Modular instruction using cognitive constructs
View Patent ↗In a method and computer-implemented system of modular instruction a body of knowledge is divided into cognitive constructs, with instructional materials and post-instruction assessments being associated with each of the cognitive constructs and comprising a learning packet. The instructional material associated with each learning packet is presented to a student, followed by the post-instruction assessment associated with each learning packet. A result of the post-instruction assessment is compared to a pre-defined standard for that learning packet to determine whether the instructional material associated with another learning packet should be presented to the student, or if the instructional material associated with the current learning packet should be presented again to the student. The learning packets can be presented in default sequence or they can be reordered and presented in a user-selected sequence, and all or only a portion of the learning packets can be presented to the student.
1. A method of modular instruction of a human student for a body of knowledge, the body of knowledge comprising a plurality of cognitive constructs defining component skills to be learned by the student, said method comprising the steps of:
a) providing a plurality of instructional materials, each of said instructional materials corresponding to at least one cognitive construct;
b) providing a plurality of post-instruction assessments, each of said post-instruction assessments corresponding to one cognitive construct;
c) assembling a plurality of learning packets, each of said learning packets corresponding to one cognitive construct and comprising a one of said instructional materials corresponding to the cognitive construct and a one of said post-instruction assessments corresponding to the cognitive construct;
d) administering one of said learning packets to the student by presenting the instructional material associated with the learning packet to the student and then administering the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet to the student;
e) determining a result of the post-instruction assessment administered to the student;
f) comparing the result of the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet to a predefined benchmark for the learning packet; and
g) if the result of the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet is at least substantially equal to the benchmark for the learning packet, repeating steps d) through f) for another of the learning packets which has not previously been presented to the student.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sequence in which the learning packets are presented to a student is aligned with standards relating to expected student competency with respect to the body of knowledge.
3. The method of modular instruction of claim 1 , wherein steps d) through f) are repeated until a predetermined number of learning packets have been administered to the student.
4. The method of modular instruction of claim 1 , wherein the step of presenting the instructional material associated with the learning packet to the student further comprises the steps of:
h) providing a plurality of pre-instruction assessments, each of said pre-instruction assessments corresponding to one cognitive construct;
i) presenting one of the pre-instruction assessments corresponding to the cognitive construct associated with the learning packet to the student;
j) comparing a result of the pre-instruction assessment to the benchmark for the learning packet; and
k) skipping the instructional material and the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet if the result of the pre-instruction assessment is at least substantially equal to the benchmark for the learning packet.
5. The method of modular instruction of claim 1 , wherein if the result of the post-instruction assessment of the instructional material associated with the learning packet is not at least substantially equal to the benchmark for the learning packet, presenting the instructional material associated with the learning packet to the student further comprises the steps of:
h) re-presenting the instructional material associated with the learning packet;
i) re-administering the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet;
j) computing a difference between a result of the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet taken after the instructional material associated with the learning packet is re-presented and a result of the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet taken before the instructional material associated with the learning packet is re-presented; and
k) intervening in the presentation of the instructional material if the difference is negative or substantially equal to zero.
6. The method of modular instruction of claim 1 , wherein said instructional material is embodied in a medium selected from the group consisting of a) a book, b) a video, c) a slide, d) a recording, e) a program, f) an interactive presentation, g) a film, h) a movie, i) a photograph, j) an experiment, k) a field trip, l) a lecture, m) an E-mail, n) a demonstration, o) a game, and p) a text file.
7. The method of modular instruction of claim 1 , wherein said result of the post-instruction assessment is selected from the group consisting of: a) an average, b) a mean, c) a median, d) a quartile, e) a percentage, f) a score, g) an indication, and h) a grade.
8. The method of modular instruction of claim 5 , wherein said intervening step is selected from the group consisting of: a) replacing the instructional material, b) sub-dividing the instructional material, c) slowing down the presentation of the instructional material, and d) performing a needs assessment.
