Assessing the effectiveness of instruction that makes the duality of reasoning explicit

A tacit assumption underlying classroom teaching and learning is that students will engage in analytic thinking to apply physics principles and concepts to analyze novel situations. According to dual-process theories of reasoning (DPToR), however, cognition is initiated when the fast, automatic process constructs an initial mental model of the novel context; only then can the slower, analytic process intervene to examine the validity of the first available model. If confidence in the initial mental model is high, the analytic process may not engage, perhaps leaving previously learned physics concepts inactive. We speculated that explicit instruction about the dual nature of human cognition might help physics students reflect on and improve their reasoning. To investigate, we implemented an intervention in an introductory physics course. Over multiple weeks, we introduced DPToR to students, engaged students in discussions of how DPToR is relevant to reasoning in physics, and provided opportunities for students to reflect on their own reasoning through the lens of DPToR. Assessment data will be presented, and implications for instruction will be discussed.