Instructional Events and Comprehension: Generalization across Passages

Abstract

Sixth graders read one of sixteen randomly selected cause-effect passages after receiving one of six communications from an adult: (1) read carefully, (2) try to form an image of the material being read, (3) read for a specific detail, (4) read for the general causal relationship, (5) read to see how the passage is like a familiar example described by the adult, and (6) background information. Students who were told to read for a specific detail remembered that detail better following reading. General comprehension, as measured by the quantity and quality of free recall, was better for students told to form an image, given a familiar example, or given background information, than for students reading the same passages with instructions to read carefully. It was concluded that instructions that encourage the reader to relate old and new information are most effective in enhancing comprehension. The uniqueness of the study in randomly sampling from a population of passages was noted.