Motivation and Learning Strategies for College Success : A Self-management Approach

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LEARNING FROM LECTURES 229

they choose. The humanistic teacher is interested in creat-

ing an educational environment that fosters self-develop-

ment, cooperation, and positive communication because of

the belief that these conditions will foster greater learning.

(Adapted from Dembo, 1994).

Psychology 101—Learning—Sept. 25

HOW CAN I ASK GOOD MIRROR QUESTIONS?

When students first begin writing mirror questions, most of the ques-

tions tend to be factual. As you write and answer mirror questions, it

is important that the level of your questions reflect the same level of

the instructor’s focus. For example, if the main purpose of a lecture is

to compare and contrast differences in major wars during the last cen-

tury, the instructor is likely to focus on content that will be answered

by such questions as: “What is the difference between... ?”“What

were the causes of... ” “What might have happened if... ?” How-

ever, if most of your questions focus on factual information like: “What

is... ?” or “Who are... ?” you are going to miss the major focus of

the lecture and may not be properly prepared for the examination.

There are two broad levels of questions: lower level and higher

level. Lower level questions tend to focus on factual information and