Explanation prompts direct attention to targeted information and can reduce attention to other important information¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study (3 entries) · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2017 · checked against its sources 2026-10-20 (automated, 3 of 3 entries) · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Why-prompts supported more detailed explanations of domain principles but decreased the number of calculations performed during learning. → Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr 2017 q2 i? Prompts focused on solution procedures reduced comprehension relative to studying examples without generating explanations. → Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr 2017 (2) q2 i? In the only direct prompt-type contrast identified, how-explanation prompts led to greater procedural transfer than why-explanation prompts. → Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr 2017 (3)

Evidence¶

Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr 2017¶

Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr. (2017). Eliciting explanations: Constraints on when self-explanation aids learning. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 24, 1501–1510. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-016-1079-5

q2 · i? · review · r2

The review reports Berthold et al. (2011), where college students studied a tax-law e-learning module with why-explanation prompts or unguided note taking. Why-prompts yielded more elaborations on domain principles but "decreased the number of calculations performed during learning."

"However, the prompts also decreased the number of calculations performed during learning (Berthold et al., 2011)."

Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr 2017 (2)¶

Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr. (2017). Eliciting explanations: Constraints on when self-explanation aids learning. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 24, 1501–1510. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-016-1079-5

q2 · i? · review · r2

The review reports Große & Renkl (2006): prompts focused on solution procedures "reduced comprehension relative to studying the examples without generating explanations," illustrating the hidden cost of misdirected attention.

"In contrast, prompts that focused attention on solution procedures (e.g., BWhere do you see commonalities and differences between the two solution methods? ^) reduced comprehension relative to studying the examples without generating explanations (Große & Renkl,2006)."

Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr 2017 (3)¶

Bethany Rittle-Johnson & Abbey M. Loehr. (2017). Eliciting explanations: Constraints on when self-explanation aids learning. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 24, 1501–1510. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-016-1079-5

q2 · i? · review · r2

The review reports Nokes et al. (2011), high-school students explaining worked physics examples with how- or why-prompts. How-prompts produced greater procedural transfer; the authors argued these prompts better matched the target content. Conceptual knowledge was not assessed.

"The how-explanation prompts led to greater procedural transfer than the why-explanation prompts (conceptual knowledge was not assessed)."

Discussion¶

Learner Variables¶

• Attention — outcome: instruction changes it

Related Claims¶

• The assisting self-explanation prompt effect: assisting prompts elicit high-quality self-explanations and deep understanding — related
• Self-explanation promotes transfer of general patterns but can reduce recall of details and cause overgeneralization — related
• Both open and assisting self-explanation prompts foster procedural knowledge when learning with multiple representations, an effect mediated by self-explanations directed to domain principles — related
• Prompting learners to self-explain improves understanding and problem solving on immediate tests by a moderate average amount, with little evidence yet on delayed or classroom gains. — related
• Prompting learners to self-explain, one generative strategy, improves learning by a moderate average amount; other generative activities are not tested by the evidence recorded here — related
• Fourth-graders' explanations for differing repeated measurements of one arm span most often focused on the measuring tools and their use — related
• Assisting self-explanation prompts particularly foster conceptual knowledge, an effect mediated by self-explanations on the rationale of a principle — related