9. A modular instruction system comprising:
storage means;
a plurality of learning packets stored in said storage means in a default sequence, each of said learning packets comprising:
instructional materials configured to be presented to a human student in format that is perceivable by the human student and associated with one of a plurality of cognitive constructs comprising a body of knowledge; and
a post-instruction assessment configured to be presented to a human student in format that is perceivable by the human student and associated with the one cognitive construct; and
administration means in communication with said storage means for administering at least a portion of the plurality of learning packets, one at a time, to a human student by presenting instructional materials associated with one of said learning packets to the student and thereafter administering the post-instruction assessment associated with the learning packet to the student wherein the sequence in which the learning packets are presented to a student is aligned with standards relating to expected student competency with respect to the body of knowledge.
10. The modular instruction system of claim 9 , further comprising a sequence selection module constructed and arranged to enable a user to order said plurality of learning packets in a sequence that differs from the default sequence.
11. The modular instruction system of claim 9 , further comprising an adaptive testing module constructed and arranged to automatically determine where an individual student should start in a sequence of the plurality of learning packets.
12. The modular instruction system of claim 9 , further comprising a plurality of pre-instruction assessments stored in said storage means, one of said pre-instruction assessments associated with each of the cognitive constructs.
13. The modular instruction system of claim 9 , further comprising a presentation device adapted to present at least one of instructional materials and post-instruction assessments to a student.
14. A method of providing modular instruction of a body of knowledge divisible into plural cognitive constructs using a plurality of learning packets in which each learning packet includes at least one instructional material, at least one post-instruction assessment, and at least one benchmark corresponding to a single cognitive construct, said method comprising the steps of:
a) receiving an order for k learning packets for a given body of knowledge in a sequence j from 1 through k, wherein k is less than or equal to the total number of learning packets available for the given body of knowledge;
b) delivering the ordered learning packets in an electronic format;
c) providing computer-executable instructions adapted to configure a computer executing the instructions to:
1) electronically transmit the instructional material associated with a jth learning packet to a workstation for presentation to a human student in a human-perceivable format;
2) electronically transmitting the post-instruction assessment associated with the jth learning packet to the workstation for presentation to the student in a human-perceivable format;
3) compare a result of the post-instruction assessment associated with the jth learning packet to a benchmark for the jth learning packet; and
4) repeating steps 1) through 4) using the next learning packet in the sequence if the result of the post-instruction assessment for the previous learning packet is found to be at least substantially equal to the benchmark for the previous learning packet in step 3).
15. The method of modular instruction of claim 14 , wherein step b) includes delivering the learning packets over the Internet.
16. The method of modular instruction of claim 15 , further comprising displaying the learning packets in a suggested sequence on a website and enabling a user to rearrange the sequence of learning packets from the suggested sequence.
17. A method of modular instruction for a body of knowledge, the body of knowledge comprising a plurality of cognitive constructs defining component skills to be learned by a human student, said method comprising the steps of:
a) providing a plurality of instructional materials in electronic format, each of said instructional materials corresponding to at least one cognitive construct, said instructional materials being configured to be presented with a presentation device in a manner that is perceivable by a human student;
b) providing a plurality of post-instruction assessments in electronic format, each of said post-instruction assessments corresponding to at least one cognitive construct, said post instruction assessments being configured to be presented with a presentation device in a manner that is perceivable by a human student;
c) associating at least one of said plurality of instructional materials and one of said plurality of post-instruction assessments with each of the cognitive constructs, wherein each said association of an instructional material and a post-instruction assessment with a cognitive construct comprises a learning packet;
d) receiving an order for k learning packets for a given body of knowledge in a sequence j from 1 through k, wherein k is less than or equal to the total number of learning packets available for the given body of knowledge; and
e) transmitting the learning packets in an electronic format in response to the order received in step d).
18. The method of modular instruction of claim 17 , wherein step e) includes transmitting the learning packets over the Internet.
19. The method of modular instruction of claim 17 , further comprising the step of f) displaying the learning packets corresponding to a body of knowledge in a sequence on a website accessible via the Internet.
20. The method of modular instruction of claim 17 , further comprising the step of g) providing software that allows a recipient of the learning packets transmitted in step e) to freely modify the sequence in which the learning packets are presented to a student.