Skip to main content
Log in

The ADAPT design model: towards instructional control of transfer

  • Articles
  • Published:
Instructional Science Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper presents a detailed description of the ADAPT (Apply Delayed Automatization for Positive Transfer) design model. ADAPT is based upon production system models of learning and provides guidelines for developing instructional systems that offer transfer of leamed skills. The model suggests that transfer of training can be attributed to procedure overlap between the original training task and the transfer task, as well as to analogy between new problem solving situations and acquired cognitive schemata. More specifically, the role of schemata in transfer is thought to increase as the transfer task becomes more different from the original training task. Several instructional tactics are suggested to optimize transfer of training. Declarative tactics pertain to the instructional design for acquiring knowledge which is relevant to performance of the skill; such tactics include demonstrating the skill, verbal instruction, the encouragement to paraphrase particular pieces of information, the application of advance organizers and mnemonic systems, and the presentation of concrete models and examples. Procedural tactics refer to the instructional design for acquiring the skill, that is, to the design of practice; such tactics include the encouragement to imitate the skill, the application of variability of practice and contextual interference, and the presentation of annotated examples. The relevance of ADAPT is evaluated and implications for future research are presented.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adams, J. A. (1987). Historical review and appraisal of research on the learning, retention and transfer of human motor skills. Psychological Bulletin, 101, 4174.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. R. (1982). Acquisition of cognitive skill. Psychological Review, 89, 369–406.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. R. (1983). The architecture of cognition. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. R. (1986). Knowledge compilation: the general learning mechanism. In R. S.Michalski and J. G.Carbonell (Eds.), Machine learning: an artificial intelligence approach. Vol. 2 (pp. 289–310). Los Altos, CA.: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. R. (1987). Skill acquisition: compilation of weak-method problem solutions. Psychological Review, 94, 192–210.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. R., Boyle, C. F., Corbett, A. and Lewis, M. (1986). Cognitive modelling and intelligent tutoring. (Technical Report No. ONR-86/1). Pittsburgh, PA.: Camegie-Mellon University, Department of Psychology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. R. and Reder, L. M. (1979). An elaborative processing explanation of depth of processing. In L. S.Cermak and F. I. M.Craik (Eds.), Levels of processing in human memory (pp. 385403). Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, J. R. and Thompson, R. (1987). Use of analogy in a production system architecture (Technical Report). Pittsburgh, PA.: Camegie Mellon University, Department of Psychology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Annett, J. (1985). Motor learning: a review. In H.Heuer, U.Kleinbeck and K. H.Schmidt (Eds.), Motor behavior: programming, control and acquisition (pp. 189–212). New York: Springer Verlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Annett, J. and Sparrow, J. (1985). Transfer of training: a review of research and practical implications. Programmed Learning and Educational Technology, 22, 116–124.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ausubel, D. P., Novak, J. D. and Hanesian, H. (1978). Educational psychology: a cognitive view (2nd edition). New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bartlett, F. C. (1932). Remembering. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Battig, W. F. (1966). Facilitation and interference. In E. A.Bilodeau (Ed.), Acquisition of skill (pp. 215–244). New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Battig, W. F. (1972). Intratask interference as a source of facilitation in transfer and retention. In R. F.Thompson and J. F.Voss (Eds.), Topics in learning and performance (pp. 131–159). New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berry, D. C. and Broadbent, D. E. (1984). On the relationship between task performance and associated verbalizable knowledge. The Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 36A, 209–231.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bijlstra, J. P., Jelsma, O. and Van Merriënboer, J. J. G. (1990a). Basic requirements for fault management training programs. Manuscript submitted for publication.

  • Bijlstra, J. P., Jelsma, O. and Van Merriënboer, J. J. G. (1990b). Effects of audio-visual information presentation on transfer of fault management skills. Manuscript submitted for publication.

