Effects of two types of task instructions on literary text comprehension and motivational and affective factors

Henschel S, Meier C, Roick T (2016)


Publication Language: English

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2016

Journal

Publisher: Elsevier

Book Volume: 44

Pages Range: 11-21

Journal Issue: 44

DOI: 10.1016/j.learninstruc.2016.02.005

Abstract

This experimental study investigated the effects of two types of task instructions on text comprehension, motivation, and emotional involvement. In all, 226 9th graders in low academic tracks were randomly assigned to complete reader-oriented (RO), text-based (TB), or no tasks after reading literary texts to elaborate their mental text representation. Whereas RO tasks encouraged emotional engagement and indirectly stimulated text analysis through creative activities, TB tasks focused on cognitive activity and directly encouraged text analysis. After students completed the tasks, they answered test items on content- and form-related text comprehension. The results indicate that form-related comprehension improved when students elaborated their mental text representation through TB tasks. By contrast, RO students were more interested in the tasks, and they showed slightly more emotional involvement. As the two types of task instructions seemingly have different effects, they may be considered complementary elements in instructional practices for lower academic tracks.

Authors with CRIS profile

How to cite

APA:

Henschel, S., Meier, C., & Roick, T. (2016). Effects of two types of task instructions on literary text comprehension and motivational and affective factors. Learning and Instruction, 44(44), 11-21. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2016.02.005

MLA:

Henschel, Sofie, Christel Meier, and Thorsten Roick. "Effects of two types of task instructions on literary text comprehension and motivational and affective factors." Learning and Instruction 44.44 (2016): 11-21.

BibTeX: Download