Abstract

Since understanding reading assignments is important to succeeding in school, improving the way that text is arranged in books would be an efficient way to help students better understand the material and perform well on tests. In this study, we asked students to read two original and two rearranged historical passages, in which rephrased questions from the test of the passage were embedded in the reading. Those restated questions were embedded into the corresponding sections in the text where the answers for the questions were located. After the reading, they were tested on their understanding of the material with multiple choice questions. All participants took an identical test. According to the results, both groups’ accuracy was higher for the questions of the two rearranged passages in each group. In other words, the textbook makers should consider putting retrieval cues for the test into the textbook in order to make the textbooks more readable. Thus, the students’ retrieval of the concept and their performance on the test will be enhanced.

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