What Do Questions Have to Do With Comprehension? Student-Generated Questions, Perceived Comprehension, and Achievement

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  In Poster Session: Goals, Beliefs, Attitudes, and Metacognitive States

Abstract

Since questions can both indicate knowledge deficits and facilitate knowledge construction, it is unclear how student-generated questions relate to comprehension during classroom learning. This study examines the relations among characteristics of student-generated questions, perceived comprehension of lectures, and exam scores in an undergraduate chemistry course. Participants (N =103) recorded questions (n = 980) in written logs during 8 lectures. Results from a path model indicate that different question characteristics have different effects on perceived comprehension and achievement. The number of questions and the percentage of unanswered questions negatively predicted perceived comprehension. Questions that clarified or disambiguated knowledge deficits were positively associated with perceived comprehension and exam scores. Findings are discussed in light of contextual and methodological issues.

Authors

• Bradley W. Bergey, Dalhousie University

• Jennifer G. Cromley, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

• Briana L. Chang, Temple University