Exploring Explanations

This article is drawn from content originally included in 2 sources: PETAA Paper 219 Exploring Explanations: the why and how of things, as well as PETAA Book Exploring how Texts Work, 2nd Edition, written by Beverly Derewianka and published in 2020.

What is an Explanation?

Explanations don’t have to be long. Some of them are very short. According to Humphrey, Droga and Feez (2012, p. 189), explanations serve the social purpose “to explain scientifically how technological and natural phenomena come into being i.e. how or why things occur”. Of course, explanations appear in all learning areas, not just science. They all involve a process or processes of change. They identify two types of explanations: sequential explanation and causal explanation. Derewianka and Jones (2016, p. 196) identify six types of explanation: sequential explanation, cyclical explanation, causal explanation, system explanation, factorial explanation and consequential explanation. Some of these less familiar explanations are more prevalent in the secondary years to explain more complex phenomena. Sequential explanations, including cyclical explanation, and causal explanations will be considered in this paper because they are the ones that are most often focused on in the primary years. If you want to know more about specific types then I encourage you to look them up.

Explanations are factual texts but they are not the same as information reports. Both begin by introducing the topic but after that they are quite different. To distinguish between the two genres it is useful to use different terms to label this first paragraph or sentence, such as: identification of phenomenon (explanation) and general statement or classification (information report).

After the first paragraph, an information report contains separate discrete paragraphs of information ABOUT the topic: the description. If the information report is about an animal it will have paragraphs that describe the animal: its appearance, habits, diet, reproduction, special features etc.

You will note that an information report may include an explanation paragraph (how an animal reproduces) but it also includes other details about the topic. In comparison, an explanation text will only be about the animal’s reproduction or the life cycle of the animal and provide an explanation sequence. If the information report is on natural phenomena, such as volcanoes, it will describe the parts of a volcano, where volcanoes are located, how a volcano erupts, impact of a volcanic eruption etc. An explanation will provide details on how a volcano is created and/ or why volcanic eruptions occur.

Types of Explanations

Explaining how something works:

Sequential explanation: how something happens in a linear sequence. For example, how honey is:

  • produced by bees
  • delivered from farm to supermarket

Sequential explanations differ from Recounts because they are written in the timeless present tense and they are about a generalised phenomenon, rather than specific events in the past. THey also differ from Instructions, which tell you how to do something rather than explain how something works.

Cyclical explanation: a sequence that keeps recurring. For example:

  • the water cycle
  • how living things grow, change and have offspring similar to themselves
  • the life cycle of a butterfly
  • how materials can be recycled to make new materials
  • the cycle of poverty

System explanation: how parts of a system interact in complex relationships to serve a purpose. For example:

  • an electric circuit
  • the parliamentary system
  • a company
  • an ecosystem
  • the digestive system
  • how moving air and water can turn turbines to generate electricity
  • how the components of common digital systems connect together to form networks to transmit data

Explaining why: causes and effects

Cause-Effect explanation: a simple cause-and-effect relationship. For example:

  • change of state from a liquid to a solid
  • how a push causes movement or a change of shape
  • how Earth's rotation on its axis causes regular changes, including night and day
  • how living things adapt to their environment

Factorial explanation: the factors that lead to an outcome. For example:

  • environmental, economic and technological factors that influence crop yields
  • economic, political and social reasons for Britain establishing colonies in Australia after 1800
  • factors that impact on the design of solutions to meet community needs
  • factors including size and shape that determine the way objects move

Consequential explanation: the consequences/effects of a particular input/cause. For example:

  • the short-term and long-term impacts of the Industrial Revolution, including global changes in landscapes, transport and communication
  • the effects of technological innovations on texts, particularly media texts
  • the short-term and long-term effects of climate change on our environment and economy