Educational Psychology Chapter 9 Study Questions

As he studies for a history test, Jamil makes a chart of various events and draws lines between related ones. He labels each line with a word or phrase that describes the relationship involved. Jamil's strategy illustrates which one of the following? A.Concept map B.Self-imposed contingency C.An algorithm D.Specific transfer

A. A concept map is a diagram of concepts and their interrelationships.

Although most students seek out new information, Jerita tries purposefully to ignore new facts. She believes any new information will cloud her judgment or confuse her understanding about the causes of the American Civil War. Jerita is showing A.an inability to transfer knowledge. B.a confirmation bias. C.functional fixedness. D.a response set.

B. Confirmation bias occurs when we seek out information to confirm what we already believe or when we ignore certain information that does not confirm our choices and beliefs.

True or false; Convergence involves coming to a single solution

True

True or false; General transfer is the application of a general principle of learning (e.g., like time-management skills or attitude toward work) to new contexts. Hutton is using overlearning to develop automaticity?

True

Which one of the following students is most clearly engaging in metacognition? A.Danielle occasionally pauses to make sure she understands what she is reading in her textbook. B.LaDonna often daydreams as she completes spelling worksheets, which she finds quite boring. C.Hideo repeats each new word or phrase his teacher introduces in Spanish class, but he has trouble pronouncing the rolling r's in certain words. D.When Carlos is bitten by a neighbor's German shepherd, he acquires a fear of all German shepherds.

A - Danielle is "thinking about her thinking," which is the essence of metacognition. In particular, she is engaging in comprehension monitoring.

Which one of the following best illustrates monitoring in self-regulated learning? A.Shasta occasionally quizzes herself as she studies her notes. B.Munro is conscientious about turning in all of his assignments on time. C.Dan takes notes in class to help him keep his mind on a lesson. D.Paula uses a highlighter to mark every definition in her textbook.

A - Monitoring involves checking progress toward learning goals.

When students encounter a difficult problem that they can't immediately solve, they often can work through it unconsciously if they take some time away from directly thinking about it. This process is known as: A.incubation. B.insight. C.restructuring. D.divergent thinking.

A. Incubation is a process of allowing ideas to "hatch." Time away from directly thinking about the problem can often lead to new or sudden insight

Kele had her stomach pumped after she ingested part of an unknown compound in chemistry class. "But at home we always taste things to find out whether they're sugar or salt," she said. How is her error defined? A.Negative transfer B.Positive transfer C.Overlearning D.Mindless abstraction

A. Negative transfer occurs when one uses information previously learned in a new situation, BUT the application is inappropriate. Kele should have known that tasting things to learn more about them is only a good strategy in a very limited number of situations.

Highlighting and note taking are most effective as study strategies when A.the learner organizes and transforms important ideas and themes without using too much working memory capacity. B.students capture details in lecture notes and margin notes rather than trying to hold everything in their working memory. C.the learner captures as much of the content as possible without adding too much interpretation. D.they are based on templates, matrices, or outlines from the teacher.

A. Taking notes and highlighting texts help to focus attention on main ideas, and organization/transformation helps make the information more meaningful.

Three of the following teaching strategies should promote critical thinking. Which strategy, although beneficial in other ways, will NOT necessarily promote critical thinking skills? A.Have students relate new information to things they already know about the world. B.Ask students to read a persuasive essay and look for possible flaws in the author's line of reasoning. C.Portray the sciences and social sciences as disciplines that will evolve as new evidence comes in. D.Have students debate a controversial issue by taking a perspective in direct opposition to what they actually believe

A. This is not an example of critical thinking, because students are not evaluating either the new information or the previously learned information

Creativity often involves divergent thinking. Which one of the following is the best example of divergent thinking? A.Frederick solved several multiplication problems using a strategy he has learned for solving "9s" problems. B.Damon didn't have wooden blocks to build an arch for his toy soldiers to march under, so he built an arch using paper cups turned upside-down. C.After reading in a book about what hamsters like to eat, Jordan gave her pet hamster a diet of vegetables, fruit, and hamster pellets to help him grow faster. D.Mia built a bookcase for her bedroom by following the directions she found in a hobby magazine.

B. Creativity involves imaginative or original thinking. Damon is using an existing object in a clever way to solve a problem (a lack of blocks).

How do creative strategies in the classroom support deep learning? A.Creative strategies help students align their thinking during group work. B.Creative strategies help students use content in multiple ways. C.Creative strategies help students gain extrinsic task motivation. D.Creative strategies help students use convergent thinking.

