Academic engagement and agency in multilingual middle year classrooms

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences.Student engagement in the middle years of schooling has been a particular concern of teachers and education authorities over the last two decades. Public education systems in OECD countries with ongoing immigration programs are grappling with fundamental issues of classroom engagement in urban schools at the same time that cultural and linguistic diversity is becoming the dominant characteristic of classrooms in these settings. Although student engagement is arguably central to any improvement in students’ academic achievement, it is, at best, only a marginal consideration in the design and implementation of education reform initiatives aimed at improving the educational performance of students or the quality of teaching. In the domain of the enacted curriculum, teachers know the practical value of engagement for student learning and motivation, but lack a theoretical framework for understanding and fostering academic engagement in their classrooms. This study, with its focus on the socio-cultural ecology and experience of student engagement in classrooms, develops the conceptual tools needed to advance such teacher knowledge practice. Despite the sizable and growing socio-cultural literature on the quality of student participation and talk in class communities of practice, the nature and dynamics of student engagement in classroom activity remains largely untheorised. The study therefore explores understandings about the active, socio-cultural nature of engagement in classroom interaction with particular reference to the following questions: 1. What is the nature of and relationship between academic engagement and agency in multilingual classrooms? What is the role of affect in learner engagement and agency? 2. What does student engagement and agency look like within whole class, small group and individual work activity settings? How do they develop over time? What are their sources, objects, dynamics and effects? 3. What classroom contexts, conditions, discourses, tools and practices promote academic engagement and agency in multilingual classrooms? How is this accomplished? In identifying the features and causal-dynamics of engaged classroom interaction, participation and discourse, the research draws on Vygotskian, post-Vygotskian, sociocultural and activity theories. Key concepts and frameworks developed by Vygotsky around the semiotic structure and formations of consciousness, personality, and the higher mental functions provide the key perspectives for exploring student engagement as a particular form of affective-intellectual-discursive activity in the classroom. Vygotsky’s theory of ontogenetic development as the cultural self-mastery of psychological processes by mediational means, in particular, provides a key conceptual tool for investigating academic engagement as a microgenetic sign-mediated process of development. The study involved collection of participant interaction and other ethnographic data from primary and secondary classrooms in which English as Second Language (ESL) learners, including newly arrived and refugee students, comprised a significant proportion of the class. The teaching programs shaping lesson interaction and the social climate of the classroom were themselves a tool and result of researcher-facilitated ‘design experiments’ focused on developing and implementing intrinsically-motivating, ‘Rich Task’ project-oriented learning goals. Ten ‘engagement episodes’ showing qualities of heightened participation and affect were identified and transcribed from videoed classroom interaction data across whole class, small group and individual instructional settings. Interaction and discourse analysis were used to examine the key features and dynamics of the episodes. Macro and micro-level socio-cultural processes shaping each episode were also considered in relation to a proposed cultural ecology framework. The study finds that academic engagement is a form of situated semiotic agency arising from sign-mediated activity, at the heart of which lies a dialectic experiencing of sense and abstraction. Learner engagement is also mediated (stimulated, sustained and developed) by a semiotic eco-system, or situated synergy, of goal, role, tool, and rule subsystems. The study therefore provides a situated sociocultural account of the formation of academic engagement and agency in multilingual classrooms as well as a grounded model of the sociocultural formation of classroom learning communities. The research addresses fundamental issues of intellectual, social and discursive participation in socially disadvantaged classrooms as well as teacher aspirations for self-regulated, self-directed student learning. It has implications for designing and developing pedagogy that engages the full range of learners in intellectually challenging classrooms and for creating an inclusive curriculum for culturally and linguistically diverse learners in the middle years of schooling and beyond

Collaborative concept mapping activities in a classroom scenario

The aim of this study is to test collaborative concept mapping activities using computers in a classroom scenario and to evaluate the possibilities that Elkar-CM offers for collaboratively learning non-technical topics. Elkar-CM is a multi-lingual and multi-media software program designed for drawing concept maps (CMs) collaboratively. Concept mapping is a widely accepted technique that promotes meaningful learning. Graphically representing concepts of the learning domain and relationships between them helps students integrate new knowledge into their current cognitive structure. This study was carried out with Social Education degree students at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU). The experiment included two learning activities. First, all students collaboratively constructed in the classroom a CM on the subject of Moral Development. Second, students were organised into groups to complete the CM generated in the first part.This work has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Education, grant TIN2009-14380, the University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, grant (EHU09/09) and the Basque Government, grant IT421-10.Elorriaga Arandia, JA.; Arruarte Lasa, A.; Calvo Fabo, I.; Larrañaga Olagaray, M.; Rueda Molina, U.; Herrán Izagirre, E. (2011). Collaborative concept mapping activities in a classroom scenario. Behaviour and Information Technology. 32(12):1292-1304. doi:10.1080/0144929X.2011.632649S12921304321

