Interactional structures during a grade 4–5 open-design engineering unit

In an increasingly complex sociotechnical world, collective practices are more and more important for accomplishing the work that needs to be done. Small-group interactions are key sites for building communities in which knowledge is a collective goal. This study investigated the nature of small group interactions among Grade 4–5 students and between these students and their teachers. From an extensive data source which includes videotaped lessons, formal and informal interviews with students and teachers, ethnographic observations, and children-produced artifacts, two case studies were constructed to illustrate general patterns representative for the interactional structures in this classroom. The study provides evidence for the interactive flexibility of students, the construction of culture, power, and norms in each interaction, and the distributed nature of students' artifacts which exceeds social construction. Traditional resources for data interpretation such as power or attention deficit disorder were not useful to predict student interactions and work. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 34: 273–302, 1997.     

Interaction of wait time feedback and questioning instruction on middle school science teaching

Wait time, the duration of teacher pauses after questions, is an important variable in research on science teaching. This project investigated the effects of increasing teacher's wait times on general questioning skills in science teaching. In previous research, the influence of wait time training has been confounded with instruction in general questioning skills, making it difficult to test the hypothesis that increasing the wait time will by itself improve classroom discussions. In this project, these variables were separated through the use of four treatment groups made up of science teachers. One group received instruction in wait time using a newly developed electronic feedback device that monitors the duration of teacher and student pauses; a second group received instruction in general questioning skills; a third group received both types of instruction; a comparison group received no instruction of either type. The tape recordings were coded and analyzed for classroom interaction data. Comparisons were made using discriminant analysis, analyses of variance, and correlational relationships. The wait time feedback devices facilitated the production of wait time means consistently superior to baseline performance, albeit slightly below the 3-second criterion sought. Regardless, the feedback groups did produce a large number of the hypothesized changes. Significant effects were found from a comparison of the discriminant function scores. Effects consistently favored the groups with the feedback devices. The presence of the guides seemed to make little difference. The groups with the devices used greater numbers of high-level questions, especially those of the evaluative level. There were more contributions from students, as measured by length of answers, frequency of volunteered contributions, numbers of relevant student words, and percentages of student talk.     

Introducing a symbolic interactionist approach on teaching mathematics: the case of revoicing as an interactional strategy in the teaching of probability

This study examines an interactional view on teaching mathematics, whereby meaning is co-produced with the students through a process of negotiation. Further, teaching is viewed from a symbolic interactionism perspective, allowing the analysis to focus on the teacher’s role in the negotiation of meaning. Using methods inspired by grounded theory, patterns of teachers’ interaction are categorized. The results show how teachers’ actions, interpretations and intentions form interactional strategies that guide the negotiation of meaning in the classroom. The theoretical case of revoicing as a teacher action, together with interpretations of mathematical objects from probability theory, is used to exemplify conclusions from the proposed perspective. Data are generated from a lesson sequence with two teachers working with known and unknown constant sample spaces with their classes. In the lessons presented in this article, the focus is on negotiations of the meaning of chance. The analysis revealed how the teachers indicate their interpretations of mathematical objects and intentions to the students to different degrees and, by doing so, create opportunities for the students to ascribe meaning to these objects. The discussion contrasts the findings with possible interpretations from other perspectives on teaching.     

Including students’ diverse perspectives on classroom interactions into video-based professional development for teachers

Video is often used in professional development courses to sensitize mathematics teachers to students’ thinking and issues of classroom interaction. This article presents an approach that incorporates students’ perspectives on mathematics classroom interactions into video-based professional development in order to enhance teachers’ reflection on diverse awareness of students concerning demands within mathematics classroom interactions. This approach is theoretically justified by the empirical research on equal participation in classroom interaction and practically elaborated by video material from Grade 5 students. Empirical snapshots from design experiments with teachers demonstrate that teachers’ sensitivity can be enhanced.     

Questioning Techniques: A Study of Instructional Practice

To what extent do teachers use questions to encourage deeper thinking and elicit fuller responses? How do teachers use the levels of questions and wait time as a teaching technique? How do teachers make space for students to talk together so that their thoughts are visible to other students? This article seeks to provide answers to these important questions through a review of the literature that begins with a study of the history of questioning, and then turns to the following topics: developing higher level thinking through questioning strategies; the role of wait time within the context of classroom climate and peer interactions; and higher order questioning strategies aligned with student achievement in reading and language arts. Although the author's frame of reference for how these issues play out is within the context of a school where students’ ability to articulate understanding and their own point of view is purposefully promoted and highly valued, the insights will have broad applicability across a full spectrum of schools.     

