Social interaction in the context of new literacies:pedagogical potentials of publishing-oriented learner-generated video production

Abstract The rationale for this doctoral research derives from the escalating challenge posed by the media gap reducing learners’ school motivation. Today’s learners have been attracted to interactive media involving content creation, but such activating learning environments are rarely employed at school. To address this challenge, I started this research on pedagogical potentials of publishing-oriented learner-generated video production. The process, implementing new literacies, offered an alternative to traditional instruction as well as opportunities for multilevel social interaction. Online publishing of the videos as a natural continuation of the process enabled interaction between school and society. In this research, I examined through three case studies what kinds of social interaction emerge in this context and how interaction can be improved. I collected the data in primary and secondary schools by observing and video recording discussions in video projects and by interviewing students, teachers and parents. I employed a quantifying method to analyze group interaction and its development and used inductive qualitative methods to examine teacher–student interaction and interaction at the societal level. The findings emphasize the crucial role of the teacher in orchestrating social interaction. The observed peer group was actively involved in planning their joint video story, but the open-ended fictional task challenged interaction. Despite initial disputational and modest discussion the group learned to ‘intercreate’ due to minimal scaffolding provided by the teacher. Occasionally, whole-class discussions were dominated by the teacher and two to three students. Online publishing of the videos appeared to generate contradictory feelings. In primary schools videos were largely published online, but in secondary schools students were more reluctant to publish their school-context videos. Interaction was scarce between students, teachers and parents even though they were invited to discuss the media ground rules of online publishing activities. In order to improve interaction processes and environments, the teacher needs to designate carefully scripted subtasks, provide reflective scaffolding as well as implement media encouragement to enable interaction between school and society.Tiivistelmä Väitöstutkimuksen taustalla on koulun ja arjen mediaympäristöjen välille viime vuosina syntynyt, koulumotivaatiota heikentävä kuilu. Oppijat ovat arjessaan tottuneet vuorovaikutteiseen, tuottavaan median käyttöön, mutta koululla on vaikeuksia hyödyntää aktivoivia oppimisympäristöjä. Vastauksena tähän haasteeseen aloin tutkia julkaisemislähtöisen yhteisöllisen videotuotannon mahdollisuuksia opetuksessa. Tämä monilukutaitoja toteuttava työmuoto tarjosi vaihtoehdon perinteiselle opetukselle ja tilaisuuksia monipuoliselle vuorovaikutukselle. Videoiden verkkojulkaiseminen prosessin luontevana jatkona mahdollisti vuorovaikutuksen myös koulun ja ympäröivän yhteiskunnan välillä. Tutkimuksessa selvitin millaista vuorovaikutusta tässä kontekstissa muodostuu ja millä tavoin vuorovaikutusta voidaan kehittää. Tutkimuksen toteutin kolmen tapaustutkimuksen sarjana. Aineistot keräsin ala- ja yläkoulussa observoimalla ja videoimalla videoprojektien keskusteluja sekä haastattelemalla oppijoita, opettajia ja vanhempia. Tutkin ryhmävuorovaikutuksen kehittymistä määrällistävällä menetelmällä. Lisäksi tarkastelin vuorovaikutusta opettaja–oppija-tasolla sekä koulun ja yhteiskunnan välillä aineistolähtöisen laadullisen analyysin keinoin. Tulokset osoittavat opettajan olevan keskeisessä asemassa vuorovaikutuksen orkesteroinnissa. Tarkastelemani oppijaryhmä suunnitteli innostuneesti videotarinoita, mutta avoin fiktiivinen tehtävänanto vaikeutti vuorovaikutusta. Vaikka keskustelu oli aluksi riitaisaa ja laadultaan vaatimatonta, ryhmä oppi opettajan antaman minimaalisen tuen avulla luomaan yhdessä itsenäisesti. Oppijalähtöinen ryhmittyminen vei aikaa ja vaikeutti työn aloittamista, kun taas opettajajakoiset ryhmät näyttivät käynnistyvän helpommin. Kokoluokkakeskustelua dominoivat opettaja ja pari oppilasta. Videoiden verkkojulkaiseminen herätti ristiriitaisia näkemyksiä. Alakouluissa julkaistiin videoita mielellään, kun taas yläkouluissa arkailtiin niiden julkaisemista. Verkkojulkaisemisen julkisuuskasvatukselliseen keskusteluun osallistamien osapuolten välinen vuorovaikutus jäi vähäiseksi. Vuorovaikutusprosessien ja -ympäristöjen kehittämiseksi opettajalta edellytetään selkeiden osatehtävien huolellista suunnittelua, reflektiivistä ohjaamisen taitoa sekä verkkojulkaisemiseen rohkaisemista mahdollistamaan vuorovaikutusta koulun sekä ympäröivän yhteiskunnan välillä

