Using Question Generation to Improve Reading Comprehension for Middle‐Grade Students

Description

In the middle grades, the transition to using text more regularly to acquire content knowledge may be challenging for some content area teachers. Many students have difficulty with recalling important information, reading to learn, and engaging in meaningful text-based discussions during science and social studies. Question generation is one evidence-based practice that can be easily integrated into teachers’ existing instruction and that supports students’ text comprehension and content learning.

This article provides an overview of question generation and descriptions and examples of each step in the instructional process based on resources the authors developed in collaboration with middle school content area teachers. The examples include sample science and social studies texts and emphasize the initial modeling phase of question generation instruction. More information on question generation, including free materials, can be found at https://greatmiddleschools.org/generating-questions

Citation