Enhancing learning through strategy instruction and group interaction: is active generation of elaborations critical?

Abstract

We examined strategic intervention when learners were actively engaged in group discussion to assess the impact of peer interaction. In addition, memory performance was compared between students who generated or evaluated elaborations when using the elaborative interrogation strategy, as well as between a supported strategy where learners were provided with explanatory elaborations and a self‐study condition. Introductory psychology students (N=263) in groups of 3 to 5 members studied sixty facts about familiar and unfamiliar animals. Overall, the potency of elaborative interrogation was confirmed regardless of whether students studied interactively or independently. The contribution of group members in facilitating knowledge when the group was able to share sophisticated strategic information also was highlighted. Most critically, when background knowledge was sufficient to promote connections between existing and new material, it was the active generation of elaborations that maximized learning. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Immediacy Gratification in Online News Consumption and its Relations to Surveillance, Orientation and Elaboration of News

“…They consider the role of elaboration more important than other types of information processing. Substantial evidence in experimental research (e.g., King, 1992;Willoughby, Wood, McDermott, & McLaren, 2000) and survey research (e.g., Eveland et al, 2004;Miller, Always, & McKinley, 1987) has demonstrated that elaboration facilitates learning. This study hypothesizes that immediacy gratification predict news elaboration.…”

The effects of levels of elaboration on learners’ strategic processing of text

“…However, prior research supporting that learning can be facilitated by EI even when prior knowledge is low has focused primarily on learners engaged in studying sentences (Symons and Greene 1993;Woloshyn et al 1992). Thus, in general, while EI has proven to be most effective when learners' repertoires include a rich knowledge base (Willoughby et al , 2000(Willoughby et al , 2003, in situations where prior knowledge is low Willoughby et al 2003) or when studying unfamiliar domains (Symons and Greene 1993;Woloshyn et al 1992), EI has facilitated performance minimally at best. Results from the current investigations support findings from previous studies that indicate only learners with relevant knowledge benefit from using the EI strategy (Willoughby et al 1993Wood et al 1990).…”

The Effects of Mediation Content and Form on Children's Responses to Violent Television

“…However, research indicates that children and adults respond differently to the same type of content when they are asked to think about information compared with when they are told that information. Research has shown consistently that asking questions enhances learning among both adults (Pressley, et al, 1992;Willoughby, Wood, & Khan, 1994;Willoughby, Wood, McDermott, & McLaren, 2000;Zillmann & Cantor, 1973) and older children (Wood, Pressley, & Winne, 1990;Wood, Willoughby, Bolger, Younger, & Kaspar, 1993).…”