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A characteristic of experts in any domain is that they selectively pick up relevant information, discover important patterns, and see key structure in new cases or situations. They are able to extract structure quickly and fluently with little effort, freeing up attention for higher-level problem solving. It had been thought that this kind of learning, known as perceptual learning, could not be systematically taught and could only be slowly acquired through experience.
However, from recent applied research we now know how to teach and accelerate the development of perceptual learning. This has been a crucial missing link in learning. In mathematics, for example, students are ordinarily taught facts, concepts, and procedures, but there have not been effective ways to teach students to SEE — to classify what they are looking at in novel situations, to know which procedures or facts are relevant, and to be able to process fluently so that basic information extraction does not overload complex problem solving.
You can read more about our research in these news sources.
Previous research has shown that, while studying, spacing your study over a longer period of time leads to enhanced long-term learning gains (think the opposite of cramming). But if those spaces are stretched too far, you can loose access to the information and disrupt the benefit. This means there is an ideal time to practice each item, and the problem is deciding when that time is. Insight solves this problem by carefully monitoring the learner's understanding of the material and tailoring the study schedule to the individual user.
Our patented adaptive learning algorithms take into account both accuracy and speed from previous trials to decide what to present next. Items that need more practice will return more frequently, creating a learning sessions tailored to the individual learner's needs. The status of individual items is automatically monitored, allowing for an objective standard of mastery to be set for every item. This ensures that all students in the classroom will reach the same level of proficiency.
Learning modules are advanced learning tools developed from perceptual learning research, designed to accelerate instruction in a particular learning domain. Each module is a web-delivered application that will run directly in your web browser.
These modules engage humans' natural capacities to recognize and process patterns and relationships through repeated interaction with the input. Students will complete many short, interactive problems, with immediate feedback provided each time. Modules are personalized for your learning speed and strengths, and Insight analyzes your learning data in order to optimize instruction.
When you use a module, you will solve a series of problems designed to increase your fluency and ease with the material being covered. Each problem must be answered within a certain time limit. After answering correctly, the module will show you your reaction time. Getting a problem wrong, or taking too long on a problem, will prompt feedback about the correct answer.
Because all students have different learning needs, the module will work a little differently from person to person. Our modules adapt to each user based on his or her performance, and from that analysis decide which learning points to focus on and how much practice is necessary to reach optimal learning. Learning points are sub-topics of learning within a module, and the module tracks the user's progress on each learning point separately.
Once a user has fully demonstrated his or her mastery of a specific learning point, that learning point becomes mastered and appears less frequently, so that other learning points can be focused on. (In the module, this event will be marked by an increase in the user's "Mastery Level.") The user finishes the module once he or she masters every learning point.
Because students vary quite a bit, the amount of time needed to complete a module will also vary quite a bit. It is important to give slower students sufficient time to reach mastery. Although it may take them longer, they can nevertheless achieve the same level of proficiency as their peers. For students who struggle in math, this can be a very empowering experience.
To use a learning module, you must set up a subscription through Insight. Subscribing gives you unlimited access to a module during the payment period. You can access your subscribed modules from any computer at any time, and when you log into the Insight website you will have access to all of your subscribed modules.
Subscriptions are not transferrable and cannot be resold. Only one user can actively use an account at a time.
How to subscribe to a module:
On the Insight website, click Products in the upper right-hand corner. This will take you to the products page.
From the products page, click on the module you would like to subscribe to.
Click the Purchase button. This will take you to a page listing the price and details of the subscription.
To continue with your purchase, click Subscribe Now in the pink box at the bottom of the page.
A window will appear informing you that you are about to subscribe. If this is the module you wish to purchase, push Click to continue with purchase. You will be redirected to the Amazon Payments page (for more on Amazon Payments see section 2.2).
From here, sign into your Amazon account with your username and password. If you don't have an Amazon account, you will be prompted to create one.
Follow the Amazon payment instructions, entering your payment method and billing/shipping information.
When you have entered all of your information, Amazon will ask for your payment authorization. Click the Confirm button to confirm your purchase. You will automatically return to the Insight website from here.
After a loading screen, you will see a message that your payment has been processed. You will also receive an email confirmation. You can now access your subscribed module from your dashboard.
