METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR BUILDING VOCABULARY SKILLS AND IMPROVING ACCURACY AND FLUENCY IN CRITICAL THINKING AND ABSTRACT REASONING

• US 20070287136A1
• Filed: 06/09/2006
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Scientific Learning Corp. (Carnegie Learning, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Scientific Learning Corp. (Carnegie Learning, Inc.)
• Inventors: Miller, Steven L., De Ley, Logan E, Matter, Terri Kim, Mann, Virginia A., Jenkins, Williams M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,684,740 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 434/118
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/00 Teaching not covered by other main groups of this subclass teaching or practice apparatus for gun-aiming or gun-laying F41G3/26

Abstract

System and method for developing cognitive skills in a student, utilizing a computing device to present stimuli and to record responses. A stimulus may be graphically presented to the student via the computing device, and the student may be required to respond to the stimulus. A determination may then be made as to the correctness of the student'"'"'s response. The graphically presenting, requiring, and determining may be performed for each of a plurality of stimuli. Additionally, the graphically presenting, requiring, determining, and performing may be performed in an iterative manner to improve the cognitive skills of the student. Various exercises directed to different cognitive skills and learning approaches may utilize this basic framework, and may be performed in an iterative manner to build cognitive skills in the student.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for building vocabulary skills and improving accuracy and fluency in critical thinking and abstract reasoning in a student, utilizing a computing device to present stimuli and to record responses, the method comprising:

providing an analogy set comprising a plurality of analogies;

displaying an incomplete analogy via a computing device, wherein the analogy is missing a word;

presenting a plurality of words to the student, wherein one of the plurality of words includes the missing word of the incomplete analogy;

requiring the student to select a word from the plurality of words to complete the incomplete analogy;

determining if the student selected the word correctly; and

repeating said displaying, said presenting, said requiring, and said determining for each analogy in the analogy set;

wherein said repeating builds vocabulary skills and improves accuracy and fluency in critical thinking and abstract reasoning in the student.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of analogies comprises analogies in multiple categories, the method further comprising:

displaying a subset of the multiple categories to the student; and

receiving user input selecting a first category from the subset;

wherein said performing comprises performing a specified number of trials with respect to analogies in the first category.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

after performing the specified number of trials with respect to analogies in the first category,

displaying the subset of the multiple categories to the student, but with previously selected categories unavailable for selection;

receiving user input selecting a second category from the subset; and

performing a specified number of trials with respect to analogies in the second category.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

performing said displaying, said receiving user input, and said performing, for successive categories from the multiple categories until trials for each of the multiple categories have been completed;

wherein said performing said displaying, said receiving user input, and said performing, for successive categories from the multiple categories until trials for each of the multiple categories have been completed compose performing a unit in stage 1.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying an analogy via the computing device, wherein the analogy has a category from plurality of categories;

presenting a set of categories to the student, wherein one of the set of categories is the category of the analogy;

requiring the student to select a category for the analogy from the set of categories;

determining if the student selected the category correctly; and

repeating said displaying the analogy, said presenting the set of categories, said requiring the student to select a category, and said determining if the student selected the category correctly for each analogy in the analogy set;

wherein said repeating said displaying the analogy, said presenting the set of categories, said requiring the student to select a category, and said determining if the student selected the category correctly for each analogy builds vocabulary skills and improves accuracy and fluency in critical thinking and abstract reasoning in the student.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the analogy set is comprised in a plurality of analogy sets, the method further comprising:

performing said repeating said displaying the analogy, said presenting the set of categories, said requiring the student to select a category, and said determining if the student selected the category correctly for each of at least a subset of analogy sets in the plurality of analogy sets.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said displaying the analogy, said presenting the set of categories, said requiring the student to select a category, and said determining if the student selected the category correctly compose performing a trial in stage 2.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein a unit comprises a smallest group of trials to be evaluated for advancement, and wherein passing the unit comprises the student correctly completing a specified percentage of the analogies in the unit.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein said displaying an incomplete analogy via a computing device, said presenting a plurality of words to the student, said requiring the student to select a word from the plurality of words to complete the incomplete analogy, and said determining if the student selected the word correctly compose performing a trial in stage 1.

10. The method of claim 9,

wherein each analogy set from the plurality of analogy sets is associated with a unit directed to analogies from the analogy set;

and

wherein said performing said repeating said displaying the analogy, said presenting the set of categories, said requiring the student to select a category, and said determining if the student selected the category correctly for each of at least a subset of analogy sets in the plurality of analogy sets comprises;

performing trials with respect to analogies from immediately previously passed units of stage 1 at a level greater than a specified level.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the analogy set is comprised in a plurality of analogy sets, the method further comprising:

performing said repeating for each analogy set in the plurality of analogy sets.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said displaying, said presenting, said requiring, and said determining for each analogy compose performing a trial for each analogy.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein a unit comprises a smallest group of trials to be evaluated for advancement, and wherein passing the unit comprises the student correctly completing a specified percentage of the analogies in the unit.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein passing the unit further comprises:

passing a specified percentage of analogies in each of a set of categories in the unit.

15. The method of claim 13,

wherein each analogy set from the plurality of analogy sets is associated with a unit directed to analogies from the analogy set;

and

wherein said performing said repeating for each analogy set in the plurality of analogy sets comprises;

performing trials in each unit of a plurality of units for each level of a plurality of levels.

16. The method of claim 15,

wherein an open unit comprises a unit that has not been passed;

and

wherein all units are initially open units, and wherein said performing trials in each unit of a plurality of units for each level of a plurality of levels comprises;

performing trials in each open unit of the plurality of units for each level of the plurality of levels.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

if the student fails a unit, repeating the unit until;

the student passes the unit;

or

the student fails the unit a specified number of times.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

if the student fails the unit a specified number of times,

keeping the unit open for later presentation to the student; and

performing a next open unit.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

performing said repeating said displaying, said presenting, said requiring, and said determining for each analogy in the analogy set in an iterative manner to build vocabulary skills and improve accuracy and fluency in critical thinking and abstract reasoning in the student.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said performing said repeating is performed over a plurality of sessions, and wherein each successive session begins approximately where a previous session ends.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the sessions occur a specified number times each day, for a specified number of days.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying, said presenting, and said requiring are performed via a graphical user interface (GUI) displayed on a display of the computing device.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the GUI displays two or more of:

a student indicator;

a time indicator;

an initiation button, whereby the student invokes performing a unit; and

a score indicator.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the GUI further displays a main character, wherein the main character performs said presenting the analogy.

25. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

indicating if the selected word is correct.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein said indicating if the selected word is correct comprises one or more of:

presenting a respective sound indicating correctness or incorrectness of the selected word;

presenting a respective graphical indication of correctness or incorrectness of the selected word; and

awarding points based on the correctness of the selected word.

27. The method of claim 1, wherein sounds are presented to the student via headphones attached to the computing device.

28. A memory medium comprising program instructions for building vocabulary skills and improving accuracy and fluency in critical thinking and abstract reasoning in a student, utilizing a computing device to present stimuli and to record responses, wherein the program instructions are executable by a processor to perform:

providing an analogy set comprising a plurality of analogies;

displaying an incomplete analogy via a computing device, wherein the analogy is missing a word;

presenting a plurality of words to the student, wherein one of the plurality of words includes the missing word of the incomplete analogy;

requiring the student to select a word from the plurality of words to complete the incomplete analogy;

determining if the student selected the word correctly; and

repeating said displaying, said presenting, said requiring, and said determining for each analogy in the analogy set;

wherein said repeating builds vocabulary skills and improves accuracy and fluency in critical thinking and abstract reasoning in the student.