Adjunct Questions Research Articles

Effects of Adjunct Questions on L2 Reading Comprehension with Texts of Different Types.

Answering text-related questions while reading is a questioning strategy which is called adjunct questions or embedded questions, the benefits of which have been established in first-language reading as to enhance comprehension. The present study aims to study the effects different adjunct questions exert on second-language (L2) readers' comprehension of texts of various types. One hundred and forty-four intermediate-level Chinese EFL learners participated in this study and were divided randomly into six groups. Each group was given either a narrative or an expository text with 'what or why' questions or no questions. A brief topic familiarity questionnaire was attached to the end of each text paper. The results showed that inserted adjunct questions improved the readers' reading comprehension both in expository and narrative texts, but only narrative texts inserted with why questions had significant effects on the L2 reading comprehension. The findings suggested that text types and question types modulate the effects of inserted adjunct questions on the English reading of intermediate learners. Pedagogical implications and suggestions for future studies are provided.

How to assist the students while learning from text? Effects of inserting adjunct questions on text processing

This study analyzes the effect of text-inserted questions and post-text-reading questions, i.e., questions timing, on students’ processing and learning when studying challenging texts. Seventy-six freshmen read two science texts and answered ten adjunct questions with the text available, being tested on learning 5 days afterwards. Questions were presented either after reading the whole text or inserted in the text after reading the relevant information. Online processing data were recorded while reading and searching the texts, and measures of processing strategies (i.e., paraphrases, elaborations) while answering the questions were collected. Compared to students in the post-reading condition, those in the inserted condition spent more time reading the text initially, were more efficient at searching for information in the text, and produced more accurate elaborations, all of which may explain why answering inserted questions in an available text were more effective in terms of learning than answering post-reading questions. Limitations and educational implications of these results are also discussed.

Effect of inserted adjunct questions on L2 reading with Chinese learners

AbstractThe present study examines the effect of adjunct questions on the reading comprehension of English‐speaking learners of Chinese as a second language (L2). In Experiment 1, fourth‐year (advanced) learners (n = 42) read two texts, either with or without adjunct questions, and completed a multiple‐choice cloze. In Experiments 2 and 3, second‐year (intermediate) learners (n = 40 and 34, respectively) read two texts, either with or without adjunct questions, and completed multiple‐choice cloze (Experiment 2) and written recall (Experiment 3). The results showed that the positive effect of adjunct questions only emerged among intermediate learners for written recall. These findings suggested that L2 level and comprehension assessment tasks modulate the effect of adjunct questions. Pedagogical implications and suggestions for future research are provided.

Growing trees: The acquisition of the left periphery

We suggest here a Growing Trees approach for the description of the acquisition of various syntactic structures in Hebrew, based on the main results reported in Friedmann and Reznick (this volume) and on our own research on a corpus of natural productions. The heart of our account is that stages of acquisition follow the geometry of the syntactic tree, along the lines of the cartographic analysis of the clause, with early stages of acquisition corresponding to small portions of the adult syntactic tree, which keeps growing with the growth of the child. The lower parts of the tree are acquired first, and higher parts are acquired later. We propose three stages of acquisition connected to the development of functional layers of the syntactic tree. In the first stage, the IP is acquired, including the lexical and inflectional layers. This allows for the appearance of A-movement structures, including SV/VS alternations with unaccusative verbs, alongside SV sentences with unergative/transitive verbs. The second stage involves the acquisition of the lower part of the left periphery, up to QP, which allows for the acquisition of subject and object Wh questions, some adjunct questions, yes/no questions, and sentence-initial adverbs. In the third stage, the rich structure of the left periphery is completely acquired, including the higher CP field. This is the stage in which sentential embedding (of finite declarative and interrogative clauses), subject and object relative clauses, why questions, and topicalization appear. A further, different type of stage, which occurs on the already-grown tree and which is independent of structure building, is the acquisition of intervention configurations, allowing for the mastery of structures involving movement of a lexically-restricted object across an intervening lexically-restricted subject. The paper illustrates the fruitful dialogue between the science of syntax acquisition and the cartography of syntactic structures.