Payments are processed using Amazon.com's secure payment services. For your security and privacy, you will be sent to a page on Amazon's servers. Follow the instructions carefully. You can either use your existing Amazon account or you can create a new one. When you return to the Insight website you will have access to all of your subscribed modules.
Amazon payments are safe and easy. They automatically come with Amazon's industry proven fraud protection. Amazon accepts many payment types (e.g. credit cards, bank account debit cards, Amazon gift cards).
For more information about Amazon Payments, please visit http://payments.amazon.com.
Subscriptions last for a period of 6 months and are automatically renewed. You will have unlimited access to a learning module while its subscription is active.
You can cancel your subscription at any time from your account page. When you cancel your subscription, you will still have full access to the module for the duration of the subscription period.
How to cancel a subscription:
On the Insight website, click "Your Account" in the upper right-hand corner. This will take you to your account page.
Click on the module you wish to unsubscribe from, and a menu will appear.
Click "Cancel subscription" in the menu.
A window will appear asking you to confirm the cancellation. Click Ok.
Your subscription has now been cancelled and will not renew. On your account page, the cancelled module will show the date the subscription period ends rather than the renew date.
Once you have subscribed to a module, you can find it on your dashboard. You can reach the dashboard by clicking the "Your Dashboard" button in the top right corner of the Insight homepage. From this page, you can access the module itself, module instructions, assessments, options, and Score Reporter for each subscribed module (each of which will be described in this manual).
Clicking on the name of a module will open a menu with various module options (and clicking the name of the module again will close this menu). The following actions are available for every module, and each will be explained below:
Launch – This is the launch button. This will begin the module— from the instructions screen if this is your first time, or from where you last left off if you're returning for another session. To exit the module and end your session, press the "Exit" button in the top right-hand corner. This will return you to the dashboard.
Score Reporter – Score Reporter is a detailed progress report that allows you to view various types of data about your performance. Score Reporter will be explained in detail in section 6.
View Instructions – Pressing this button will bring up the individual instructions for a module. Before beginning a module, you should read fully through its individual instructions page. When you're finished reading, click the X button in the top right-hand corner to exit. You can also access the instructions from within the module, by clicking the "Instructions" button on the top of the page.
Take an assessment – Each module comes with an assessment, which is a twelve-problem quiz that helps determine your current level of ability with the material. Quiz problems are timed, just like in the module, but you will not receive any feedback between problems. After completing the assessment you will see a summary feedback screen with your average accuracy and response time. These assessments do not affect the module in any way, and are solely for your own knowledge. It is recommended that you take an assessment both before you begin a module and after you complete it, so you can see how the module improved your abilities. You can also take assessments throughout your time using the module as an alternate way to track your progress.
Options – Clicking this button you will be taken to a submenu with options for your module:
Refresher Mode – This is an indicator rather than a configurable option. Once a student has finished a module, Refresher Mode will become "Active" (for more on Refresher Mode see section 4.5).
Zap Module – Clicking here will erase your data and reset the module back to the beginning. Doing this from your account will only erase your data (if you have any). If you want to erase a student's data, you must do so through that student's account.
In order to use a module you need a computer capable of accessing the internet, and a web browser that supports Adobe Flash. The most recent versions of the following web-browsers are supported (Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Internet Explorer). Please contact support@insightlt.com if you have trouble accessing a module.
Currently, only some of Insight's modules are accessible on iOS devices (iPhone and iPad). Please see individual product pages for more information. All of our modules can be accessed through a tablet capable of displaying Adobe Flash (e.g. Motorola Xoom, Samsung Galaxy Tab), via your device's web browser.
As students become faster and more accurate at solving problems, they will be awarded the next mastery level in the module. Mastery levels are achieved by meeting certain speed and accuracy requirements (called mastery criteria). Students begin at level 0 and work their way up as they progress, and each new level provides more challenging problems. Note that meeting the response time criteria for mastery should be comfortable for a student who has learned the material well— they won't need to race the clock. When students have mastered the most challenging problems at the highest mastery level, the software will congratulate them for having completed the whole module.
As students work with the module, they'll see progress indicators — usually a row of bubbles or a progress bar that fills as they advance through the mastery levels. After every 10-12 problems, students will also see a summary feedback screen that shows them their average accuracy and speed for previous blocks of items. Students generally take this feedback seriously and understand that the way to improve is to increase their accuracy while decreasing the amount of time they take to answer a problem.
