Chapter 14 page 323
Figure 14.3
Question stem cue cardsComprehension questions
Describe _____ in your own words.
What does _____ mean?
Why is _____ important?
Connection questions
Explain why _____.
Explain how _____.
How are _____ and _____ similar?
What is the difference between _____ and _____?
How could ____ be used to _____?
What would happen if _____?
How does ____ tie in with ____ that we learned before?(A. King, 1994)
Educational psychologist Alison King (1994) had fourth and fifth graders study texts on human
body system in pairs using cue cards with the question stems shown in Figure 14.3. These questions
directed students not only to think about the current text by itself (e.g., “Describe _ in your own words”)
but also to think about how this text connected with other things they had learned before (e.g., “How does
tie in with that we learned before?”) and to apply the text to new situations (e.g., “How could
_ be used to ?”). Students who used question stems learned more than students who did not; this
was true especially for students who used both comprehension questions and connection questions (A.
King, Staffieri, & Adelgais, 1998). The connection questions are especially valuable cognitive prompts for
students studying textbook passages together.
Problem 14.5. Evaluating teaching. Cognitive Prompts.
A seventh grade teacher has assigned groups of three students to be the “editorial board” for a local
newspaper in the year 1832. Their job is to evaluate what they’ve learned about Andrew Jackson’s first
term and decide whether to support or oppose Jackson’s reelection bid. The teacher wants students to
learn how to write persuasive essays of this sort, so she gives them cards with these cognitive prompts.
- Decide whether you think that Andrew Jackson
should be reelected. - Support your ideas with evidence from Jackson’s first
term (such as his positions on patronage, the Bank of
the U.S., and infrastructure) - Think about what arguments on the other side would
be, and think about how to argue against those
arguments.
Evaluate this cognitive prompt card. Should it be changed? If so, how?
Response: One problem with these prompts is that the first two questions are completely specific to
this task. The teacher says that he wants to learn to write persuasive essays of this sort, yet his first two