The purpose of this study was to examine how strategy training (cognitive-metacognitive strategy training and self-instructing strategy training) and explanatory teaching affected the arithmetic word problem solving skills and learned helplessness of students with learning disabilities. The subject was 30 secondary school students with learning disabilities. They were divided into cognitive-metacognitive strategy training group, self-instruction training group and explanatory teaching group. The major findings of the study were as below: First, strategy training, including cognitive-metacognitive strategy training and self-instructing strategy training, had a better effect on enhancing the arithmetic word problem solving skills of the students with learning disabilities than explanatory teaching. Second, teaching method using strategy training was different effect on the task level. When simple tasks were assigned, both strategy training methods worked better than explanatory teaching. But in the event of complex tasks, cognitive- metacognitive strategy training was more effective than explanatory teaching, but there was no significant difference between self-instructing strategy training and explanatory teaching. Third, strategy training, involving cognitive-metacognitive strategy training and self-instructing strategy training, had a better effect on their maintenance tasks than explanatory teaching, but that effect depended on the level of the given tasks. In the case of simple tasks, both strategy training methods worked. In the event of complex tasks, however, cognitive-metacognitive strategy training was more effective than explanatory teaching, but there was no significant different between self-instructing strategy training and explanatory teaching. Fourth, strategy training, involving cognitive-metacognitive strategy training and self-instructing strategy training, was more successful in easing the learned helplessness of the students with learning disabilities than explanatory teaching.
Key words : Learning Disabilities, Teaching Strategy