  • Bobrow, D. G. and Winograd, T. (1977). An overview of KRL, a knowledge representation language. Cognitive Science, 1, 3–46.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bransford, J. D. (1979). Human cognition: learning, understanding and remembering. Belmont, CA.: Wadsworth.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brooks, L. W. and Dansereau, D. F. (1987). Transfer of information: an instructional perspective. In S. M.Cormier and J. D.Hagman (Eds.), Transfer of learning: contemporary research and applications (pp. 121–150). San Diego, CA.: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carbonell, J. G. (1984). Learning by analogy: formulating and generalizing plans from past experience. In R. S.Michalsky, J. G.Carbonell and T. M.Mitchell (Eds.), Machine learning: an artificial intelligence approach (pp. 137–161). Berlin: Springer-Verlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carbonell, J. G. (1986). Derivational analogy: a theory of reconstructive problem solving and expertise acquisition. In R. S.Michalsky, J. G.Carbonell and T. M.Mitchell (Eds.), Machine learning: an artificial intelligence approach, (Vol. 2, pp. 371–392). Los Altos, CA.: Morgan Kaufman Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carroll, J. M. (1985). Designing minimalist training materials (Research Report). Yorktown Heights, NY.: IBM Watson Research Center.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carroll, J. M., Smith-Kerker, P. L., Ford, J. R. and Mazur-Rimetz, S. A. (1988). The minimal manual. Human-Computer Interaction, 3, 123–153.

    Google Scholar 

  • Charney, D. H. and Reder, L. M. (1986). Initial skill learning: an analysis of how elaborations facilitate the three components (Technical Report). Pittsburgh, PA.: Department of Psychology, Carnegie-Mellon University.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clark, R. E. and Voogel, A. (1985). Transfer of training principles for instructional design. Educational Communication and Technology Journal, 33, 113–123.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cormier, S. M. and Hagman, J. D. (Eds.) (1987). Transfer of learning: contemporary research and applications. San Diego, CA.: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cox, B. D., Valsiner, J. and Ornstein, P. A. (1987, April). Children's generalization of strategies: an historical perspective on transfer. Paper presented at the meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development, Baltimore.

  • Dijkstra, S. (1990). The description of knowledge and skills for the purpose of instruction. In S.Dijkstra, B. H. A. M.vanHout Wolters and P. C.van derSijde (Eds.), Research on instruction. Englewood Cliffs, NJ.: Educational Technology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dulany, D. E., Carlson, R. A. and Dewey, G. I. (1984). A case of syntactical learning and judgement: how conscious and how abstract? Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 113, 541–555.

    Google Scholar 

  • Duncan, K. D. (1981). Training for fault diagnosis in industrial process plants. In J.Rasmussen and W. B.Rouse (Eds.), Human detection and diagnosis of system failures (pp. 553–573). New York: Plenum Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elio, R. and Anderson, J. R. (1984). The effects of information order and learning mode on schema abstraction. Memory and Cognition, 12, 20–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ellis, H. C. (1965). The transfer of learning. New York: MacMillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gagné, R. M. (1985). The conditions of learning (4th edition). New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gagné, R. M., and Glaser, R. (1987). Foundations in learning research. In R. M.Gagné (Ed.), Instructional technology: foundations (pp. 49–83). Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gallwey, J. (1975). The inner game of tennis. London: Jonathan Cape.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hasher, L. and Zacks, R. T. (1979). Automatic and effortful processes in memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 108, 356–388.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jelsma, O. and Bijlstra, J. P. (1988). Training for transfer in learning to detect, diagnose and compensate system failures. Proceedings of the Seventh European Annual Conference on Human Decision Making and Manual Control (pp. 256–262). Paris, France.

  • Jelsma, O. and Bijlstra, J. P. (in press). PROCESS: Program for Research on Operator Control in an Experimental Simulated Setting. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics.

  • Jelsma, O. and Pieters, J. M. (1989a). Practive schedule and cognitive style interaction in learning a maze task. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 3, 73–83.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jelsma, O. and Pieters, J. M. (1989b). Instructional strategy effects on the retention and transfer of procedures of different difficulty level. Acta Psychologica, 70, 219–234.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jelsma, O. and VanMerriënboer, J. J. G. (1989). Contextual interference: interactions with reflectionimpulsivity. Perceptual Motor Skills, 68, 1055–1064.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jonides, J. (1981). Voluntary versus automatic control over the mind's eye movement. In J.Long and A.Baddeley (Eds.), Attention and performance (Vol. 9, pp. 187–203). Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kagan, J., Rosman, B., Day, D., Albert, J. and Phillips, W. (1964). Information processing in the child: significance of analytic and reflective attitudes. Psychological Monographs, 78, (1, Whole No. 578).

