Using the learning-by-teaching paradigm to design intelligent learning environments
Krittaya Leelawong, Gautam Biswas · 2005
The idea that teaching others is a powerful way to learn is intuitively compelling and supported in the research literature. The Teachable Agents Group at Vanderbilt University has developed computer-based, domain-independent Teachable Agents that are taught by human students using a visual representation. The students monitor the learning progress of the agents by querying their agents and analyzing their problem solving behavior. This motivates them to learn more, so they can teach their agent to perform better. This thesis develops a teachable agent called Betty's Brain that is geared to teaching students in the domain of river ecosystems. This dissertation has makes three primary contributions. First, the previous design of the Betty's Brain has been restructured to a novel agent architecture that supports the framework for Teachable Agent systems. Second, the system has been modified to employ feedback mechanisms that support self-regulated learning strategies. Third, longitudinal studies have been conducted to compare students' learning gains, learning behaviors and ability to transfer in learning by teaching versus directed-learning environments in a fifth-grade science classroom. The results of the study suggest the importance of different learning methods and feedback types at different phases of learning. Learning by teaching motivates students to project the goal of their learning beyond looking for immediate improvement in test scores. Directed feedback helps students' performance in the early stages of learning about complex domains, but does not seem to help students in transferring their learning to other domains. Guided feedback based on self-regulated strategies seems to develop better learning behaviors as well as the ability to transfer. The dissertation concludes that a mixed form of feedback that combines directed feedback early in the learning process and more guided and self-regulated feedback in the later stages of learning will most likely assist students in improving their performance in learning, while also developing the abilities for life long learning.