PROBLEM 5: KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER
TRANSFER
Transfer is the effect of previous learning or problem solving. The two types of transfer are transfer of learning
(when a person uses knowledge from previous experience to help learn something new) and problem-solving
transfer (occurs when a person uses knowledge from previous experience to devise a solution to a new
problem). Transfer can be positive (previous learning helps new problem-solving or learning), negative
(previous learning hurts new problem-solving or learning), or neutral (there is no effect).
Transfer can also be specific (element A is identical to problem B like learning to sum with single digits and
then doing the same with two digits), general (the general experience of knowing A is somehow related to B
like learning Spanish easier because you already know a similar language), or mixed (specific transfer of a
general principle or strategy like learning to critique experiments in psychology will help critique experiments
in anthropology). There is not much evidence on general transfer. The factors affecting transfer are:
The more meaningfully and thoroughly something is learned, the more likely it is to be transferred
to a new situation: ideally, students should have a conceptual understanding of the topic (have the
things learned appropriately organized and interrelated). It is better to know few things in depth than
lots superficially
Both positive and negative transfer are more common when a new situation is similar (or appears to
be similar; near transfer) to a previous one: to minimize negative transfer, teachers must be sure to
point out differences between two superficially similar topics.
Principles and theories are more easily transferred than discrete facts: in other words, general
principles, rules and theoretical explanations are more widely applicable than specific facts and
information. The more emphasis is put in general principles the more it facilitates student’s ability to
transfer what they learn.
Transfer is more common when information and skills are perceived as being relevant to diverse
disciplines and real-world situations
Transfer increases when the cultural environment encourages and expects transfer
TYPES OF TRANSFER
Generalizable problem-solving knowledge can be gained from an example. In the Gick and Holyoak studies,
they asked doctors how to cure a tumor without killing healthy cells and to help them they presented a story
about how an army divided to overthrow a dictator. Participants often didn’t generate reasonable answers to
the radiation problem. The problem that participants faced is that they didn’t recognize the relevance of the
previous problem and its solution unless they were prompted to notice its relevance with a hint. Ahn and
collegues did another experiment were they found that adults could perform problem-solving tasks after
exposure to a single example. In other words, they could induce a general principle based on a single example.
Thus, people engage in case-based reasoning in which they can and do reason about new situations based on
analogies with previous situations.
TRANSFER
Transfer is the effect of previous learning or problem solving. The two types of transfer are transfer of learning
(when a person uses knowledge from previous experience to help learn something new) and problem-solving
transfer (occurs when a person uses knowledge from previous experience to devise a solution to a new
problem). Transfer can be positive (previous learning helps new problem-solving or learning), negative
(previous learning hurts new problem-solving or learning), or neutral (there is no effect).
Transfer can also be specific (element A is identical to problem B like learning to sum with single digits and
then doing the same with two digits), general (the general experience of knowing A is somehow related to B
like learning Spanish easier because you already know a similar language), or mixed (specific transfer of a
general principle or strategy like learning to critique experiments in psychology will help critique experiments
in anthropology). There is not much evidence on general transfer. The factors affecting transfer are:
The more meaningfully and thoroughly something is learned, the more likely it is to be transferred
to a new situation: ideally, students should have a conceptual understanding of the topic (have the
things learned appropriately organized and interrelated). It is better to know few things in depth than
lots superficially
Both positive and negative transfer are more common when a new situation is similar (or appears to
be similar; near transfer) to a previous one: to minimize negative transfer, teachers must be sure to
point out differences between two superficially similar topics.
Principles and theories are more easily transferred than discrete facts: in other words, general
principles, rules and theoretical explanations are more widely applicable than specific facts and
information. The more emphasis is put in general principles the more it facilitates student’s ability to
transfer what they learn.
Transfer is more common when information and skills are perceived as being relevant to diverse
disciplines and real-world situations
Transfer increases when the cultural environment encourages and expects transfer
TYPES OF TRANSFER
Generalizable problem-solving knowledge can be gained from an example. In the Gick and Holyoak studies,
they asked doctors how to cure a tumor without killing healthy cells and to help them they presented a story
about how an army divided to overthrow a dictator. Participants often didn’t generate reasonable answers to
the radiation problem. The problem that participants faced is that they didn’t recognize the relevance of the
previous problem and its solution unless they were prompted to notice its relevance with a hint. Ahn and
collegues did another experiment were they found that adults could perform problem-solving tasks after
exposure to a single example. In other words, they could induce a general principle based on a single example.
Thus, people engage in case-based reasoning in which they can and do reason about new situations based on
analogies with previous situations.