B. Deep understanding comes from using the content in multiple ways and seeing different implications of the knowledge

One reason why experts tend to be better at solving problems in their fields of expertise than novices is that: A.experts are more likely to reason based on knowledge, whereas novices are more likely to use intuition. B.experts can use their extensive knowledge to organize information for easier learning and retrieval. C.experts are more efficient, whereas novices spend more time and effort analyzing problems and making plans. D.experts in general have greater memory capacity for information in their chosen fields

B. Experts also are better than novices at recognizing patterns in the given information and in quickly selecting a procedure to follow.

Which of the following statements regarding transfer is most accurate? A.When introducing a new concept, it is important to use similar examples until the concept is well understood, and only then use diverse examples. B.Successful transfer involves a process of initial learning along with a process of applying that knowledge. C.Automatically using well-learned skills such as reading or writing in everyday applications is not a form of transfer. D.Overlearning a concept initially is more likely to lead a student to a response set than to transfer the concept appropriately to a new setting

B. For thoughtful transfer to succeed, students must first actually learn the underlying principle or concept, not just the surface procedure or algorithm.

Russ has just solved eight multiplication problems in a row. When he gets to the ninth problem, he does not notice the plus (+) sign in the problem and multiplies instead of adds. Russ's error can best be explained by which one of the following? A.He used an algorithm when he should have used a heuristic. B.He brought an inappropriate response set to the problem. C.He engaged in divergent thinking when he should have engaged in convergent thinking. D.He used a heuristic when he should have used an algorithm.

B. He encoded the problem as a multiplication problem rather than an addition problem. Repetitive practice with a particular kind of problem can lead students to encode problems in a particular way-that is, to impose a particular response set-without really thinking about what they are doing.

In which one of the following situations is mindful abstraction most likely to occur? A.Madeleine thinks that computer programming is a lot like geometry, because both involve puzzles that need to be solved. B.Maddox realizes that French grammar is in many respects very similar to Spanish grammar. C.Melba thinks it is odd that the poet e. e. cummings did not like to use capital letters, even in spelling his own name. D.Marvin memorizes the sentence, "King Philip comes over for good spaghetti," to help him remember the biological classification system: kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species.

B. Mindful abstraction occurs when there is overlap in content, as is the case here.

A student who can use a mathematical principle when playing a card game but cannot use the same principle in answering a math question on a test lacks the ability to demonstrate A.negative transfer. B.positive transfer. C.abstract transfer. D.overlearning.

B. Positive transfer involves using previously learned material on new material to solve a problem. An important consideration for teachers in teaching for positive transfer is being aware of what the future is likely to hold for students, both as a group and as individuals. (Positive transfer happens when one uses previously learned information in a new situation AND when this leads to appropriate and effective learning)

Which of the following statements most accurately reflects researchers' views on whether students should use rote memorization to learn? A.Rote memorization can be useful for certain kinds of information. B.Rote memorization is most useful when the information to be learned should become automated. C.Rote memorization is not useful because it creates only "inert" knowledge. D.Rote memorization is only useful when the information is static and cannot be elaborated on.

C - Rote memorization involves simple repetition of information, without organization or elaboration or any deeper process. Some research suggests rote memorization can lead to long-term learning of basic concepts.

Only one of the following is always found in critical thinking. Which one? A.Separating and controlling variables B.Algorithmic problem solving C.Evaluating information or arguments D.Reflecting on epistemological beliefs

C. By definition, critical thinking involves evaluating information or lines of reasoning in terms of their accuracy and worth.

Hutton practiced the steps involved in his carefully choreographed drama presentation. He practiced them several times every day to make sure he would make no mistakes when he performed in front of the class. He is aware of the benefits of A.general transfer. B.negative transfer. C.overlearning. D.modeling.

C. By practicing the skills past the point of mastery, Hutton expects the choreographed moves to become automatic

Which one of the following students is most likely to engage in metacognition in studying classroom material? A.Gio hypothesizes that the best way to study is through rote memorization of the material in the lecture and the textbook. B.Chelsea hypothesizes that learners are like spongeslong dashthey soak up everything they hear in the classroom and read in textbooks. C.Brock hypothesizes that unless he truly thinks about what he is learning and how it relates to his own life, he will not remember most of the newly acquired knowledge. D.Monica hypothesizes that everything we learn is either true or not true and that textbooks are always true.

C. Learners who think of learning as a constructive, integrative process are more likely to engage in meaningful learning.

