'Scaffolding': learning in the classroom

Recent interest in talk and learning in the classroom has encouraged a new metaphorical use for the term 'scaffolding'. This term is increasingly used to describe certain kinds of support which learners receive in their interaction with parents, teachers and other 'mentors' as they move towards new skills, concepts or levels of understanding. It is a term which helps to portray the temporary, but essential, nature of the mentor's assistance as the learner advances in knowledge and understanding

Helping children to talk and think together more effectively

Este artigo baseia-se em pesquisa recente e em andamento realizada pelo autor e colegas da Open University em escolas britânicas de ensino primário. Descreve como a pesquisa de sala de aula propicia o desenvolvimento e a avaliação de um programa de atividades para reestruturar e fomentar o trabalho colaborativo das crianças e assim desenvolver suas habilidades em argumentação e uso da linguagem falada. Esta pesquisa insere-se na perspectiva sociocultural de ensino e aprendizagem e os resultados obtidos fornecem apoio empírico a uma concepção Vygotskiana ao relacionamento entre linguagem e pensamento e ao papel do professor em propiciar andaimes para o desenvolvimento intelectual da criança

Education and the social brain: linking language, thinking, teaching and learning

Several fields of investigation, including developmental psychology, evolutionary psychology, educational research and neuroscience have begun to recognize the essentially social quality of human cognition, as represented by the concept of the ‘social brain’. In this article, I discuss this concept, its value for psychological studies of teaching and learning, and how it can be related to a sociocultural theory of education and cognitive development. This involves a consideration of the relationship between individual and collective thinking, and between spoken language use and cognitive development. Some implications for understanding and promoting the educational functions of talk in the classroom are discussed

Responses to the commentaries by Jean-Yves Rochex, Jean-Charles Chabanne and Andrée Tiberghien

Jean-Yves Rochex Jean-Yves Rochex explains that he, like me, believes that the current dominant conception of the ‘social brain’ still embodies an individualistic perspective on the nature of human cognition. However, unlike me, he is unconvinced that the ‘social brain’ concept can or should be modified to take account of this failing. I agree when he says that “there is in the social brain hypothesis a danger to confuse two different topics: the brain’s structure and modes of functioning as ..

Collaborative Epistemic Discourse in Classroom Information Seeking Tasks

We discuss the relationship between information seeking, and epistemic beliefs – beliefs about the source, structure, complexity, and stability of knowledge – in the context of collaborative information seeking discourses. We further suggest that both information seeking, and epistemic cognition research agendas have suffered from a lack of attention to how information seeking as a collaborative activity is mediated by talk between partners – an area we seek to address in this paper. A small-scale observational study using sociocultural discourse analysis was conducted with eight eleven year old pupils who carried out search engine tasks in small groups. Qualitative and quantitative analysis were performed on their discussions using sociocultural discourse analytic techniques. Extracts of the dialogue are reported, informed by concordance analysis and quantitative coding of dialogue duration. We find that 1) discourse which could be characterised as ‘epistemic’ is identifiable in student talk, 2) that it is possible to identify talk which is more or less productive, and 3) that epistemic talk is associated with positive learning outcomes

In the mind and in the technology: the vicarious presence of the teacher in pupil’s learning of science in collaborative group activity at the interactive whiteboard

publication-status: Publishedtypes: ArticleThe focus of research into the use of the interactive whiteboard (IWB) in the classroom has been largely in relation to teacher–pupil interaction, with very little consideration of its possible use as a tool for pupils’ collaborative endeavour. This paper is based upon an ESRC-funded project,1 which considers how pupils use the interactive whiteboard when working together on science-related activities. It provides an analysis of video and other data from science lessons in UK Years 4 and 5 primary classrooms (pupils aged 8–10 years). Concentrating on a series of lessons constructed by three (out of 12) of the project teachers, together with their written and spoken commentaries, it takes each set of lessons as a case for study and comparison. This paper focuses in particular on the nature of the ‘vicarious presence’ of the teacher evident in the group interactions at the board. We address the following questions: How is the teacher’s vicarious presence evident in the work of pupils at the interactive whiteboard? How does this presence influence the behaviour of pupils engaged in science activities? In this account, we suggest that the teacher remotely mediates the activity of the pupils at the board in two specific and interlinked ways. Firstly, the vicarious presence of the teacher seems to be in the minds of pupils, enabling them to appropriate and use introduced rules and procedures, in this case in relation to group talk. Secondly, it is in the ways in which the constructed task environment on the IWB guides and mediates the pupils’ actions, enabling them to connect with, interpret and act upon the teacher intentions for the task. Here, the teacher’s vicarious presence is in the technology. We conclude that the IWB can provide both a tool and an environment that can encourage the creation of a shared dialogic space within which co-constructed knowledge building can take place. However, this only occurs where there is active support from the teacher for collaborative, dialogic activity in the classroom and where the teacher is able to devise tasks that use board affordances to promote active learning and pupil agency