Assistant Teachers in Head Start Classrooms: Comparing to and Working With Lead Teachers

Research Findings: The purpose of the present study is to examine the degree to which assistant and lead teachers work together in Head Start classrooms in 3 domains: emotional support, classroom organization, and instructional support. Pairs of lead and assistant teachers from 14 Head Start classrooms were simultaneously observed for 1 morning to examine the quality of teachers’ interactions with students in these 3 domains. First we examined the mean levels of the 3 domains and how they differed among teachers. Overall, results indicated moderate levels of emotional support and classroom organization and low levels of instructional support. In comparing lead and assistant teachers, we found that lead teachers offered significantly higher levels of instructional support than assistant teachers. Next we examined how the quality of lead and assistant teachers’ interactions were related over time. Concurrent correlations were nonsignificant. Lagged correlations suggested that lead and assistant teachers’ interactions with students were related over time. Practice or Policy: Assistant teachers offered comparable levels of emotional support and classroom organization but did not offer the same levels of instructional support. This suggests that assistant teachers are able to help provide a nurturing environment and help with structuring activities despite having lower entry-level qualification requirements. This study supports the notion that assistant teachers as well as lead teachers should be included in quality improvement efforts.     

An exploration of teachers’ agency and social relationships within dyslexia‐support provision in an English secondary school

This article explores teachers’ experiences of dyslexia and classroom interventions via lesson observations and semi‐structured interviews. These experiences were analysed through a Bourdieusien lens, based on Jenkins's ‘levels of interaction’, to delineate power relationships inherent in classroom interactions, teachers’ interactions with professionals and institutions, and mechanisms present in teachers’ conceptualisation of ‘self’. Through their conceptualisation of ‘self’ as ‘teachers of dyslexic young people’, it was found that teachers’ classroom interactions acted to reduce social distance between themselves and students. Internally and interactionally, teachers enacted agency and constructed their own social space, through their framing of young people with dyslexia and use of inclusive language with students. Institutionally, teachers were found to be subject to other professions and Government policy, lacking autonomy and capacity to distribute resources, despite their ‘symbolic capital’ as teachers. The ‘level of interaction’ determined teachers’ capacity to act autonomously and freely navigate their own social space.     

Storylines in the physics teaching content of an upper secondary school classroom

ABSTRACT

Background: Physics is often seen as a discipline with difficult content, and one that is difficult to identify with. Socialisation processes at the upper secondary school level are of particular interest as these may be linked to the subsequent low and uneven participation in university physics. Focusing on how norms are construed in physics classrooms in upper secondary school is therefore relevant.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify discursive patterns in teacher–student interactions in physics classrooms.

Design and methods: Three different physics lessons with one class of students taught by three different teachers in upper secondary school were video-recorded. Positioning theory was used to analyse classroom interaction with a specific focus on how physics was positioned.

Results: We identified seven different storylines. Four of them (‘reaching a solution to textbook problems’, ‘discussing physics concepts in order to gain better understanding’, ‘doing empirical enquiry’ and ‘preparing for the upcoming exam’) represent what teaching physics in an upper secondary school classroom can be. The last three storylines (‘mastering physics’, ‘appreciating physics’ and ‘having a feeling for physics’) all concern how students are supposed to relate to physics and, thus, become ‘insiders’ in the discipline.

Conclusions: The identification and analysis of storylines raises awareness of the choices teachers make in physics education and their potential consequences for students. For example, in the storyline of mastering physics a good physics student is associated with ‘smartness’, which might make the classroom a less secure place in general. Variation and diversity in the storylines construed in teaching can potentially contribute to a more inclusive physics education.     

Operational,interpersonal, discussional and ideational dimensions of classroom norms for dialogic practice in school mathematics

While research suggests that interactive pedagogy drawing on students’ ideas can improve learning outcomes, it has been found difficult to change mathematics classroom practice in this direction. The reasons for this difficulty remain poorly understood, hindering change at scale. This article focuses on the under‐researched normative aspect of such practice which shapes participants’ actions and expectations. Drawing on theories of social practice and interaction, we define norms as recurrent and socially obligating patterns of, and rationales for, behaviour in a particular social practice. We then examine empirically what and how (new) norms associated with this type of pedagogy are manifest in classroom discursive activity by examining talk across 21 school mathematics lessons by 12 teachers implementing a dialogic intervention. While there is a clear distinction between surface norms and underlying rationales, and a consistent set of surface norms relating to classroom talk can be identified, deeper analysis finds norms to be multi‐dimensional. We illustrate how a surface norm, such as ‘Respect others’ ideas’, can be enunciated in terms of multiple underlying rationales which we term operational, interpersonal, discussional and ideational. Our findings shed new light on why the dialogic intentions of such interventions are often realised in a superficial way. We further examine the ways in which teachers hold students and themselves accountable to the ideational dimension—the dimension that relates to taking students’ ideas seriously in classroom dialogue.     

