EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

Chapter 15 page 349

Table 15.1
Three Kinds of Help in Collaborative Learning

Kind of help Definition and examples
Explanations Explanations describe how to do the problem but also explain why one or more of the
steps should be taken. Examples:
“Multiply 13 cents by 29, because 29 minutes are left after the first minute.”
“You see how it has different denominators? [That’s why] you have to do common multiples.
Go, like, 4, 8, 12. Then the same for 3, 6, 9, 12. The lowest one that you have in common
is 12.”
Procedural descriptions Procedural descriptions simply state the steps to be taken, without explaining why.
Examples:
“This is 30, so you minus 1.”
“13 times 29.”
“Oh, you just times them [the denominator]? That’s 4 times 3. Equals 12.”
“Okay, look, 69,000,000 times 8,500,000. This is 63 with 6 zeroes. So, in parentheses, 63
times 10 to the sixth and then times 10 to the fifth.. .”
Terminal help The student just gives an answer without any explanation or procedural description.
“The answer is 10 squared.”
“That’s not right.”
“The answer should be 55.”
Sources: Webb (1985, p. 33); Webb et al. (1995, p. 411)

Problem 15.1 Understanding students’ thinking: Identifying kinds of help

When you listen to students in groups, it is important that you can accurately evaluate their

strategy use. You began learning this skill in Chapter 6 (Self-Regulated Learning), and you will

continue to develop expertise in evaluating strategy use in this chapter. In these examples,

identify whether students are giving explanations, procedural descriptions, or terminal help.

Example 1. Mathematics.

A What did you get for number 1?

B 4.

A Oh, OK.

Example 2. Mathematics.

A What did you get for number 1?

B Just add 3 and divide by 2. Like this....

Example 3. History. Answering an end-of-chapter question in the history book. Question #6:

“Why did Jackson use the veto more than previous presidents?”

A What did you write for #6?

B I put, “Because he believed that the president was the people’s representative to stop

laws that were bad for the country.”