After answering each problem, the student will see a message indicating whether or not their response was correct. If they answered incorrectly, the correct answer and the answer they selected will be highlighted in different colors. The student should mind this feedback as they use the module, as it will aid them in learning from their previous errors. Different forms of more elaborate feedback may also be employed, depending on the module. For more on module-specific feedback, see the instructions for the module you are using.
Once a student has completed the module, refresher mode will activate automatically. Refresher mode is a shortened version of the module that allows students to refresh their knowledge of the material after completion. The mastery criteria in this mode are less strict and students will progress through the material more quickly. If any of the problem types prove too challenging for just a refresher, the module will slow down and handle that learning point more fully.
The software used in our learning modules is based on principles of adaptive learning; they are designed to adapt in a unique way to each individual student based on his or her performance and progress to date in the module. Because of this, students should not work together on a module or share their accounts or login information with each other. Having more than one student working under the same account or having the same student accessing the module from different accounts will defeat some of the modules' most powerful learning features. If a student changes login accounts midway through a module or if more than one student uses the same login account, the software will not be able to track the performance history appropriately and the adaptive features will not work properly. Students can, however, use their unique account login to access the module from different computers.
Learning modules are designed to be completed over multiple sessions of about 20-40 minutes, spaced approximately one to three days apart. This feature, known as spaced study, is strongly supported by research on learning as a great way to make learning long-lasting. It is much more effective than "cramming" by trying to complete a module in one long session. Spacing multiple short study sessions over time is a much more efficient and effective method for maximizing the strength and durability of learning in less total time.
It is important for students to understand that the software is meant to be used over multiple sessions. Just as you need to play a video game repeatedly until you get good at it, so too do you need to work with the learning modules over multiple sessions spread across a number of days. You can help your student implement this learning process successfully by planning and scheduling repeated sessions with the modules over a couple of weeks and communicating to your student that he or she isn't expected to complete the module in just one or two sessions.
Students will vary in the number of sessions it takes them to complete a module, but plan on multiple sessions — typically between 3 and 10 sessions. Some students already know more than others at the start of a module; some students work more quickly or persistently than others; and some modules may be longer or contain more complex content than others. Because the modules are adaptive, they continuously diagnose how accurate and fluent each student is for all types of learning items contained in the module.
Students may make frequent errors at first — that is normal and is part of the learning process. On every problem the student will get immediate feedback that will help him or her identify errors and see the patterns that underlie correct responses. Most students start to self-correct as they gain experience, and this is how the learning modules are intended to work, so you shouldn't feel that you need to intervene too early, while your student is gaining experience with the module. It is not important to get every problem right from the beginning.
Some students may find it uncomfortable to make errors at first. You can reassure them that it's okay to make errors and that they can use the software to learn from their mistakes. The errors they make are between them and computer, which won't judge them or grade them but will help guide them. Some students find it reassuring to think about this kind of learning as being similar to beginning a video game, practicing a sport, or learning to play a musical instrument. When acquiring a new skill like this, no one gets everything right from the beginning.
An unusual feature of the learning modules is that they encourage students to respond relatively quickly, rather than achieving accuracy through a steadier pace. What's important in perceptual learning is to develop an eye for seeing what structures and relations are important in a problem, rather than engaging in long chains of calculations or problem solving. If a student is unable to respond quickly enough, the problem will time out and offer feedback on the correct answer. The amount of time available is relatively generous, so students should not feel that they are racing against the clock. However, they should expect to run out of time occasionally when they are first learning. Getting faster — becoming fluent — is a learning goal, and when students meet the module's mastery criteria, you (and they) can be sure that their performance is fully fluent. Because the learning trials are paced a bit like a video game, many students approach them with the same focus. You'll notice, though, that while the problems are timed until the student enters a response, feedback is available for as long as a student wants to look at it. Indeed, paying attention to feedback helps students make faster progress.
Score Reporter allows you to view a report of your student's scores in a module. You can view a wide range of performance information through Score Reporter, from overall progress down to performance on an individual problem.
