Using analogical reasoning and schema formation to improve the success in formulating linear programming models

In this paper we look at alternative ways of teaching linear programming model formulation and show that the material needs to be presented within the context of a structure that improves the ability of students to apply the models to subsequent problems. This work builds on the cognitive psychology literature on formulating algebra word problems. We show that presenting a conceptual framework prior to teaching linear programming examples is better than either no conceptual framework or presenting the framework after teaching the examples.