Cognitive authorities in health education classrooms:a nexus analysis on group-based learning tasks

Abstract Socio-technical changes have transformed information practices and challenged conceptions of cognitive authorities, referring to information sources that are deemed credible and legitimate and influence people’s thinking. Cognitive authorities in group-based knowledge-construction projects in health education lessons were explored in this study. Nexus analysis was used to analyze participant interviews and video-observed social actions in three secondary school health-education classrooms (Grades 8–9) in Finland. The findings show how group-based projects employing multiple information sources offer opportunities for the distribution and co-construction of cognitive authorities. However, explicit negotiations on the authority of sources were rare. Cognitive authorities appeared as contextual and situational but also guided by broader discourses circulating in the scene of action. By embedding information literacy instruction throughout the curriculum, information professionals and teachers can support young learners to recognize relevant authorities in different spheres of knowledge and to become competent users of health information

Group interaction of primary-aged students in the context of a learner-generated digital video production

Abstract Recognizing the benefits of peer interactions, collaborative problem solving, and creative processing in pedagogical settings, this study aims to understand the interaction in the context of DV storyboarding, both at the individual and group levels, by looking at one mixed-gender group of fourth graders faced with frequent conflicts in negotiations on the theme, ideas, events, and character roles of a jointly produced movie. The observed and video-recorded activities occurred in naturalistic settings with no pedagogical interventions or instructions for students as to how to organize themselves in a group discussion. In a mixed-method analysis, we employed Bales’s IPA method to visualize the interaction and enable comparison across individuals and sessions, and wrote qualitative summaries to describe the group interactions from the perspective of collaboration, Mercer’s productive talk, and Tuckman’s group development. The IPA method appeared to serve as a robust interpretive framework. The study not only reveals the complexity of the open-ended DV assignment, initially insufficient skills to negotiate and proceed in collaborative creative processing, as well as unequal participation, but also incorporates enthusiastic task-oriented discussions and self-directed development in inter-relational skills and conflict solving. The results are worth taking into account for teachers and other practitioners in order to identify potential areas of improvement, and thus enhance the educational value of group work

Teacher as an orchestrator of collaborative planning in learner-generated video production

Abstract This article reports on a case study of teacher orchestration in the context of learner-generated video production. The study was conducted in a Finnish primary school, where four teachers implemented three video projects with their students. It investigated teacher scaffolding in the planning sessions of the projects, which involved creative divergent tasks in both group and whole-class settings. The videoed sessions were analyzed qualitatively to identify the types of discursive scaffolding. The study reveals the teachers’ different approaches to supporting dialogue in group and whole-class settings. The findings suggest dominance and modest strategies in classroom dialogue, with the teachers occasionally adhering to traditional recitation to control the classroom talk. The study identifies scaffolding focusing on social interaction and collaboration in these divergent tasks referring to Mercer’s (2000) intermental development zone. Considering the teachers’ pre-project planning, the study emphasizes the tension emerging between learner-centeredness and teacher authority and freedom and structures

School-context videos in Janus-faced online publicity:Learner-generated digital video production going online

Abstract This article reports a case study on sChOOLtv, an online television for primary and secondary schools that aims to bridge the media gap between in-school and out-of-school learning environments. Contrary to its creators’ expectations, the number of published videos has not increased since its establishment. Furthermore, the videos were mostly produced by primary-level students, with few videos released by secondary-level students. The article describes online publishing of learner-generated videos by exploring the views of the students, parents, teachers, and principals. Sixty-seven informants were interviewed, and video production activities and discussions in classrooms were observed. The article discusses the factors hindering adolescents from making and publishing videos. It suggests media encouragement practices to enhance publishing-oriented digital video production in schools

Finnish adolescents’ selection and assessment of health information sources

Abstract Introduction: It is challenging for young people to determine who or what information sources they can trust in health issues. This study examines adolescents’ understanding of health, health information needs and credible health information sources and discusses the ways some information sources can be regarded as adolescents’ cognitive authorities in health matters. Methods: Thirty-seven Finnish secondary school students from fourteen to sixteen years were interviewed during a school health education project. Analysis: The data were transcribed verbatim and analysed qualitatively through open, axial and selective coding. Findings. Two broad categories of young people’s understanding of health and well-being were identified: a narrow disease-oriented view and a wider view including aspects of mental and social well-being. These views were connected with recognised health information needs, preferred health information sources and credibility evaluation. Conclusions: The interviewed young people found family members and health professionals to be the most credible information sources in health problems. Thus, they can be regarded as adolescents’ cognitive authorities who are likely to influence their opinions. In more general health information needs and in lifestyle issues, the range of the information sources was wider and credibility assessments were dependent on the subject