Peer interaction and learning opportunities in cohesive and less cohesive L2 classrooms

The present study investigates peer to peer oral interaction in two task based language teaching classrooms, one of which was a self-declared cohesive group, and the other a self- declared less cohesive group, both at B1 level. It studies how learners talk cohesion into being and considers how this talk leads to learning opportunities in these groups. The study was classroom-based and was carried out over the period of an academic year. Research was conducted in the classrooms and the tasks were part of regular class work. The research was framed within a sociocognitive perspective of second language learning and data came from a number of sources, namely questionnaires, interviews and audio recorded talk of dyads, triads and groups of four students completing a total of eight oral tasks. These audio recordings were transcribed and analysed qualitatively for interactions which encouraged a positive social dimension and behaviours which led to learning opportunities, using conversation analysis. In addition, recordings were analysed quantitatively for learning opportunities and quantity and quality of language produced. Results show that learners in both classes exhibited multiple behaviours in interaction which could promote a positive social dimension, although behaviours which could discourage positive affect amongst group members were also found. Analysis of interactions also revealed the many ways in which learners in both the cohesive and less cohesive class created learning opportunities. Further qualitative analysis of these interactions showed that a number of factors including how learners approach a task, the decisions they make at zones of interactional transition and the affective relationship between participants influence the amount of learning opportunities created, as well as the quality and quantity of language produced. The main conclusion of the study is that it is not the cohesive nature of the group as a whole but the nature of the relationship between the individual members of the small group completing the task which influences the effectiveness of oral interaction for learning.This study contributes to our understanding of the way in which learners individualise the learning space and highlights the situated nature of language learning. It shows how individuals interact with each other and the task, and how talk in interaction changes moment-by-moment as learners react to the ‘here and now’ of the classroom environment.

Design patterns for promoting peer interaction in discussion forums in MOOCs

Design patterns are a way of sharing evidence-based solutions to educational design problems. The design patterns presented in this paper were produced through a series of workshops, which aimed to identify Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) design principles from workshop participants’ experiences of designing, teaching and learning on these courses. MOOCs present a challenge for the existing pedagogy of online learning, particularly as it relates to promoting peer interaction and discussion. MOOC cohort sizes, participation patterns and diversity of learners mean that discussions can remain superficial, become difficult to navigate, or never develop beyond isolated posts. In addition, MOOC platforms may not provide sufficient tools to support moderation. This paper draws on four case studies of designing and teaching on a range of MOOCs presenting seven design narratives relating to the experience in these MOOCs. Evidence presented in the narratives is abstracted in the form of three design patterns created through a collaborative process using techniques similar to those used in collective autoethnography. The patterns: “Special Interest Discussions”, “Celebrity Touch” and “Look and Engage”, draw together shared lessons and present possible solutions to the problem of creating, managing and facilitating meaningful discussion in MOOCs through the careful use of staged learning activities and facilitation strategies.

Modeling Information Diffusion in University Libraries: Assessing Peer Interaction Patterns as a Complex Dynamic System

This presentation was offered as part of the CUNY Library Assessment Conference, Reinventing Libraries: Reinventing Assessment, held at the City University of New York in June 2014.

Peer interaction in mixed age groups: a study in the computer area of an early childhood education center in Portugal

The study was developed as a teacher-research project during initial teacher education – Masters Degree of Early Childhood and Primary Education, in Portugal. It analysed the interactions between children of 3 to 6 years old, during the use of the computer as a free choice activity, confronting situations between peers of the same age and situations between peers of different ages. The focus of the analysis was the collaborative interactions. This was a qualitative study. Children could choose the computer, amongst other interest areas, and work for around an hour in pairs. In the computer, children used mainly educational games. During four weeks, the interactions between the pairs were audio recorded. Field notes and informal interviews to the children were also used to collect data. Eleven children were involved in the study with ages ranging from 3 to 6 years old. Baseline data on children’s basic computer proficiency was collected using the Individualized Computer Proficiency Checklist (ICPC) by Hyun. The recorded interactions were analysed using the types of talk offered by Scrimshaw and Perkins and Wegerif and Scrimshaw: cumulative talk, exploratory talk, disputational talk, and tutorial talk. This framework was already used in a study in an early childhood education context in Portugal by Amante. The results reveal differences in computer use and characterize the observed interactions. Seven different pairs of children's interactions were analysed. More than a third of the interactions were cumulative talk, followed by exploratory talk, tutorial talk and disputational talk. Comparing same and mixed age pairs, we observed that cumulative talk is the more present interaction, but in same age pairs this is followed by exploratory talk whereas in the mixed age pairs it is tutorial talk that has the second largest percentage. The pairs formed by the children were very asymmetrical in terms of age and computer proficiency. This lead to the more tutorial interactions, where one children showed the other or directed him/her on how to play. The results show that collaboration is present during the use of a computer area in early childhood education. The free choice of the children means the adults can only suggest pairing suited to specific interactions between the children. Another way to support children in more exploratory talk interactions could be by discussing the way the older children can help the younger ones beyond directing or correcting their work.

