NearTransferTests

NearTransferTests are assessments designed to measure near transfer, the ability to apply learned knowledge or skills to tasks that are structurally and perceptually similar to those encountered during training. They are rooted in the study of transfer of learning, which distinguishes near transfer from far transfer, where application occurs in more distant or different domains. Near transfer emphasizes shared underlying principles, rules, or representations.

Design and interpretation: Near transfer tasks reuse core components of training while varying surface features such as context or wording. To validly measure near transfer, tests should require the same underlying cognitive operations without simply reproducing the exact items seen during training. Typical designs include pretraining baselines, followed by a training phase and a transfer posttest, sometimes with delayed administration to assess retention. Reliability and standardized scoring are important for comparing results across groups.

Applications: NearTransferTests appear in educational settings to evaluate whether students generalize a problem-solving schema to new but analogous problems. They are also used in cognitive training, skill acquisition, and professional training to judge whether procedural knowledge, strategies, or representations can be applied to closely related tasks. Example: teaching a method for solving a class of algebraic equations and then assessing performance on new equations of a similar form.

Limitations and context: Near transfer results can overstate the extent of generalization if transfer tasks are too similar to training, or if test familiarity inflates performance. They do not by themselves guarantee long-term or broad real-world applicability. Careful design, including multiple transfer tasks and complementary measures, is needed to interpret findings in light of broader learning outcomes.