Teaching undergraduates to solve equivalence problems by using cover, copy, and compare: A translational study

Cover, copy, and compare (CCC) is a study strategy in which students cover their notes, attempt to copy them, and then compare for accuracy. We evaluated whether CCC could be used to establish equivalence classes with undergraduate students. A video training package and experimenter feedback were used to teach participants to engage in CCC with notes in the form of a graphic organizer. During the CCC condition, participants constructed graphic organizers depicting the relations among three equivalence classes, each consisting of three familiar stimuli. After completing CCC, five of the seven participants scored over 90% on their first matching-to-sample posttest. We evaluated the use of the strategy with three 5-member classes of abstract stimuli. All participants used CCC when studying the relations and scored over 90% on the first posttest, and three participants constructed graphic organizers during the posttest. The social validity data indicated that participants found the intervention highly acceptable.