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I've always had a hard time with the different learning curves. Does anyone have a suggestion of how to keep them straight in my head?

With a negatively accelerating learning curve, we learn quickly at first and then our progress slows, usually because we have a skill pretty well mastered, and it is difficult to make a lot more improvement. An example of this would be a child learning to tie her shoes. During the first few trials, she makes significant improvement each time, until she has the skill learned. After that, she is not going to get a whole lot faster.

A positively accelerating learning curve occurs when we learn slowly at first and then faster later on. A good example of this would be a student learning calculus. At first, it takes a long time to solve each problem. After something "clicks" and the student "gets it," significant progress is made.

You can remember the difference by thinking about what's happening at the end of the curve: If the learning is slowing, it's negative. If the learning is accelerating, it is positive.

Great examples!

C

thank you that helps

Aren't there more than just positive and negative learning curves?

I was just reading about learning curves. In addition to positive and negative learning curves, there are S-shaped learning curves and curves that plateau. The way I understand it, the S-shaped learning curve combines the positive and the negative learning curve and is representative of most learning. Learning typically progresses slowly at first and the accelerates. It then slows again near the end when the trainee is introduced to new skills to master. With the plateau, it appears that there is a time where no new learning is taking place.

The way I keep them straight is I think of the shape of the curve.

The positive learning curve looks like a smile (positive=smile) . At the end of the learning cycle, we smile because our learning has excellerated.

The negative learning curve looks like a frown (negative=frown) . At the end of the learning cycle, we frown because our learning has slowed.

It might be an odd association, but it works for me!

Sounds good to me. What would the one look like for the S-Curve???

Think of this emoticon for S shaped curves It represents confusion because it is a combination of increasing and decresing returns. Common when learning a difficult task.