A propos de quelques tournures interrogatives et constructions associées dans les légendes discursives (‘Reden und Rufe’) des tombes privées

"(Pseudo)-Interrogative Sentences and Associated Phrases in Speech Captions in Private Tombs": In this paper, I discuss the (pseudo)-interrogative phrases, both those that are introduced by an interrogative word as well as those that are not. My aim is to provide a synchronic and diachronic study of such sentences and to illustrate a few of their uses in the Reden und Rufe corpus. After a short introduction (section 1), the predicate questions jn and jn-jw are considered in section 2 and adjunct questions built with the interrogative pronouns jšs.t, zy, m and the interrogative adverb ṯn(y) in section 3. Section 3 will further discuss a couple of affirmative and exclamative sentences, which have to be linked with the rhetorical question jšs.t pw A. The fourth and last section before conclusions is devoted to three cases studies relevant for this investigation, i.e. the proclitic particle js, which allows the speaker to distance himself from his words through an ironic statement (4.1), interrogative phrases without interrogative words (4.2), and the particle ḫy hitherto known from letters only (4.3). As a result 50 examples from Old Kingdom mastabas to Late Period tombs have been considered. Even if real (or ordinary) questions (OQs) arose in a few cases, there is a clear majority of rhetorical questions (RQs), which are uninformative and assertive. Both OQs and RQs can be expressed by means of the same syntactic structure, be it predicate questions, adjuncts questions, or interrogative phrases without interrogative words. Some are however preferred for RQs, and vice versa. The RQs as adjunct questions, which are predominant in this text corpus, invoke a predetermined answer from the addressee, being either jnk pw or jnk + nominalized participle. As such they reveal a first rhetorical strategy in which the answer is the counterpart of the question with exactly the same syntactic structure jšs.t pw A – jnk pw, zy pw A – jnk pw, and (j)n-m + participle – jnk + participle). The jšs.t pw A and (j)n-m + participle patterns expose a further rhetorical strategy in which the speaker and/or the addressee is/are objectified.

A Formative Design Examining the Effects of Elaboration and Question Strategy with Video Instruction in Medical Education

The purpose of this formative design study was to investigate the effects of instructor-created elaborations, learner-created elaborations, and adjunct questions on medical student learning outcomes in an asynchronous learning environment, using pre-recorded video over the course of a semester. The study also investigated the effects of instructor-created elaborations, learner-created elaborations, or adjunct questions on perceived cognitive load. The effect of learning strategy on quality of elaboration was also investigated. Results showed no significant difference in learning outcomes or cognitive load or quality of elaboration, but a post hoc analysis revealed a significant difference in intrinsic cognitive load for students who used generative strategies while having no gain in learning outcomes. Formative design data suggest that additional attention is needed on the learning environment when implementing generative learning strategies.

Explaining variation in wh-position in child French: A statistical analysis of new seminaturalistic data

ABSTRACTThe two possible positions for wh-words (i.e., in situ or preposed) represent a long-standing area of research in French. The present study reports on statistical analyses of a new seminaturalistic corpus of child L1 French. The distribution of the wh-words is examined in relation to a new verb tripartition: Free be forms, the Fixed be form c’est ‘it is’, and Other Verbs. Results indicate that a discriminating variable is verb form (i.e., Free vs. Fixed), regardless of verb type (i.e., be vs. Other Verbs), and that there is a correlation between the wh-in-situ position and the Fixed be form. The Fixed be form is thus identified as the component that leads to wh-in-situ utterances, in contrast to other languages such as English. Overuse of the Fixed be form in child speech could also account for the predominance of wh-in-situ in child object questions compared to adjunct questions and child wh-questions in general compared to adult questions.

Inserted adjuncts, working memory capacity, and L2 reading

Empirical studies in first language (L1) research support the use of inserted adjunct questions to facilitate L1 reading comprehension. The status of this comprehension technique for second language (L2) readers, however, remains unclear. Given the possibility that adjunct questions augment the cognitive demands of the task, the current study investigated the relationship between working memory capacity (WMC) and text adjuncts, as well as the effect of inserted adjuncts on L2 reading comprehension. Seventy learners of intermediate Spanish read two texts that contained either targeted segment (“what”) questions inserted into both passages, elaborative interrogation (“why”) questions inserted into both passages, or no questions in either of the two passages. Participants were administered an L1 working memory (WM) test—the Reading Span—and three comprehension assessments. Although the “why” questions were slightly more facilitative than the “what” questions and no questions, results indicate no significant effect of adjunct condition. When interactions with WM surfaced as significant, the pattern was apparent: the greater the WMC, the more beneficial the adjunct questions were for L2 readers. These findings suggest that, for intermediate learners of Spanish, there is no advantage to including inserted adjuncts in L2 expository texts, but that WM may explain performance differences in some cases.

