Teach a sequence of questions
Does a structured questioning routine improve how learners work with AI? In a television-production course, 83 undergraduates in three intact classes used DeepSeek for a short-film project. One class asked free-form questions; two followed progressive or divergent question chains. Both structured groups showed more strategy and monitoring behaviors and higher self-reported metacognitive awareness. Mean course scores were 90.50 and 90.13, compared with 86.67 in the free-form class; the two structured approaches did not differ significantly. The finding supports examining the whole instructional routine. It does not isolate the value of chaining: the groups also received different question specificity, completion requirements and reflection prompts, and individual baseline knowledge was not measured.
Why it matters for leaders
Have teachers develop a brief routine that asks for alternatives, evidence and revision. Compare work using the routine with a matched task, then remove the prompts to check what students can regulate independently.
The evidence
A five-week project followed common foundational instruction. Researchers analyzed interaction logs, reflections, post-task awareness measures and course grades.
Who was studied
Chinese university students; indirect evidence for K-12 instruction.
What the evidence cannot tell us
Three classes at one university; no individual randomization. Scaffolds stayed available, so independent transfer was not tested. Reflection prompts could cue reported themes.
Read the original sources
Summary and leadership analysis from the Week ending 2026-10-23 brief. The edition’s selection notes explain source access and evidence limitations.