Which one of the following is the best example of critical thinking? A.Muriel asks her teacher, "Why do we have to start school so early in the morning? I have trouble thinking clearly before 10 o'clock in the morning." B.Rachel mumbles to herself as she reads her history book, "Why does the year 1929 sound so familiar? Oh, yes, now I know. That's the year the stock market crashed." C.Lorenzo complains to his teacher, "When the textbook author talks about the importance of recycling, he doesn't explain how the advantages outweigh the disadvantages." D.Justin says to his friend Victor, "I think I can guess why you're feeling sad today."

C. Lorenzo is engaging in critical thinking because he is evaluating the content of the textbook rather than simply reading or memorizing it.

Peter thinks that there are more clothing stores than restaurants in the mall near his house, because he can easily list fifteen clothing stores at his mall but can list only five or six food stands or restaurants. How is Peter determining this answer? A.He's using belief perseverance. B.He's using a confirmation bias. C.He's using the availability heuristic. D.He's using the representative heuristic.

C. Peter draws on his own memories or experiences to answer the question. If he spends more time at the mall in clothing stores than he does eating, he'll have an easier time remembering the clothing stores. However, just because certain memories are more available to him doesn't necessarily mean that he has arrived at the right answer

When trying to solve a difficult problem, many students create barriers by A.activating their schema. B.failing to use their confirmation bias. C.deciding too quickly what the question is asking. D.relying on their declarative knowledge.

C. Several barriers to effective problem solving are activating the wrong schema, having faulty translation of the problem, and deciding too quickly what the question is asking.

Of the following, the most effective way to encourage students to show creativity in the classroom is for teachers to: A.present unstructured problems that have no answer. B.identify specific talents in each child and foster development of those talents. C.reinforce attempts to solve problems in unusual ways, even if the answer is wrong. D.provide opportunities for rewards through various competitive activities, like art shows or musical solos

C. Teachers can best foster creativity by focusing attention on the creative process rather than the final product.

Recognizing a problem as a "disguised" version of an old problem for which one already has a solution is referred to as: A.algorithmic problem solving. B.problem solving based on heuristics. C.schema-driven problem solving. D.Taking the search-based route to solving the problem.

C. The solution to a new problem that is like an old problem requires activation of an old schema, rather than development of a new solution

A general strategy used in attempting to solve problems is called A.analogical reasoning. B.an algorithm. C.a heuristic. D.means-end analysis

C. We often apply heuristics automatically to make quick judgments in everyday problem solving

Leisha is a junior in high school. She wants to get a summer job and continue working during the school term to save money for college. Her mom thinks Leisha should not get a job, because she claims Leisha will not keep up her grades, stay focused, and get enough sleep. What skills does Leisha need to use in approaching her mother and changing her mother's mind? A.Positive transfer skills B.Corroboration skills C.Contextualization skills D.Argumentation skills

D Leisha needs to use argumentation skills-to construct her own argument, support her position, and refute her mother's argument

Mr. Michael has asked his seventh-graders to work in small cooperative groups to design and carry out a research project in which they learn something new about the attitudes and opinions of students at their middle school. "Begin by brainstorming a wide variety of topics you might investigate," he tells his students. Mr. Michael is essentially asking his students to A.engage in critical thinking. B.use an algorithm to pick a topic. C.engage in convergent thinking. D.engage in divergent thinking.

D. Divergent thinking involves starting at a single point and generating many ideas that go in different directions.

Mr. Case, the physical education teacher, was given 25 old tennis racquets. Unfortunately, the tennis racquets were wood so they were warped, and they also needed new strings. Knowing they could not be used for playing tennis, he made the decision to throw the racquets away. Mr. Case may be demonstrating A.a confirmation bias. B.belief perseverance. C.a response set. D.functional fixedness

D. Functional fixedness is the inability to use objects or tools in a new way.

Ms. Fonteneau gave a creative writing assignment in French class following the reading of a true story about a French soldier during the French Revolution. She allows 15 minutes today and 15 minutes tomorrow for students to work on their writing. What component of the creative process is she fostering? A.Convergence B.Flexibility C.Automaticity D.Restructuring

D. Ms. Fonteneau is fostering restructuring, allowing time for incubation

True or false; When introducing a new concept, it is important to use similar examples until the concept is well understood, and only then use diverse examples?

False. Research suggests that initial learning is most effective when it involves mindful abstraction, or the deliberate identification of principles or ideas that apply to many different situations.

True or false; any time students evaluate the content of source material-whether an essay, article, textbook, movie, advertisement, or other form of media-they are engaging in critical thinking?

True