An ethnographic study of factors that elementary school principals perceive contribute to increased grade six mean composite scores on the Canadian Tests of Basic Skills over a six year period

The Government of Newfoundland Department of Education has administered the Canadian Tests of Basic Skills to grade six students every three years since 1976. Newfoundland schools traditionally score below Canadian norms on these tests and strive to improve by implementing revised policies, guidelines, and up-dated curricula published by the Department of Education. Yet, only 31 schools in the province have succeeded in registering a mean composite score increase between 1985 and 1988 and again between 1988 and 1991. Following case study methodology reported by Yin (1984) and Merriam (1988), an exploratory study was undertaken to identify common factors that school principals perceive have contributed to the grade six increased mean composite scores. -- During May and June 1992, a survey was distributed to 31 school principals. Seventy-four percent of the surveys were returned. The analysis of the data revealed five distinct themes: Student Attitudes toward School; Innovation and Planned Change; Resource-based Learning as an Innovation; Public Perceptions of School Life; and Public Support and Principal Accessibility. These themes were explored further in four case study interviews. -- A sample of four survey respondents was identified using a purposive sampling method (Merriam, 1988). In February and March 1993, four focused interviews (Yin, 1984) were conducted and revealed five themes reflecting common principal perceptions and/or school practices. The four schools: -- 1. implemented interventions with an aim to foster positive student attitudes toward school; -- 2. implemented innovations that reflect current educational thought and respond to needs identified by teachers and administrators working together; -- 3. have support for school-wide innovations from educators and members of the community ; -- 4. serve parents who support their children's educational endeavours and a public that feels school is beneficial for children; and -- 5. have a staff that is committed to the educational welfare of students and to personal professional development. -- The researcher recommends that future studies continue to explore this phenomenon

Talking and thinking together at Key Stage 1

In this paper, we describe an innovative approach to promoting effective classroom-based groupwork and the development of children's speaking and listening at Key Stage 1. This approach, known as Thinking Together, was initially developed for use with Key Stage 2 children. The work reported here explains how this approach has now been applied to the teaching of speaking and listening at Key Stage 1. The approach is founded on contemporary sociocultural theory and research. At the heart of the Thinking Together approach is a concern to help children build and develop their knowledge and understanding together, through enabling them to practise and develop ways of reasoning with language

Developing teaching with an explicit focus on scientific thinking

This article describes an attempt to integrate teaching about an aspect of science ‘content’ with an aspect of the nature of science (NOS), through the development of a practical research-informed teaching module for use in key stage 3 (ages 11–14). The module concerned electrical circuits, and the NOS aspect focused on the role of models and analogies in scientific work. The module offers one example of a general approach that may be adopted in developing curricular schemes of work that build synergy between teaching about NOS and specific science topics. This article reports the outcomes of an evaluation of teachers using the module for the first time, and reflects on the limitations of randomised field trials for determining the efficacy of pedagogic innovations.The work reported here was made possible by ESRC Grant Number: RES-179-25-0003

A “Learning Revolution”? Investigating Pedagogic Practices around Interactive Whiteboards in British Primary Classrooms

Interactive whiteboards have been rapidly introduced into all primary schools under UK Government initiatives. These large, touch-sensitive screens, which control a computer connected to a digital projector, seem to be the first type of educational technology particularly suited for whole-class teaching and learning. Strong claims are made for their value by manufacturers and policy makers, but there has been little research on how, if at all, they influence established pedagogic practices, communicative processes and educational goals. This study has been designed to examine this issue, using observations in primary (elementary) school classrooms. It is funded by the UK Economic and Social Research Council and builds on the authors’ previous research on ICT in educational dialogues and collaborative activities