中小学数学教师感知的创造性课堂环境的结构与特点

运用程黎和郑昊（2017）设计的中小学创造性课堂环境评估表（教师版）,调查发现中小学数学教师感受到的创造性课堂环境因素分为六个维度:（1）教师给予学生的支持;（2）教师对课堂的领导掌控力;（3）教师放权;（4）学生之间的关系;（5）促进学生间的交流;（6）提高学生的凝聚力。中小学数学教师对课堂的领导掌控力和促进学生间的交流在学历、职称、学段、学校类型和教师所获得的荣誉上都有显著性差异。初中数学教师在给予学生的支持、促进学生间的交流、提高学生的凝聚力及教师对课堂的领导掌控力等维度上都优于高中与小学数学教师。小学数学教师更重视放权让学生在课堂上的创造性表现,而高中数学教师则相对较少放权让学生在课堂上表现。获得省级及以上荣誉的教师对于课堂掌控及放权让学生表现上优于其他类型的教师,未获得荣誉的教师在课堂上的各方面都略差于获得过荣誉的教师。研究生学历的教师对课堂的领导掌控力、放权让学生在课堂上表现、与学生间的关系、促进学生间的交流以及提高学生的凝聚力这些维度上都比其他学历的数学教师更好。高级教师放权让学生在课堂上表现、对课堂的掌控力以及给予学生的支持和促进学生间的交流上都比其他级别的教师更好。重点学校的数学教师在创造性课堂环境的各个维度上都优于普通学校的数学教师。女教师给予学生的支持以及促进学生间的关系与交流上要优于男教师,男教师在对课堂的掌控力、放权让学生在课堂上表现及提高学生的凝聚力上比女教师稍有优势。这些结论对引导和干预中小学数学教师积极营造创造性的课堂环境有借鉴意义。     

论课堂教学师生互动的模式与效果

课堂教学是教师引导学生认知的一个过程,这一过程并不是单向性的知识传播,而是以师生之间的有效互动为前提与基础的.但是课堂教学中的师生互动是以传授知识为旨归,在特定的教学环境、教学目标与教学要求下开展的,不同于社会生活中的人际互动,它具有自身的独特性与规律性.课堂教学中的师生互动有科学方法和基本模式可循,教师若能善于运用这些方法,对提升课堂教学质量将大有裨益.     

课堂互动的影响因素及教学启示

课堂互动是课堂教学中最基本、最主要的人际互动,是在课堂教学情景中,教师和学生之间、学生和学生之间发生的具有促进性或抑制性的相互作用、相互影响,进而达到师生心理或行为的改变。深入了解课堂互动的影响因素,有助于教师创设平等的互动环境、提高课堂互动质量、促进学生的全面发展。     

Classroom disruptions,the teacher–student relationship and classroom management from the perspective of teachers,students and external observers: a multimethod approach

This study used questionnaires and systematic behavioural observations to examine how teachers, students and external observers perceived classroom disruptions, the teacher–student relationship and classroom management in grade 5 and 6 classrooms in Switzerland. The questionnaire showed that the students of a class agreed to a certain extent in their ratings of classroom disruptions, the teacher–student relationship and classroom management. Comparison of teachers’ and students’ ratings showed that agreement on these constructs varied. We found weak to moderate agreement on classroom disruptions, a weak correspondence for the teacher–student relationship, and no association on classroom management. The results of the behavioural observation showed a moderate agreement between external observers’ and students’ ratings, but no association between external observers’ and class teachers’ ratings and only a weak correspondence with the subject teacher ratings. Thus external observers’ low-inference observations corresponded far better with students’ than teachers’ ratings. To sum up, students, teachers and observers perceive classroom processes differently.

