Effects of Student-Generated Diagrams versus Student-Generated Summaries on Conceptual Understanding of Causal and Dynamic Knowledge in Plate Tectonics
J. Gobert, J. Clement 1999 Journal of Research in Science Teaching 36(1), 39-53

This article examines the beneficial effects of student-generated diagrams versus student-generated summaries on conceptual understanding on the topic of plate tectonics. A group of fifth grade students were asked to read text about plate tectonics. One segment of the group was asked to draw diagrams about the material, another was asked to write summaries and the third group simply read the text (control group). While the summaries themselves contained more information than the diagrams, the students who drew the diagrams outperformed both of the other groups on the posttest given to determine understanding of the topic. These results are discussed in the context of how they impact on-line reading comprehension and conceptual understanding of a domain.


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Subject: Education:Assessment
Resource Type: Pedagogic Resources:Research Results, Journal Article
Grade Level: College Lower (13-14)
Research on Learning: Ways Of Learning, Cognitive Domain, Ways Of Learning:Verbal, Visual Learning