  • Kieras, D. E. (1982). What people know about electronic devices: a descriptive study (Technical Report No. 12), UARZ/DP/TR-82/ONR-12). Phoenix, AZ: Department of Psychology, University of Arizona.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kieras, D. E. (1987a). The role of cognitive simulation models in the development of advanced training and testing systems (Technical Report No. 23 TR-87/ONR-23). Ann Arbor, MI.: University of Michigan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kieras, D. E. (1987b). What mental model should be taught: choosing instructional content for complex engineered systems (Technical Report No. 24 TR-87/ONR-24). Ann Arbor, MI.: University of Michigan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kieras, D. E. and Polson, P. G. (1985). An approach to the formal analysis of user complexity. International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, 22, 365–394.

    Google Scholar 

  • Klahr, D., Langley, P. and Neches, R. (Eds.) (1987). Production system models of learning and development. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • LaBerge, D. and Samuels, S. J. (1974). Toward a theory of automatic information processing in reading. Cognitive Psychology, 6, 293–323.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lane, N. E. (1987). Skill acquisition rates and patterns: issues and training implications. New York: Springer-Verlag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, T. D. and Magill, R. A. (1985). Can forgetting facilitate skill acquisition? In D.Goodman, R. B.Wilberg and I. M.Franks (Eds.), Differing perspectives in motor learning, memory and control (pp. 3–22). Amsterdam: Elsevier Science Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, M. W. and Anderson, J. R. (1985). Discrimination of operator schemata in problem solving: learning from examples. Cognitive Psychology, 17, 26–65.

    Google Scholar 

  • Linn, M. C. (1985). The cognitive consequences of programming instruction in classrooms. Educational Researcher, 14(5), 14–29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Logan, G. D. (1985). Skill and automaticity: relations and future directions. Canadian Journal of Psychology, 39, 367–386.

    Google Scholar 

  • Logan, G. D. (1988). Toward an instance theory of automatization. Psychological Review, 95, 492–506.

    Google Scholar 

  • Luchins, A. S. and Luchins, E. H. (1959). Rigidity of behavior: a variational approach to the effect of Einstellung. Eugene: University of Oregon Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • MacKay, D. G. (1982). The problem of flexibility, fluency and speed-accuracy trade-off in skilled behavior. Psychological Review, 89, 483–506.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mandler, J. M. and Mandler, G. (Eds.) (1964). Thinking: from association to Gestalt. New York: Wiley (Original work published in Germany, 1913).

    Google Scholar 

  • Mann, T. L. and Hammer, J. H. (1986). Analysis of user procedural compliance in controlling a simulated process. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, 16, 505–510.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E. (1975). Information processing variables in learning to solve problems. Review of Educational Research, 45, 525–541.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E. (1981). The psychology of how novices leam computer programming. Computing Surveys, 13, 121–141.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E. (1982). Contributions of cognitive science and related research in learning to the design of computer literacy curricula. In R.Seidel, R.Anderson and B.Hunter (Eds.), Computer literacy, (pp. 129–159). New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E. and Greeno, J. G. (1972). Structural differences between learning outcomes produced by different instructional methods. Journal of Educational Psychology, 63, 165–173.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merrill, M. D. (1983). Component display theory. In C. M.Reigeluth (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models: an overview of their current status (pp. 278–333). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merrill, M. D. (1987). The new component design theory: instructional design for courseware authoring. Instructional Science, 16, 19–34.

    Google Scholar 

  • Minsky, M. (1975). A framework for representing knowledge. In P. N.Winston (Ed.), The psychology of computer vision (pp. 211–277). Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morris, N. M. and Rouse, W. B. (1985). The effects of type of knowledge upon human problem solving in a process control task. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, 15, 698–707.