Effects of incorporating retrieval into learning tasks: The complexity of the tasks matters

In an experiment with N = 192 university students, we examined whether the effects of incorporating retrieval into learning tasks depend on the learning tasks' complexity. The learning tasks consisted of adjunct questions that were provided together with expository texts relating to the domain of chemistry. We varied (a) whether the adjunct questions required the learners to summarize (low complexity) or generate inferences on the basis of provided information (high complexity) and (b) whether the adjunct questions were implemented in a closed-book style that required learners to engage in retrieval or in an open-book style that did not require learners to engage in retrieval while responding to the questions. Afterwards, all learners took either an immediate or a delayed criterion test. We found that the effect of incorporating retrieval depended on the complexity of the adjunct questions; the net benefit of incorporating retrieval was higher for the low complexity ones.

Detrimental effects of immediate explanation feedback

Adjunct questions are a common means to foster learning from instructional explanations. As the benefit of adjunct questions is mitigated if learner performance on them is low, it is also common to provide feedback as an add-on if learners fail to correctly respond to them. However, if adjunct questions are highly demanding, feedback might not only beneficially affect learning because it helps learners revise their comprehension difficulties; at the same time, it could also detrimentally affect learning by causing learners to invest less time in responding to subsequent adjunct questions, which lowers learner performance on these questions. This, in turn, could reduce learning outcomes. To address these potential detrimental effects of feedback, we experimentally varied whether N = 59 students received immediate feedback after they responded to highly demanding adjunct questions. We found that the feedback did indeed have detrimental effects: At least for the learners who perceived the task of responding to the adjunct questions as highly demanding, the feedback decreased both the time the learners invested in responding to the adjunct questions and their performance on them. This detrimental effect on the performance on the adjunct questions, in turn, entailed a detrimental effect on learning outcomes. We conclude that immediate feedback is not necessarily a beneficial add-on to adjunct questions in all situations.

The multiple effects of combined tools in computer-based learning environments

Research has repeatedly established that the theoretical benefits of support devices, also addressed as tools, in computer-based learning environments (CBLEs) do not match their actual impact on performance. This study investigated the effectiveness and the use of tools in a CBLE. The impact of combined tools (concept maps and adjunct questions), tool-related characteristics (tool delivery mode: non-/embedded tool), tool advice (non-/explained tool functionality) and learner-related characteristics (prior knowledge, self-efficacy, goal orientation, perceptions and self-regulation) on the quantity and quality of tool use was analyzed. The effects of tool use on performance were also studied. One hundred and eighty-two participants were randomly assigned to one out of five conditions (embedded with and without explanation of tool functionality; non-embedded with and without explanation of tool functionality and a control condition). The results revealed that the tools were functional: Learners in the experimental groups did better in the performance test than the learners in the control group. Specifically, learners in the non-embedded conditions and with the explanation of the tool performed better than the control condition. Furthermore, learners in the embedded conditions spent significantly more time on both tools. The time spent on the tools decreased in learners with high performance avoidance levels (goal orientation) and tool usability perceptions, but increased in learners with high critical thinking (self-regulation skill). Consecutively, the time spent on the tools influenced performance positively. These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for further research on tool use.

Learning with video-based examples - Are you sure you do not need help?

This study investigated help-seeking activities in a computer-based environment teaching argumentative skills by videos of argumentative dialogues of teachers who discussed controversy issues in the context of a workshop. Learners, all of them students of educational sciences, solved learning tasks on the presented argumentative dialogues and reflected on their response certitude. Forty-three students voluntary took part in the study. Two experimental groups varied according to the type of task they solved. Group 1 got adjunct questions, so-called self-explanation prompts that elicited elaboration of the video content. Group 2 answered multiple-choice tasks that assessed the same knowledge. After each task, participants of both groups (a) had to judge the certainty of their response being correct (i.e., the marking of the multiple-choice task or the written self-explanations) and (b) were offered to use the help function on demand. Results revealed the relevance of learners' response certitude with respect to their help use. Low response certitude about the correctness of a task solution led to higher help use which was positively related to learning outcome. However, learners' response certitude was unrelated to the actual correctness of their task solution. Type of task had no influence on response certitude, help use or learning outcome.