     

Teaching and learning in the special education setting: agency of the diagnosed child

ABSTRACT

This article is based on an extensive study of teaching-learning processes in special educational settings organised for children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). There is a general assumption that children’s learning will be supported through placement in a special class with few students and one or more teachers present. The issues explored concern what educational practices unfold in these settings, i.e. what are the children learning, and how do they participate in the activities? The empirical study is based on video-recorded classroom interaction in eight ADHD-classes during a period of seven years, in total about 200 h. The results show that the interactional format dominating is characterised by one teacher instructing one child at a time. These situations usually seem to follow the well-known Initiative-Response-Feedback (I-R-F) structure. The contributions from the children are generally minimal, and there is no indication that the student’s role in such dyads is more active. Thus, there is little evidence that children’s learning will improve and that they become more focussed and assume a more participatory role in the interactional formats offered in special classes. Also, it is not obvious how experiences of this kind will prepare children for a return to regular classroom or develop towards becoming active citizens.     

浅析课堂提问的有效性(英文)

众所周知,课堂交流在教学中非常重要,并且课堂提问是师生双边活动最重要的形式。教师在课堂上能否恰当地运用提问直接影响着课堂教学效果。有效的课堂提问可以激发学生的注意力、兴趣和爱好。此外,课堂提问还可以帮助教师及时了解不同层次学生的学习理解程度。因此,教师有必要明白提问在课堂教学中的重要性,关注目前课堂提问的现状及存在的问题并熟练掌握提问技巧与策略,尝试有效进行课堂提问,切实提高课堂教学效果。     

数学课堂教学中师生交往的有效化

数学课堂教学改革是数学课程改革的一项重要工作。数学课堂教学改革就是要用新课程理念改革过去被动式的课堂教学模式,使课堂教学成为“师生之间、学生之间交往互动与共同发展的过程”。要实现这一目标,建构课堂教学中真实的师生交往是关键。当前,在中小学数学课堂教学的师生交往中存在一些不真实的现象,这已对数学新课程的教学实施造成了一些不利的影响。因此,要正确认识数学课堂教学中师生交往的涵义,分析不真实交往的成因,明确师生之间真实交往的特征,建构数学课堂教学中有效的师生交往,从而推动数学课堂教学改革的健康发展。     

Students’ problem behaviors and teachers’ warmth and demand as predictors of students’ classroom instructional experiences in first grade

The present study utilized both classroom- and student-level observation methods to investigate the relations among first grade students’ (N = 533) problem behaviors and their classroom instructional experiences. Additionally, the role of teachers’ (N = 57) warm demander characteristic, a combination of warmth and responsiveness and classroom control and demand, was considered. Multilevel modeling revealed a positive association between problem behaviors and student time in both teacher-facilitated small-group instruction and off-task, and to less time in types of instruction where students were expected to manage themselves. Interaction effects further indicated that the positive association between problem behaviors and time in teacher-facilitated, small-group instruction only existed when students with more problem behaviors were in classrooms with teachers who were high or average in warm demander characteristic, whereas the opposite pattern existed for students of teachers low in warm demander characteristic. In addition, students of teachers who were high in warm demander characteristic spent less time in disruption/waiting (a main effect), and for these students a positive association between problem behaviors and students’ time in disruption/waiting existed (an interaction effect). Implications for policy, practice, and future research are discussed.     

Making Difference Matter: Teaching and Learning in Desegregated Classrooms

In this ethnographic study, we look closely at everyday classroom interactions in order to examine the complex process of creating equitable classroom communities in racially and socioeconomically diverse schools. We use the lens of relational difference (Abu El-Haj, 2006) to examine how students negotiate social boundaries within their new school; how students and teachers use small group work to co-construct expectations of academic ability; and how teachers communicate and students navigate the social significance of differentiated instruction and assessment. We find that assumptions that some students are more competent than others permeate the classroom, and these perceptions of ability are frequently tied to students' race and socioeconomic status. We provide suggestions for teachers and teacher educators who wish to challenge these unspoken classroom norms.     

Reducing discrepancies between teachers’ espoused theories and theories-in-use: an action research model of reflective professional development

This article reports on an action research project in which two New Zealand classroom teachers worked with a university researcher to investigate the effects of their knowledge, thinking, and beliefs on the ways in which they mediated students’ learning in teacher–student interactions. Working in a small community of practice over a two-year period, the group carried out four cycles of action research. They gathered information through semi-structured interviews and classroom observations, and engaged in professional reading, reflection, and discussion. Initially the group found discrepancies between the teachers’ espoused theories and their theories-in-use. Implicit beliefs and routinised behaviours were found to have a detrimental influence on the nature of the teachers’ interactions with students. Through examination of their own practice and participation in reflective professional development, the teachers were able to make incremental changes and improvements in their interactions with students.