Educational psychologists Maria Santos, David Chen, and their colleagues have observed an intriguing pattern in academic settings. Students who receiv...
GMAT Information and Ideas : (Ideas) Questions
Educational psychologists Maria Santos, David Chen, and their colleagues have observed an intriguing pattern in academic settings. Students who receive meaningful choices in their learning process—what researchers call autonomy-supportive approaches—consistently demonstrate higher levels of genuine academic engagement. This engagement appears to stem from the activation of intrinsic motivational pathways, internal psychological mechanisms that sustain learning without external rewards. When Santos and Chen analyzed classroom environments where teachers regularly provide students with learning options and decision-making opportunities, they found that such environments should likely ______
Which choice most logically completes the text?
strengthen students' capacity for independent learning.
reduce students' dependence on teacher-directed instruction.
help students better identify their preferred learning styles.
eliminate students' need for performance feedback.
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Part A: Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| 'Educational psychologists Maria Santos, David Chen, and their colleagues have observed an intriguing pattern in academic settings.' |
|
| 'Students who receive meaningful choices in their learning process—what researchers call autonomy-supportive approaches—consistently demonstrate higher levels of genuine academic engagement.' |
|
| 'This engagement appears to stem from the activation of intrinsic motivational pathways, internal psychological mechanisms that sustain learning without external rewards.' |
|
| 'When Santos and Chen analyzed classroom environments where teachers regularly provide students with learning options and decision-making opportunities,' |
|
| 'they found that such environments should likely ______' |
|
Part B: Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Students who receive meaningful learning choices show higher genuine academic engagement through intrinsic motivation.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes that researchers discovered a pattern where student choice leads to genuine engagement. It explains this happens through internal motivation that doesn't need external rewards. Finally, it sets up that when they studied classrooms providing such choices, there should be a logical outcome we can infer.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The passage shows us that giving students choices activates intrinsic motivation, which creates genuine engagement that doesn't need external rewards
- When students have this kind of internal drive and meaningful decision-making opportunities, the logical outcome would be that they become more capable of directing their own learning
- The research suggests these environments tap into students' internal motivation systems, so the natural result would be developing their independent learning abilities
- So the right answer should describe how autonomy-supportive environments would enhance students' ability to learn on their own, since intrinsic motivation by definition comes from within rather than from external direction
strengthen students' capacity for independent learning.
✓ Correct
- This directly follows from the passage's logic about intrinsic motivation and autonomy
- Students with meaningful choices develop internal drive, which naturally strengthens their capacity to learn independently
- Matches our prethinking about self-directed learning being the logical outcome
reduce students' dependence on teacher-directed instruction.
✗ Incorrect
- While this might happen as a side effect, it's not the direct logical conclusion
- The passage focuses on what students gain (intrinsic motivation) rather than what they lose (dependence on teachers)
- Trap: Students might think reducing teacher dependence is the main point, but the passage emphasizes building internal motivation, not just removing external control
help students better identify their preferred learning styles.
✗ Incorrect
- The passage never mentions learning styles or style identification
- This focuses on recognizing preferences rather than developing the internal motivation discussed
- Trap: Students might confuse 'meaningful choices' with 'identifying learning styles,' but the passage is about motivation, not learning style awareness
eliminate students' need for performance feedback.
✗ Incorrect
- This goes too far - intrinsic motivation doesn't eliminate the need for all feedback
- The passage contrasts internal vs. external rewards, not feedback vs. no feedback
- Performance feedback can still support intrinsically motivated learners