Background
Transactive communication means referring to and building on a learning partner's idea, by, for example, extending the partner's idea or interlinking the partner's idea with an idea of ...one's own. This transforms the partner's idea into a more elaborate one. Previous research found a positive relationship between students' transactive communication and their learning results when working in small groups.
Aims
To increase the benefits of cooperation, we developed and tested a module for training students in transactive communication. We assumed that this training would enhance students' transactive communication and also increase their knowledge acquisition during cooperative learning. Further, we distinguished between an actor's transactive communication and a learning partner's transactive communication and expected both to be positively associated with an actor's knowledge acquisition.
Sample
Participants were 80 university students.
Methods
In an experiment with pre‐ and post‐test measurements, transactive communication was measured by coding students' communication in a cooperative learning situation before training and in another cooperative learning situation after training. For the post‐test cooperative learning situation, knowledge was pre‐tested and post‐tested.
Results
Trained students outperformed controls in transactive communication and in knowledge acquisition. Positive training effects on actors' knowledge acquisition were partially mediated by the improved actors' transactive communication. Moreover, actors' knowledge acquisition was positively influenced by learning partners' transactive communication.
Conclusions
Results show a meaningful increase in the benefits of cooperation through the training in transactive communication. Furthermore, findings indicate that students benefit from both elaborating on their partner's ideas and having their own ideas elaborated on.
In peer learning, students’ cognitive processes can manifest in verbal communication. This study investigated how students use spoken language to interlink their ideas in partner work ...(transactivity). In 83 university students, transactive statements were coded by raters via students’ content-related ideas and their link to their partner’s ideas. Analyses resulted in 27 lexical units, grouped into four clusters, that occurred more often in transactive statements than in nontransactive statements. In a cross-validation, students’ use of the lexical units correlated positively with their coded transactive statements and their learning results. We interpret the use of the lexical units as students’ attempt to establish logical relations between their ideas and their learning partner’s ideas, to signal tentativeness and insecurity about their ideas, and to invite the partner to elaborate on their ideas.
The 2 × 2 model of shyness and sociability is a widely accepted theoretical framework, but to date has not been examined using both adequate measures and appropriate statistical approaches. ...Therefore, we first review existing literature on the model, outline limitations of previous approaches, and present methodological suggestions on how to adequately test it. Second, by means of an example study with 206 adolescents, we provide support for a revised measure assessing social approach and social avoidance motivation as the two main dimensions of the model. Moreover, when testing the model with hierarchical regression analyses, we could partially replicate previous findings, but also found conflicting results. For instance, when compared to the avoidant-shy subtype (AS; i.e., the combination of low approach and high avoidance), the sociable subtype (SO; i.e., high approach and low avoidance) turned out to be more adaptive in all outcomes (i.e., positive and negative affect, emotional problems, peer problems, conduct problems, oral participation) except for prosocial behavior and nonverbal attentiveness. Furthermore, the comparison of SO to the conflicted-shy subtype (CS; i.e., both high approach and avoidance) and unsociable subtype (UN; i.e., both low approach and avoidance) illustrates that which subtype is more adaptive depends on the outcome.
•Review shows limitations of 30-year-old 2 × 2 model of shyness and sociability.•Hierarchical regressions and planned contrasts are suggested to test model.•Example study yields that adjustment of its four subtypes depends on the outcome.•Unsociability appears to be a relatively benign subtype of social withdrawal.•Conflicted-shyness and avoidant-shyness differ, the latter being more maladaptive.
•The program strengthens personal and social resources in a high-risk context.•Students’ beliefs about the future and school experience improve.•Socio-emotional development and academic contents are ...combined successfully.•Peer-assisted learning strengthens social and personal resources.•The mixed-methods design deepens insights into learning processes.
The LIFE program was developed to strengthen the social and personal resources of students from urban marginalized schools in El Salvador, namely positive beliefs about the future, social-emotional skills, and a positive school experience measured through the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs at school. It is based on peer learning; students from a local university work together to tutor eighth- and ninth-grade students who learn in teams and develop business plans together. LIFE combines the teaching of personally relevant academic contents (entrepreneurism) with the fostering of action planning and social-emotional skills in youth. The program was evaluated through a mixed-methods approach including a pretest–posttest control group design and focus groups with the experimental group. Results showed positive effects on students’ beliefs about the future and the fulfilment of basic psychological needs, specifically an increase in optimism and in experiences of autonomy and competence. The qualitative data complemented the quantitative results and provided a deeper insight into the processes that had taken place during the program. They showed that positive beliefs about the future existed despite students’ awareness of difficulties that they will have to face in life. The concept of collective competence came up—the conviction that it is possible to achieve in a team what an individual person cannot accomplish. Students also expressed appreciation for the relevance of the topics, the learning of communicative and cooperative skills, a positive development of relationships in their classroom, and the interaction with their tutors.
Cooperative learning is an evidence-based teaching strategy. In cooperative learning, teachers structure students' interactions and prepare them for cooperation so that students work together in ...small groups supporting each other's' learning processes. This study investigated whether the empirical evidence of the effectiveness of cooperative learning is reflected in teachers' professional competencies and their teaching practices. We surveyed 1,495 language teachers in Poland, measuring their knowledge and beliefs about cooperative learning and their use of cooperative learning in class. Although teachers were well informed about the principles of cooperative learning, they only knew a few methods to implement cooperative learning in class. Teachers agreed that cooperative learning is effective for students' academic and social learning and can provide students with individualised support for their learning processes. Despite these positive beliefs, teachers used cooperative learning infrequently. When they used cooperative learning, teachers organised and supported students' interactions in accordance with the principles of cooperative learning. Teachers reported that they would like to learn more about cooperative learning and use it more often in class. They were especially interested in support such as lesson examples and teaching materials. We discuss the implications of these results for teacher education.
Think-Pair-Share (TPS) is a teaching strategy thought to increase in-class participation, especially with shy students. After thinking for themselves, students talk to their seatmate to exchange ...their ideas and finally show their willingness to participate in-class by raising their hand. In the present field study, we tested TPS with 393 ninth-grade students against two variations, Think-Share (TS; first think, then raise hand) and Share (S; directly raise hand). Students reported on their shyness, and reported in each condition on their hand raising, state anxiety, and motives for (non-)hand raising. Analyses revealed that TPS led to more hand raising compared to the S condition. Lower levels of hand raising in TS were fully mediated by state anxiety. Shy students reported social evaluative concerns, and they raised their hand less frequently than their non-shy peers but also benefited from TPS. These results indicate the importance of peer collaboration for in-class participation.
•Hand raising frequencies increase after exchanging ideas with a partner.•Validating own notes with a partner reduces state anxiety.•State anxiety mediates the effects on hand raising when not validating own notes.•Shy students participate less frequently, but also benefit from collaboration.•Social evaluative concerns are the main reason why shy students participate less.
•Study on the effects of question prompts on students’ working with peer feedback.•Students prepared a term paper and revised their text based on peer feedback.•Question prompts resulted in higher ...levels of consideration of peer feedback.•Students integrated more correct comments and less incorrect ones.•Question prompts did not result in a greater performance increase.
To benefit from peer feedback, students must engage in mindful cognitive processing of peer comments. In this study, 70 university students prepared an initial version of their term paper, revised their text based on peer feedback, and then submitted a final version of their term paper. In the experimental condition, students were supported in working with peer feedback by question prompts. Question prompts were not provided in the control condition. Students in the experimental condition reported a higher level of consideration of the received feedback, and they integrated more correct comments and less incorrect ones. However, question prompts did not result in a greater performance increase from the initial version to the final version of the term paper.
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