on task" time, decrease in "off task" time and behaviour and increase in level of aspiration. Most impressive gains were observed in word problems (section B & D of TOMA form A & B). With increased competence the subjects were able to understand and organize the content, verbalize their thinking process and self monitor and check their performance. The teachers of the subjects also indicated that the students used the strategy in the classroom and the students reported that they used self-instructions in other learning situations too. The results of the present study confirmed that the strategy instruction was effective for addressing mathematical problems exhibited by the students (Leon and Pepe, 1983, Montague and Bos, 1986).
In the initial stages of strategy training the subjects needed a lot of time to get convinced that strategy training could help. They needed explicit instruction initially and had a lot of difficulty in attending to the modeling of the strategy. The subjects needed time to practice and internalise the strategy, later they became active participants in each session.
Strategy training not only improved the performance of the subjects, it increased their academic "on task" time and decreased "off task" time and behaviours. The subjects were able to regulate their academic behaviour. It was noted that Maths related anxiety and phobia exhibited by the subjects at pre-test reduced after the experimental treatment in strategy training and usage. The subjects became more bold and confident in solving mathematical problems at the post-test. Strategy training resulted in protecting the subjects from environmental distraction and providing a 'push' to encourage the required behaviours. Thus, strategy training provides an instruction that protects cognitive and metacognitive process from extraneous factors and perhaps reduces the potential "resistance" that occurs in alternative behaviour. The groups of male and female subjects became more homogeneous in terms of "on task" time, "off task" time and total time at the post test. Reid and Harris (1993) also found that "off task" time and behaviour decreased due to self monitoring.
The subjects in this study were taught to apply the strategy in one skill area at a time, with an intention that the subjects would generalize the strategy to other skill areas. Group cohesiveness and peer tutoring were seen to emerge as a result of strategy training.
During the non-academic tasks, the subjects did not show signs of anxiety and helplessness, hence they remained more "on task" and less "off task" as compared to the academic tasks.
The mean gain from pre-, to post test in "on task" time of male subjects on academic tasks was higher (48%) than that of the female subjects (15%). However, the male and female subjects remained "off task" more or less the same time. The male subjects did not reach the level of performance of female subjects even after the treatment. Both male and female subjects improved their performance from pre-, to post test. The step by step training in planning, executing and monitoring the tasks reduced anxiety and helped the subjects increase their "on task" time. The emphasis laid during strategy training, on the 'process' rather than the 'product' helped the subjects organise their work better. But a significant difference was observed between male and female subjects with regard to "on task" time. The female subjects showed an edge over their male counter parts.
The level of aspiration of students is dependent upon their personal experiences related to the task. Experience of academic problems and repeated failures by the subjects made them feel that the school tasks were difficult and not worth the effort. They lacked the ability to cope with the scholastic problems. Chapman (1988) reported that the subjects experiencing academic failures tend to doubt their abilities and blame themselves for their academic failures. Pajares and Millers (1994) found that negative expectation and motivational problems may be reduced by interventions to eliminate deficits in mathematical skills. In the present study the level of aspiration of the subjects increased significantly after the strategy training. The subjects learned to guide and monitor their efforts in a strategic manner. Strategy training provided students with the self corrective feedback and helped them to relate their strategy training to real life tasks (Wong, 1993, Verma, 1997) The subjects realisation of the need to aspire and improve performance in Maths, played a significant role in educational outcomes. With improved performance the cognitive overload faced with complex mathematical tasks was reduced and thus level of aspiration increased significantly after the subjects became strategic learners. This was witnessed in the classroom situations when the students became strategic learners and performed successfully during the second term examination. Thus a spillover effect of strategy training on scholastic performance in Mathematics was observed.
Management of learning behaviour by the subjects improved their own attention, "on task" time organisation of input, instructional responses and motivation. However, introduction of booster sessions and follow up would have led to longer lasting maintenance behaviour and transfer of learning.
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