Peer Relationship, Social Interaction, and Relational Thinking During Small-Group Discussions

• In Event: Learning From and With Peers

Abstract

This microgenetic study aimed to understand the process by which children’s relational thinking develops through interaction with peers and teachers during small-group discussions, and whether peer relationships mediate the social and cognitive dynamics of discussions. The social influences are investigated in a peer-led small-group discussion forum called Collaborative Reasoning (CR). Data contain 180 CR discussions from 18 discussion groups in 6 fourth-grade classrooms. Current results show that relational thinking emerged when students successfully gained the floor to talk. Students who had better turn-taking skills were those who lie in the center of a friendship network, whereas low-status students often failed to gain the floor.

Authors

• Tzu-Jung Lin, The Ohio State University

• Richard C. Anderson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign