How do I use elaboration?
What is elaboration?
Elaboration refers to adding and connecting information to concepts that you are learning.
Why do we ask "how" and "why" questions when using elaborative interrogation?
We ask "how" and "why" questions in order for us to be able to answer any question we have about what we're learning, and also be able to explain it, not just give a memorized definition.
Why should we use elaborative interrogation instead of other techniques like the reading condition or the student's choice condition? (hint: this relates to the study we talked about in our presentation)
We should use this technique instead of others because the study showed that the students who used the elaborative interrogation technique learned more than the students in the reading condition and the student’s choice condition. This was true whether they worked alone or in pairs and was true 60 days after learning.
Why does it matter if you ask the "how" and "why" questions to yourself out loud and not in your head?
It is important to talk out loud and be able to articulate whatever you are thinking into words. It’s pretty easy to explain something in your head to yourself because you use images in your head to help fill in the blanks for terms you don’t know. So by actually talking out loud, it helps you formulate whatever you are thinking into words and it’s a good way to make sure you actually know what you’re talking about.
Why might elaborative interrogation not be the best for when you're learning a brand new topic?
Although this is a great technique that you can use in most situations and for most topics, it works best when you have prior knowledge about the topic, and it might be more difficult to use this technique effectively if you don't know anything at all about the topic beforehand.