Textual enhancements or interference? Inserted adjuncts and L2 reading with intermediate language learners

Abstract Reading comprehension techniques, specifically inserted adjunct questions, for second language (L2) learners have not been investigated extensively, but the extant research has produced mixed results. Specifically, in some studies adjunct questions have had no effect, whereas in other studies adjunct questions have proven beneficial. The present study, therefore, attempted to reconcile the differences by clarifying instructions (to write the responses to the questions) and utilizing intermediate-level Spanish students (rather than advanced). Ninety-six intermediate Spanish students read two texts and answered either targeted segment questions (“what” questions), elaborative interrogation questions (“why” questions), or did not answer questions. Finally, a free recall task and multiple choice questions were administered. The targeted segment questions resulted in decreased performance on the recall task for both passages and had no effect on the multiple choice questions. The elaborative interrogation questions appeared to negatively affect recall, but the decrease was not significant. There was also no effect on multiple choice questions. The results of this study indicate that inserted adjunct questions are not beneficial for intermediate learners of Spanish reading an L2 text.

The roles of embedded monitoring requests and questions in improving mental models of computer-based scientific text

Prior research has shown that people are likely to skim information presented digitally with the resultant deleterious effect on accurate mental models of the text. Teaching monitoring strategies and presenting text with adjunct questions are effective strategies for improving the mental models of readers of scientific text, but the two strategies have not been directly compared for studying text read from a computer screen. In the present study, participants were individually tested in two experiments in which they studied computer-based text on the heart and circulatory system while either reading the text with no interruption, answering adjunct inference questions, answering adjunct factual questions, or answering prompts for global or specific monitoring. Reading time was untimed but looking back was not available. Prompting for global monitoring was most effective for improvement of mental models as measured by scores in diagram drawing, concept map construction, factual memory, and generating inferences. Further, global monitoring did not require more time-on-task than the other methods. ► We compare three strategies for presenting scientific text on a computer. ► In two experiments, we assess improvement in mental models of the studied text. ► We measured diagram and concept map drawing and fact and inference questions. ► Global monitoring resulted in the most improved mental models. ► Global monitoring required no more time than the other strategies.

To Use or Not to Use Tools in Interactive Learning Environments: A Question of SelfEfficacy?

This study attempted to optimize tool use in interactive learning environments (ILE’s) by investigating the impact of tool presentation (embedded vs. non-embedded), the explanation of tool functionality and self-efficacy on tool use. This paper also investigated the effects of tool use and self-efficacy on performance. Moreover, tool use was studied quantitatively (frequency and time spent on tool) and qualitatively (correctness of answers in adjunct questions). One hundred and forty students were confronted to a hypertext and randomly distributed over four conditions: Embedded and nonembedded with explained functionality; and embedded and non-embedded with non-explained functionality. Results revealed that in the embedded conditions tools were used more quantitatively, but quality of use was higher in non-embedded conditions. A slight effect of explained functionality was found. Self-efficacy had a negative effect on quantity of tool use. Only quantity of tool use along with self-efficacy influenced performance significantly. Theoretical implications are discussed.

Instructional effectiveness of higher-order questions: The devil is in the detail of students’ use of questions

Research has repeatedly established that the theoretical benefits of various scaffolds do not match their actual impact on learning. It has been argued that the instructional effectiveness of scaffolds largely depends on very detailed aspects of the learning activities associated with the scaffolds within specific environments. From this perspective and, in order to predict and control learning outcomes in the context of specific instances of scaffolds, there is a need for a detailed cognitive analysis of learning activities (e.g. analyses of students’ scaffold use). Accordingly, the current study investigated how students actually use adjunct questions while studying a text and how the quantity and quality of usage determine students’ learning outcomes (performance). Forty-two university students in two conditions were required to study a short science text for 15 min. Results revealed that the quality of students’ use of instructional devices accounted for their final performance.

The syntactic distribution of argument and adjunct question word constructions in Ikalanga

