Examining democratic ideals: A case study of dialogic interactions of fifth -grade citizens

Four overarching questions guided the purpose of this study: (1) to examine the role of dialogic and social interactions in the classroom setting when constructing a democratic classroom, (2) to explore whether the dialogic co-construction of a democratic classroom community supported student learning and student ownership of learning in the classroom, (3) to investigate how the use of classroom dialogue facilitated meaning about classroom community membership and citizenship for students in a democratic classroom community, and (4) evaluate the effects and influences a democratic classroom community had on students; The study was a qualitative case study utilizing a cultural model and listening guide as part of data analysis. The analysis demonstrated that students progressed as community members, democratic classroom citizens, and academic learners through the use of dialogic interactions between members of the democratic classroom environment. The first part of the paper articulated a conceptual background framed within a sociocultural theoretical perspective with the concepts of Lev Vygotsky and the progressive educational ideals of John Dewey. Next, an overview of the study including a description of the setting and participants was presented. This information was followed by an in-depth, multi-faceted, multi-layered analysis of the data, specifically the classroom dialogue, dialogic terminology generated from the cultural model, and social and dialogic interactions exhibited by the teacher and students to examine consequential progressions of the students as members, citizens, and learners. The paper concluded with a discussion of the implications of this work, specifically for teacher pedagogy and the role of teacher as a guide, facilitator, and mentoring facilitator