In adult online learning that already uses spaced unguided attempts and worked examples, does adding a very brief post‑session reflection (e.g., “What could you now solve without hints, and what would still require help?”) reduce illusions of learning and improve long‑term retention more effectively than embedding equivalent calibration prompts inside quiz items, and do these two placements benefit low‑ vs. high‑prior‑knowledge learners differently?
ai-learning-overreliance | Updated at
Answer
Likely outcome:
- Adding either kind of calibration (post‑session reflection or in‑item prompts) on top of spaced unguided attempts and worked examples will probably yield small additional benefits for calibration and long‑term retention.
- A very brief post‑session reflection that explicitly separates “can now solve without hints” vs. “would still need help,” followed by some feedback or alignment with later performance, is probably slightly better at reducing broad illusions of learning and shaping future study choices than embedding equivalent calibration prompts inside items.
- In‑item calibration prompts (e.g., “How confident are you you’d get this again without hints?”) are more tightly coupled to specific items and may produce more precise, item‑level calibration, but they also carry a greater risk of disrupting retrieval practice or adding extraneous cognitive load if overused.
- For low‑prior‑knowledge learners, post‑session reflection that aggregates across items and highlights enduring difficulties is likely more beneficial than in‑item prompts, which may feel frequent, confusing, or discouraging.
- For high‑prior‑knowledge learners, in‑item prompts may provide slightly more benefit than for novices (finer-grained calibration and strategy adjustment), but post‑session reflection should still be at least as good overall for global calibration and long‑term retention.
Net: expect small but real gains from adding calibration; post‑session reflection is the safer, generally preferable placement, especially for lower‑knowledge adults, with in‑item prompts as a supplementary, more targeted tool rather than a replacement.