“Instruction Based on Generative Learning Activities” (Logan Fiorella, in Handbook of Research on Learning and Instruction, 2nd ed., 2024)

Many instructors want students to do more than memorize facts. This chapter pulls together research on a simple idea with big implications for teaching: students learn more deeply when they generate something with the material, not just read or listen to it. Generative learning means asking students to connect new ideas to what they already know by explaining, sketching, organizing, or physically acting out concepts. Studies across math and science show that, when well supported, these activities improve understanding and transfer better than rereading notes or listening passively.

Fiorella groups these approaches into three practical families: explaining (for example, having students self-explain a worked example or teach a short idea to a peer), visualizing (for example, drawing a process or building a quick concept map), and enacting (for example, using hand gestures or simple models to represent a process). The chapter also cautions that generative tasks can fall flat if they are too demanding, poorly scaffolded, or if students do not see their value. Faculty play a key role in modeling what a “good” explanation or diagram looks like and in choosing moments where a brief generative task can really pay off.

Practical Strategies and Reflective Questions for Instructors

Use prompts that ask for “how” and “why”

• Instead of only asking for final answers, occasionally prompt students to explain how they solved a problem, why a mechanism works, or what a step in a protocol accomplishes.

Reflect: In a typical class session, how often do I ask students to explain their thinking, not just state an answer?

Try quick drawing or mapping activities

• Invite students to sketch a process (for example, a pathway, a feedback loop) or build a simple concept map connecting 4–6 key terms, even on scrap paper or whiteboards.

Reflect: Where in my course could a two-minute drawing or mapping break help students see relationships among ideas more clearly?

Use gesture and simple models intentionally

• When you or your students use gestures, models, or manipulatives, make clear how the motions connect to the underlying concept, such as tracing flow, showing balance, or indicating comparison.

Reflect: Do my demonstrations and physical examples help students “see” the idea, or might I need to narrate the connection more explicitly?

Provide scaffolds, not just tasks

• Offer sentence starters for explanations, partially completed diagrams, or structured organizers so students are not starting from a blank page when they try a new strategy.

Reflect: When I introduce a new kind of generative activity, do I give students enough structure and examples to help them be successful the first time?

Align activities with goals and time

• Use small generative tasks before class to activate prior knowledge, during class to process a challenging idea, and after class to support review and transfer.

Reflect: Looking at one upcoming topic, where would a short explaining, drawing, or enacting activity best support the specific learning goal I have in mind?