Elaborative Interrogation 🧠

Woloshyn & Stockley (1995)

Study Prompt 📝

"I am going to show you some true facts about several different science topics. It is important to remember that even though some of the facts may seem surprising, they are all true. Your task is to answer out loud a question about each sentence. The question will always be the same and is: 'Why is that fact true?' It is very important that you try and answer why each fact is true. In order to help you come up with an answer, you might want to think about things you have already learned in school, read about, and your everyday experiences."

Partner Study Instructions 👥

"It is very important that you work together to answer why each fact is true. You should listen very carefully to your partner's answers as they may say something that you did not know or think about. It is okay to help each other and to use your partner's answers."

Science Facts for Classroom Use 📚

  • "Maple keys and milkweed pods are fruits"
  • "The larger an animal is, the more oxygen it needs to live"
  • "The light of the sun is made of every color including blue and violet"
  • "Not all plants have roots"
  • "The sun is not alive"
  • "In plants, food travels from the leaves to the roots"

Sample Science Facts 📚

Belief-Consistent Facts:

  • "Maple keys and milkweed pods are fruits"
  • "The larger an animal is, the more oxygen it needs to live"

Belief-Inconsistent Facts:

  • "The light of the sun is made of every color including blue and violet"
  • "Not all plants have roots"
  • "The sun is not alive"
  • "In plants, food travels from the leaves to the roots"

Two Types of Facts ⚖️

Belief-Consistent:

  • Align with what we know
  • Example: "Maple keys are fruits"

Belief-Inconsistent:

  • Challenge our beliefs
  • Example: "The sun is not alive"

Study Procedure 📋

  • 184 students (grades 6-7)
  • 32 science fact statements
  • Half belief-consistent, half belief-inconsistent
  • Students answered: "Why is that fact true?"
  • Three conditions: individual, partner, reading-control
  • Tested: immediate, 30-day, 60-day recall

Finding #1: Superior Method

  • Outperformed other study methods (self-selected, repeated reading)
  • Large effect sizes (0.84 SD)
  • Benefits lasted 2+ months
  • Created deeper learning

Finding #2: Study Format 👥

  • Individual study = Partner study effective in pilot study, not in main study

Finding #3: Quality Counts 📈

  • Good explanations → better learning
  • Even weak explanations help
  • Partner's good explanations beneficial
  • Generation is key

Finding #4: Tackles Misconceptions ❗

  • Effective for belief-inconsistent facts
  • Helps overcome misconceptions
  • Strong results for challenging concepts
  • Works for all content types

Finding #5: Needs Teaching 📚

  • Students rarely choose this strategy:
  • 75% default to re-reading
  • Must be explicitly taught
  • Students need practice

Finding #6: Long-lasting Results 🕒

  • Benefits seen after 60 days
  • Creates stronger memory connections
  • Transfers to long-term memory
  • Deeper understanding

Classroom Applications 🍎

  • Teach "why" questioning
  • Pair students for practice
  • Use for difficult concepts
  • Model quality responses
  • Make it routine

Thank You! 👋

Questions?