Learning Edge Momentum

Synonyms

LEM

Definition

Learning edge momentum (LEM) is a mechanism whereby the success or failure of learning becomes self-reinforcing over time. Given some target domain of new concepts, any successful learning makes it somewhat easier to acquire further related concepts from the domain, and unsuccessful learning makes it somewhat harder. Thus learning acquires momentum toward either a successful or an unsuccessful outcome for the domain as a whole. In certain circumstances, this effect can be particularly pronounced, such that early success or failure can become strongly predictive of the final learning outcome.

Theoretical Background

It is a well-known educational principle that we learn “at the edges of what we know.” Almost by definition, understanding (on a short timescale) and learning (over a longer period) depends on fitting new material into the context of existing knowledge. Cognitive psychologists have shown that new information is stored, retained, and retrieved most...