Serious Games in Formal Education: Discussing Some Critical Aspects

International audienceInnovation in technology together with evolution in pedagogical approaches is encouraging increased integration of technology-supported interventions in mainstream teaching practices. One area attracting particularly close attention in this respect is Serious Games (SGs), which offer considerable potential for facilitating both formal and informal learning experiences in supported and standalone contexts. Advances in technology and in technology enhanced learning are raising learners' expectations for immersive and engaging game-based experiences. This trend is underpinned by the emergence of young learners adept at using digital technologies and the internet; there is an attendant risk that, as students, they may be alienated by traditional education and its failure to engage them fully in a lifelong learning process and prepare them adequately for the challenges of the 21st Century. SGs would appear to offer an attractive solution in this regard. However, there are a number of inhibitors preventing their wider take-up in mainstream education, with the result that the considerable potential on offer has yet to be fully exploited. This situation is the background for the joint efforts of partners in the Games and Learning Alliance (GALA), an EC-funded Network of Excellence on SGs, especially the sub-group dedicated to the pedagogical dimension of SGs. In its discussions on the key challenges for more wide-scale and effective SG use, the group has focused in particular on aspects related to the central role played by the educator in formal education settings. Specifically, discussion has focused on the challenges posed when educators are called on to modify their practice, adopting the new roles and approaches demanded for effective SG deployment. This paper presents the outcome of the group's exploration. It frames the question of the educator's central role by drawing on research work that, in the view of the different authors, embodies the major references for shedding light on this multi-faceted aspect. As well as the new role that the educator assumes in games-based learning environments, particular attention is also dedicated to the innovative pedagogical approaches that can be applied to SG deployment, especially those inspired by peer collaboration

A Review of Verbal and Non-Verbal Human-Robot Interactive Communication

In this paper, an overview of human-robot interactive communication is presented, covering verbal as well as non-verbal aspects of human-robot interaction. Following a historical introduction, and motivation towards fluid human-robot communication, ten desiderata are proposed, which provide an organizational axis both of recent as well as of future research on human-robot communication. Then, the ten desiderata are examined in detail, culminating to a unifying discussion, and a forward-looking conclusion

eLearning and Intercultural dimensions of of learning theories and<br />teaching models

Article paru sur le site "eLearning Papers" de la Commission Européenne.It will be argued in this article that developing intercultural awareness in students can befacilitated by e-learning environments. When choosing to address learning goals within an elearningenvironment, authors and educators need to become aware of hidden dimensions intheir pedagogical activity. Cultural embeddedness applies to learning theories as much asteaching models. Reflecting on these dimensions and taking them into account in designingspecific environments should result in facilitated intercultural learning and teaching.In multicultural and multilingual societies, the implicit pedagogical assumptions of e-learningenvironments need to be made explicit. Two different cultural dimensions of educationalpractices are more specifically concerned: the pedagogical culture and the values, beliefs,attitudes, theories and models involved; and the digital culture and the emergingtransformations related to knowledge and pedagogical modelling.The development of intercultural abilities, already present in language education, can lead theway to an enhanced experience of learning and teaching. Students and teachers can beempowered as much as they develop a new culture of education, based on interculturalcompetences, critical thinking, awareness and self-regulated practices

Solved! Making the case for collaborative problem-solving

This report argues that the ability to solve problems with others is a crucial skill for our young people in the workplace of the future but the current education system does little to support it. Key findings Collaborative problem-solving (CPS) is an increasingly important skill to teach young people in order to prepare them for the future. Despite strong evidence for its impact, CPS is rarely taught in schools but if structured well it can reinforce knowledge and improve attainment. Significant barriers exist for teachers implementing this practice, from behaviour management to curriculum coverage, to task-design. For CPS to gain ground, a concerted shift is needed including teacher training, better resources and system level support. This report is part of Nesta’s ongoing commitment to equipping young people with the skills they need to succeed. It makes a series of recommendations on how organisations and policymakers can help support and embrace the implementation of CPS. Nesta is following this up with a series of small-scale pilots of aligned programmes in order to evaluate impact and explore how CPS can be implemented in a range of practical settings. Policy recommendations Stimulate production of quality collaborative problem-solving (CPS) resources and training, from primary education onwards. Fund existing, aligned programmes to scale and evaluate impact. Educate and involve the out-of-school learning sector and volunteer educators. Develop smarter collaborative problem-solving assessment methods. Help higher education organisations and MOOCs to track what works

Distance learning of foreign languages

doi: 10.1017/S0261444806003727This article provides a critical overview of the field of distance language learning, challenging the way in which the field is often narrowly conceptualised as the development of technology-mediated language learning opportunities. Early sections focus on issues of concept and definition and both theoretical and pedagogical perspectives on the field. Emphasis is placed on evident shifts from a concern with structural and organisational issues to a focus on transactional issues associated with teaching/learning opportunities within emerging paradigms for distance language learning. The next section reviews choices and challenges in incorporating technology into distance language learning environments, foregrounding decisions about technology made in particular sociocultural contexts, the contribution of ‘low-end’ technologies and research directions in developing new learning spaces and in using online technologies. The investigation of learner contributions to distance language learning is an important avenue of enquiry in the field, given the preoccupation with technology and virtual learning environments, and this is the subject of section six. The two final sections identify future research directions and provide a series of conclusions about research and practice in distance language learning as technology-mediated interactions increasingly come to influence the way we think about the processes of language learning and teaching