Index

What is Instructional Strategy?

Attitude Change, Motivation, & Interest 

Cognitive Strategy

Concept Learning

Declarative Knowledge

Principle Learning

Problem Solving

Procedure Learning

Psychomotor Skill Learning

Cognitive Strategy

Summary

      Cognitive strategies are techniques that learners use to control and monitor their own cognitive processes.

      Cognitive strategies can be self-taught or discovered or revealed by an instructor.  A creative learner may have many cognitive strategies while other learners may need direction developing cognitive strategies.

      Cognitive strategies exist for learning and for thinking.

      Cognitive strategies for learning are mental tactics for processing information, evaluating information, and organizing and retrieving information.

      Cognitive strategies for thinking are mental tactics that lead to creativity, inspiration, discovery, and invention.

      In other words, cognitive strategies are the patterns of cognitive behavior an individual employs in coping with information and problems.  Some individuals, for example, are more analytical than others; some are more inclined to use inductive or deductive reasoning.

Example below:  Students will learn cognitive strategies for learning and for thinking.

Introduction

1. Gain attention—“What are tactics we can use to help us academically?”
2. State purpose—“You will learn cognitive strategies for thinking and learning.”
3. Stimulate interest—“You’ll want to pay attention because these strategies can help you to save hours studying.”
4. Provide overview—“Cognitive strategies are basically tricks you can use to help you process information and learn.”

 Body—Present PowerPoint slide show

1. Stimulate recall—Provide situations that seem similar
2. Present information—Offer strategies that work for given situations.
3. Focus attention—Identify tasks to which strategy is appropriate.
4.  Learning strategy—Think aloud about cognition and monitor effects of the strategy.
5. Practice—Apply strategy to increasingly difficult tasks.
6. Evaluate feedback—Use reciprocal practice (i.e. take turns providing examples)

 Conclusion

1. Provide summary—Summarize and review ways strategies can be used.
2. Transfer knowledge—Compare strategy with alternative difficult method.
3. Re-motivate and close—Remind to practice to gain proficiency and the result will be strategies that will benefit cognitive processes.

Assessment

1. Assess—Observe students.
2. Feedback—Provide suggestions when the appropriate strategy is not applied correctly.

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