Social competence and peer interactions of students with intellectual disability in an inclusive high school

This paper reports descriptive information on the relationship between social competence and the amount and type of peer interaction for nine adolescents with intellectual disability attending a regular high school. Each adolescent's social competence was assessed using the AAMR Adaptive Behavior Scale-School (2nd edn) (ABS-S:2). Naturalistic observations were conducted to obtain information on the amount and type of peer interaction. Data were analysed to determine the relationship between social competence and peer interactions. Social competence was not consistently correlated with the amount of peer interaction. Results from the naturalistic observations showed individual differences in patterns of peer interaction with a tendency towards more frequent interactions with peers who also had intellectual disabilities. These data suggest that social competence did not significantly influence the amount and type of peer interaction. Implications for facilitating peer interactions between adolescents with and without intellectual disability are discussed.

Peer effects on locus of control

Eu analiso o papel que a interação entre pares tem na determinação do Locus de Controle, uma medida de quão pessoalmente responsável as pessoas se sentem com relação a diferentes aspectos de suas vidas. Eu estabeleço identificação através de variação no tamanho do grupo e de variáveis instrumentais baseadas na estrutura de painel dos dados. Eu estudo a questão no contexto escolar, utilizando os dados de alunos no Ensino Fundamental de um município brasileiro, que inclui o questionário de Tel Aviv de Locus de Controle. Minhas estimativas não apresentam sinais de peer effects endógenos ou contextuais.

Developmental Neural Correlates of Social Interaction

Children develop in a sea of reciprocal social interaction, but their brain development is predominately studied in non-interactive contexts (e.g., viewing photographs of faces). This dissertation investigated how the developing brain supports social interaction. Specifically, novel paradigms were used to target two facets of social experience—social communication and social motivation—across three studies in children and adults. In Study 1, adults listened to short vignettes—which contained no social information—that they believed to be either prerecorded or presented over an audio-feed by a live social partner. Simply believing that speech was from a live social partner increased activation in the brain’s mentalizing network—a network involved in thinking about others’ thoughts. Study 2 extended this paradigm to middle childhood, a time of increasing social competence and social network complexity, as well as structural and functional social brain development. Results showed that, as in adults, regions of the mentalizing network were engaged by live speech. Taken together, these findings indicate that the mentalizing network may support the processing of interactive communicative cues across development. Given this established importance of social-interactive context, Study 3 examined children’s social motivation when they believed they were engaged in a computer-based chat with a peer. Children initiated interaction via sharing information about their likes and hobbies and received responses from the peer. Compared to a non-social control, in which children chatted with a computer, peer interaction increased activation in mentalizing regions and reward circuitry. Further, within mentalizing regions, responsivity to the peer increased with age. Thus, across all three studies, social cognitive regions associated with mentalizing supported real-time social interaction. In contrast, the specific social context appeared to influence both reward circuitry involvement and age-related changes in neural activity. Future studies should continue to examine how the brain supports interaction across varied real-world social contexts. In addition to illuminating typical development, understanding the neural bases of interaction will offer insight into social disabilities such as autism, where social difficulties are often most acute in interactive situations. Ultimately, to best capture human experience, social neuroscience ought to be embedded in the social world.

Interação positiva entre pares: contributos das crianças para a resolução de problemas

Relatório da Prática Profissional Supervisionada Mestrado em Educação Pré-escolar

As relações entre pares: resolução de conflitos

Relatório da Prática Profissional Supervisionada Mestrado Em Educação Pré-Escolar

Melhorar a interação entre pares no jardim-de-infância

Relatório de estágio de mestrado em Educação Pré-Escolar e Ensino do 1ºCiclo do Ensino Básico

Visualização no ensino de química: apontamentos para a pesquisa e desenvolvimento de recursos educacionais

Visualization is a fast-growing field in science education. This review covers 171 articles published between 2001 and 2010 in 14 science education journals. Major findings include: i - despite the predominance of English speaking countries, interest in the topic has increased in several countries; ii - qualitative research is increasing, but quantitative methodologies prevail; iii - the role of peer interaction in group activities is little investigated; iv - research on the way students and teachers use visualization tools is increasing, but most publications focus on the tools; v - structure of matter remains the most common subject covered.

Kindergartners' perceptions of bullying /

Currently, few studies address what kindergarten children think about bullying behaviour and explore whether or not they perceive bullying as a prevalent concern in their day-to-day school activities. This study described 15 Canadian kindergarten students' graphic and narrative representations (drawings and stories) of their bullying experiences. The content of students' drawings and stories were analyzed to explore how kindergarten children perceived bullying within the context of their lives. Coding categories were developed to analyze the kindergartners' perceptions, and emerging themes were also explored. In general, findings showed that kindergartners perceive bullying situations as occurring during one-to-one peer interaction and not within social group situations. Results are discussed in relation to educational implications.

Competencia digital: desarrollo de aprendizajes con mundos virtuales en la escuela 2.0

Resumen tomado de la publicación