Logical problems tend to be abstract tests of reasoning that puzzle the learner. They are used to assess mental acuity, clarity, and logical reasoning.

Logical problems tend to be abstract tests of reasoning that puzzle the learner. They are used to assess mental acuity, clarity, and logical reasoning.

Logic problems tend to be abstract tests of logic that puzzle the learner. They are used to assess mental acuity, clarity, and logical reasoning. Classic games such as missionaries and cannibals or tower of Hanoi challenge learners to find the most efficient (least number of moves) sequence of action. Rubik’s Cube was a popular game in the 1970s requiring the user to rotate the rows and columns of a threedimensional cube to form patterns. In each of these “problems,” there is a specific method of reasoning that will yield the most efficient solution. It is up to the learner to discover that method. Research has shown that the ability to solve these problems does not transfer to other kinds of problems (Hayes & Simon, 1977; Reed, Ernst, & Banerji, 1974).

Few if any logical problems are embedded in any common situation, making them necessarily more abstract and therefore less transferable.

Logic problems have been the focus of considerable psychological research. However, the usefulness of that research to instructional design is limited by their lack of relevance to education or training.

Few if any logical problems are embedded in any authentic context, making them necessarily more abstract and therefore less transferable. Logic problems have been the focus of considerable laboratory-based psychological research. However, the usefulness of that research to instructional design is limited by the lack of ecological validity.