Score Reporter is accessed separately for each module. Because Score Reporter is module-specific, you will sometimes find extra features while using it for a certain module. The instructions below are generalized to all versions of Score Reporter, and detail what you will find while using Score Reporter for any module.
Modules work by having students revisit an item or a learning point when it would be most beneficial for learning. That optimal time is determined by a calculation involving a student's accuracy and response time while answering a question. These are key types of data that you will be viewing in Score Reporter.
Accuracy is simply whether a question has been answered correctly or incorrectly. Percentages come into play when talking about average accuracy on an Assessment or for a learning point. If a student correctly answered 8 out of 10 Assessment problems, their accuracy for that Assessment would be 80%.
Response Time, or response speed, is how quickly a student answers a question (in seconds). Average response times are often displayed in Score Reporter, such as average response time in the last block of problems or average response time within a learning point.
You can use these data to see what your student is strong and weak in. Higher accuracy and lower response times indicate that your student is becoming more fluent with a concept.
When you encounter bar graphs in Score Reporter, hovering over the bars can give you useful information. If you hold your mouse pointer over a bar in the graph, it will tell you the exact numerical value that the bar represents.
Score Reporter opens at the most general level of information. As you navigate you will find more detailed and specific information. When you open Score Reporter, you will find yourself on the Overview tab. There are four tabs in total: Overview, Assessments, Learning History, and Learning Points.
This tab gives you a brief glimpse at your student's progress in the module. Under Learning Module you will see their current Mastery Level and their percent completion in the module. You can also see the percent completed represented graphically in the pie chart. Remember that the percent of the module completed does not reflect how many problems a student has answered, but rather how many learning points he or she has mastered.
Under First to More Recent Assessment Comparison, you will see a quick verbal comparison of the first assessment your student took to the most recent one. Here you can quickly see whether Accuracy and Response Speed have improved, worsened, or stayed the same since before a student began using the module. You will only see this section if your student has taken at least one assessment.
Each assessment that a student takes will be recorded and displayed on this tab. For more on assessments see section 3.5. You will not see this tab if your student has not taken any assessments.
The graphs at the top allow you to view general trends in your student's assessments. The left graph shows your student's Accuracy from assessment to assessment, while the right graph displays your student's changing Response Time (in seconds).
Below the graphs, you will find item-by-item breakdowns of each assessment your student has taken. From these tables you can see the content of each problem that your student answered, as well as his or her performance on that individual problem in terms of accuracy and response time.
Here you will see item-by-item breakdowns of each problem a student encounters while using the module.
The two graphs at the top show changes in your student's progress while using the module. Accuracy (left graph) and Response Time (right graph) are shown for each block of problems your student has completed (the number of problems in a block varies from module to module).
Below the graphs you will find a table with a list of every problem your student has answered while using the module. For each problem you will see:
the Problem Number, indicating the order in which your student answered the problems.
the Learning Point, indicating which learning point this particular problem falls under.
the Problem Description, which details the exact text of the problem along with the correct answer.
your student's Accuracy while answering (correct or incorrect).
your student's Response Time, or how quickly they answered the problem.
Students progress in the module by showing that they've mastered certain categories, or learning points, in the material. While the Learning History tab allows you to view your student's performance on each individual question, the Learning Points tab gives you a broader view by showing how your student is performing on individual learning points. This can be useful for pinpointing your student's strengths and weaknesses .
Performance Averages for Learning Points – This table shows two pieces of information for each learning point: the number of Attempts made (how many times your student has answered a problem under this learning point) and his or her Average Accuracy (what percent of those attempts were answered correctly).
Learning Point Status – This table shows the "status" for each mode: active, mastered, or unseen.
Until your student has answered at least one problem under a learning point, that learning point is listed as Unseen. All learning points are Unseen before a student begins the module.
Active learning points are what your student is currently learning. The problems your student encounters while using the module come from these learning points. When the next problem under a particular learning point will appear depends on your student's prior performance with that learning point. Learning Points with this status are denoted by the symbol of a hand with a pen: ✍
Once a student has thoroughly demonstrated their understanding of a learning point, that learning point becomes "Mastered," and students encounter problems from under that learning point less frequently. This status is denoted by a check mark: ✓
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Copyright © 2012 Insight Learning Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Made in Los Angeles, California.
Last update on May 7, 2013