    Google Scholar 

  • Morris, N. M., Rouse, W. B. and Fath, J. L. (1985). PLANT: an experimental task for the study of human problem solving in process control. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man and Cybernetics, 15, 792–798.

    Google Scholar 

  • Naveh-Benjamin, M. and Jonides, J. (1984). Maintenance rehearsal: a two component analysis. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition, 10, 369–385.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neches, R. (1987). Learning through incremental refinement of procedures. In D.Klahr, P.Langley and R.Neches (Eds.), Production system models of learning and development (pp. 163–221). Cambridge, MA.: The MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neisser, U. (1967). Cognitive psychology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.

    Google Scholar 

  • Norman, D.A. (1981). Categorization of action slips. Psychological Review, 88, 1–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ohlsson, S. (1987). Truth versus appropriateness: relating declarative to procedural knowledge. In D.Klahr, P.Langley and R.Neches (Eds.), Production system models of learning and development (pp. 287–329). Cambridge, MA.: The MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olsen, S. E. and Rasmussen, J. (1989). The reflective expert and the prenovice: notes on skill-, rule-, and knowledge-based performance in the setting of instruction and training (Technical Report). roskilde, Denmark: Risö National Laboratory.

    Google Scholar 

  • Orata, P. T. (1928). The theory of identical eiements. Columbus: Ohio State University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Osgood, C. E. (1949). The similarity paradox in human learning: a resolution. Psychological Review, 56, 132–154.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pea, R. D. and Kurland, M. (1984). On the cognitive effects of learning computer programming. New Ideas in Psychology, 2, 131–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perkins, D. N. and Salomon, G. (1989). Are cognitive skills context-bound? Educational Researcher, 18, 16–25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pieters, J. M., Jelsma, O. and Van Merriënboer, J. J. G. (1987, September). Skill acquisition: ADAPT instructional time to desired level of transfer. Paper presented at the Second European Conference for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLI), Tübingen, FRG.

  • Polson, P. G. (1987). A quantitative theory of human-computer interaction. In J. M.Carroll (Ed.), Interfacing thought: cognitive aspects of human-computer interaction (pp. 184–235). Cambridge, MA.: The MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Polson, P. G. and Kieras, D. E. (1984). A formal description of users' knowledge of how to operate a device and user complexity. Behavior Research, Methods, Instruments and Computers, 16, 249–255.

    Google Scholar 

  • Posner, M. I. and Snyder, C. R. R. (1975). Attention and cognitive control. In R. L.Solso (Ed.), Information processing and cognition: the Loyola Symposium (pp. 55–85). Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Postman, L. (1971). Transfer, interference and forgetting. In L. W.King and L. A.Riggs (Eds.), Experimental Psychology (pp. 1019–1132). New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.

    Google Scholar 

  • Postman, L. and Underwood, B. J. (1973). Critical issues in interference theory. Memory and Cognition, 1, 19–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Proctor, R. W. and Reeve, T. G. (1988). The acquisition of task-specific productions and modification of declarative representations in spatial-precueing tasks. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 117, 182–196.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rasmussen, J. (1986). Information processing and human-machine interaction. New York: North-Holland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reder, L. M. (1979). The role of elaborations in memory for prose. Cognitive Psychology, 11, 221–234.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reder, L. M., Charney, D. H. and Morgan, K. I. (1986). The role of elaborations in learning a skill from an instructional text. Memory and Cognition, 14, 64–78.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reigeluth, C. M. (1983a). Meaningfulness and instruction relating what is being learned to what a student knows. Instructional Science, 12, 197–218.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reigeluth, C. M. (Ed.) (1983b). Instructional-design theories and models: an overview of their current status. Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reigeluth, C. M. (Ed.) (1987). Instructional theories in action: lessons illustrating selected theories and models. Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Romiszowski, A. J. (1981). Designing instructional systems. London: Kogan Page.

