The Effects of Hearsee/Say and Hearsee/Write on Acquisition, Generalization, and Retention

This study examined the effects of training in 2 yoked learning channels (hearsee/say and hearsee/write) on the acquisition, generalization, and retention of learning. Four 5th-grade participants were taught the lowercase letters of the Greek alphabet; 12 letters were taught in the hearsee/say channel and 12 letters were taught in the hearsee/write channel for equal amounts of time. The hearsee/say channel reached higher frequencies at the end of training and showed higher acquisition celerations than the hearsee/write channel. However, the hearsee/write channel showed higher accuracy and retention than the hearsee/say channel. The hearsee/write channel also showed greater generalization across learning channels including the see/say, think/say, think/write, and see-name/draw-symbol channels. This research has implications for the design of instruction.