Effects of strategy monitoring and proactive instruction on children's problem-solving performance

Thirty fifth- and sixth-grade students were given extensive proactive instruction on the content of a computer-based problem-solving game called Rocky's Boots. Participants were then divided into three treatment groups that received either problem-solving training, problem-solving and self-monitoring training, or no further training. The monitored problem-solving group solved more complex problems than either of the other two groups, and they took less time to solve those complex problems. The specific impact of the monitoring training is discussed as evidence for the importance of strategy monitoring in learning to solve problems. Results are discussed as evidence of the potential of proactive instruction on problem-solving performance. The defining characteristic of a problem situation is the presence of an impasse en route to a particular goal state (Bransford & Stein, 1984; Lesgold, 1988). These points of impasse provide opportunities for the study of (a) the devel-opment of problem-solving competence and (b) interventions designed to enhance problem-solving ability. Problems can arise at a number of different points on the path to a particula