This paper investigates the distribution of argument and adjunct question phrases in Ikalanga. It is argued that both adjunct and argument question phrases in this language are focused, but that the former are merged in the specifier of a focus phrase (which projects either within v P or higher than TP) while argument question phrases occur in the specifier of a focus phrase as a result of a syntactic operation, namely attract . Evidence that adjunct question phrases are base generated in spec-FocP rather than moved there while argument question phrases are moved to spec-FocP comes from morphological differences observed between the two construction types as well as movement tests. There are two main points of interest related to the distribution of adjunct question phrases. One has to do with the fact that Ikalanga has one word chini which means ‘how’ or ‘how come’. The paper argues that speakers distinguish chini ‘how’ and ‘how come’ based on their syntactic distribution, which is complementary. chini ‘how come’ is always merged in the specifier of FocP and can occur either on the left edge of the sentence or on the right edge of the sentence. chini ‘how’ on the other hand only occurs at the right edge of the sentence or between the verb and its complement. It is shown that although chini ‘how come’ seemingly occurs on the right edge of the sentence, this is a derived position: it is a position that results after a proposition, a TP, has been topicalized leaving behind chini in spec-FocP. The second point of interest concerning the distribution of adjuncts is the rather unusual position they occupy, namely between the verb and its complement. The paper proposes that these data can be analyzed successfully by adopting the proposal that a focus phrase projects within v P (see Ndayiregige, Linguistic Inquiry 30: 399–444, 1999, van der Wal, The disjoint verb form and an empty immediate after verb position, ZAS, 2006, among others, for similar proposals.

Exploring wh-questions in agrammatism: Evidence from Greek

This study investigates the ability of three Greek-speaking agrammatic patients to produce and comprehend wh-questions by means of a wh-question elicitation task and a picture-pointing task. The role of question type is explored by comparing argument with adjunct questions and subject with object questions. Overall, production was found significantly more impaired than comprehension. The agrammatic participants had better performance on argument than on adjunct questions, while no dissociation was observed between subject and object questions. The overall difficulty with wh-questions indicates that the agrammatic participants had a deficit in syntactic movement or in handling CP, a finding which is compatible with other cross-linguistic results. Although this finding could be accounted for by existing hypotheses, an alternative account is proposed, according to which wh-questions are difficult to process because they are associated with LF-interpretable features, which increase their processing load. Finally, the preponderance of argument over adjunct questions reinforces the (double) dissociation between these two question types reported in the literature, while the lack of a dissociation between the subject- and the object-questions suggests that both question types involve syntactic movement to CP.

The Effect of Adjunct Questions Emphasizing the Particulate Nature of Matter on Students' Understanding of Chemical Concepts in Multimedia Lessons

This study investigated the use of three types of adjunct questions to enhance and assess student learning of molecular-level chemistry concepts. Subjects were 98 volunteers in a college–level general chemistry course. The subjects were divided into three groups, each of which completed the same multimedia computer lessons, but different types of adjunct questions: (a) text-based macroscopic/symbolic questions, (b) text-based questions emphasizing the particulate nature of matter, and (c) pictorial questions emphasizing the particulate nature of matter. A conceptual test was administered, consisting of three parts: (1) macroscopic/symbolic text-based items, (2) molecular-level text-based items, and (3) molecular-level pictorial items. No significant differences were found among the three groups on any part of the test using scores on the TOLT (an assessment of formal reasoning ability), FIT (an assessment of mental capacity), and a pre-test as covariates. There was a significant positive relationship between TOLT scores and each of the three parts of the test. There was also a significant positive relationship between FIT scores and scores on the macroscopic and pictorial parts of the test. Formal reasoning ability accounted for more variance among test scores for all three parts of the test than did mental capacity.

A systematic review of interventions to improve recall of medical advice in healthcare consultations

In order for patients to adhere to healthcare advice, it is essential that they are able to recall this following a consultation. Although psychological research exists which highlights techniques and factors postulated to influence recall, only a limited body of work has been conducted to evaluate their effectiveness in a clinical context. To carry out a systematic review of intervention trials designed to enhance recall of medical information. We searched Medline (1950-April 2007); Embase (1980-April 2007); Cinahl (1982-April 2007); PsychINFO (1969-2007); and the Cochrane Library Collection. Secondary searches were made through reference to relevant journals and reference lists from relevant papers/review papers. From 69 papers provisionally identified, 34 papers met the inclusion criteria. Nine recall interventions had been evaluated (audio recordings, written materials, adjunct questions, prompt sheets, visual aids, cognitive strategies, rehearsal, communication styles and personalized teaching). Despite the experimental and theoretical evidence which could have informed cognitive interventions to enhance recall of healthcare advice, most studies primarily focused on the use of written and/or audio-recorded medical instructions. Although the majority of studies supported these approaches insofar as they enhanced recall, the findings were equivocal. While written and tape-recorded instructions appear to improve recall in most situations, a dearth of interventions incorporating psychological theory was readily apparent. Further research is required in clinical settings to determine if cognitive interventions based on a more over-arching psychological model of recall are effective.