    Google Scholar 

  • Royer, J. M. (1979). Theories of the transfer of learning. Educational Psychologist, 14, 53–69.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rumelhart, D. E. and Ortony, A. (1976). The representation of knowledge in memory. In R. C.Anderson, J. R.Spiro and N. E.Montague (Eds.), Schooling and the acquisition of knowledge (pp. 99–135). Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schank, R. C. and Abelson, R. P. (1977). Scripts, plans, goals and understanding. Hillsdale, NJ.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, W. (1985). Training high-performance skills: fallacies and guidelines. Human factors, 27, 285–300.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, W. and Fisk, A. D. (1982). Degree of consistent training: improvements in search performance and automatic process development. Perceptions and Psychophysics, 31, 160–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, W. and Fisk, A. D. (1983). Attention theory and mechanisms for skilled performance. In R. A.Magill (Ed.), Memory and control of action (pp. 119–143). Amsterdam: North-Holland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, W. and Shiffrin, R. M. (1977). Controlled and automatic human information processing: I. Detection, search and attention. Psychological Review, 84, 1–66.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shea, J. B. and Zimny, S. T. (1983). Context effects in memory and learning movement information. In R. A.Magill (Ed.), Memory and control of action (pp. 345–366). Amsterdam: North-Holland.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shepherd, A. (1986). Issues in the training of process operators. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 1, 49–64.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shepherd, A., Marshall, E. C., Tumer, A. and Duncan, K. D. (1977). Diagnosis of plant failures from a control panel: a comparison of three training methods. Ergonomics, 20, 347–361.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shiffrin, R. M. and Schneider, W. (1977). Controlled and automatic human information processing: II. Perceptual learning, automatic attending, and a general theory. Psychological Review, 84, 127–190.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singley, M. K. and Anderson, J. r. (1985). The transfer of text-editing skill. International Journal of Man-Machine Studies, 22, 403–423.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singley, M. K. and Anderson, J. R. (1988). A keystroke analysis of learning and transfer in text editing. Human-Computer Interaction, 3, 223–274.

    Google Scholar 

  • Singley, M. K. and Anderson, J. R. (1989). The transfer of cognitive skill. Cambridge, MA.: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sternberg, S. (1969). Memory scanning: mental processes revealed by reaction time experiments. American Scientist, 57, 421–457.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorndike, E. L. and Woodworth, R. S. (1901). The influence of movement in one mental function upon the efficiency of other functions. Psychological Review, 8, 247–261.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thorndyke, P. W. and Hayes-Roth, B. (1979). The use of schemata in the acquisition and transfer of knowledge. Cognitive Psychology, 11, 82–106.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Merriënboer, J. J. G. (in press). Strategies for programming instruction in high school: program completion vs. program generation. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 6(3).

  • Van Merriënboer, J. J. G. and De Croock, M. B. M. (1989, September). Strategies for computer-based programming instruction: program completion vs. program generation. Paper presented on the Third European Conference for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLI), Madrid, Spain.

  • VanMerriënboer, J. J. G. and Krammer, H. P. M. (1987). Instructional strategies and tactics for the design of introductory computer programming courses in high school. Instructional Science, 16, 251–285.

    Google Scholar 

  • VanMerriënboer, J. J. G. and Krammer, H. P. M. (1990). The “Completion Strategy” in programming instruction: theoretical and empirical support. In S.Dijkstra, B. H. M.VanHout-Wolters and P. C.Van derSijde (Eds.), Research on instruction (pp. 45–61). Englewood Cliffs: Educational Technology.

    Google Scholar 

  • VanMerriënboer, J. J. G. and Paas, F. G. W. C. (1989). Automation and schema acquisition in learning elementary computer programming: implications for the design of practice (Technical Report No. IST-MEMO-89–03). Enschede, The Netherlands: University of Twente, Dept. of Education.

    Google Scholar 

  • VanRossum, J. H. A. (1987). Motor development and practice: the variability of practice hypothesis in perspective. Amsterdam: Free University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Voss, J. F. (1987). Learning and transfer in subject-matter learning: a problem solving model. International Journal of Educational Research, 11, 607–622.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Jelsma, O., van Merriënboer, J.J.G. The ADAPT design model: towards instructional control of transfer. Instr Sci 19, 89–120 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00120698

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00120698

Keywords

Navigation