INSTRUCTION AND PRACTICE IN LEARNING TO USE A DEVICE

We explore the extent to which Anderson's (1987) theory of knowledge c ompilation can account for the relationship between instructions and p ractice in learning to use a simple device. Bibby and Payne (1993) rep orted experimental support for knowledge compilation in this domain. T his article replicates the finding of a performance cross-over between instruction type and task type that disappears with practice on the t asks. The research is extended by using verbal protocols to model the strategies of novice and more experienced individuals. Production syst em models of these strategies suggest that knowledge compilation only provides an adequate account of practice for one of two Instruction gr oups. To model the strategy shifts for the second group, we employ a ' 'procedure modification heuristic'' (after Neches, 1987), which relies on access to a declarative model of the configuration of the device. This suggests that instructionally derived declarative knowledge may h ave a subtle ongoing effect on the changes in procedural knowledge wit h practice.