Personalized refresher training based on a model of competency acquisition and decay

This paper will describe current work at Alelo to track learner interactions with learning systems and analyze the data to derive profiles of learner competencies. This includes both linguistic knowledge (e.g., the ability to recognize and recall words and phrases) and linguistic skills (e.g., the ability to perform communicative functions involving speaking and listening). The learner modeling framework is based on a theoretical model of the learning and forgetting of complex contextualized cognitive skills. The model predicts that learners first acquire declarative knowledge and then automatize it, resulting in procedural skill. If acquired knowledge and skills are not used for extended periods, they undergo decay, depending upon the level of mastery achieved, the decay period, and the history of skill reinforcement. The model also takes into account the variety of contexts in which skills are used, in order to predict the robustness of learning, i.e., the ability to transfer learning to new situations.