"Getting Students to Use Relational Reasoning": Sequential Analysis of Eighth-Grade Science Classroom Discourse

• In Event: 30.081 - Poster Session 5
  In Poster Session: 30.081-4 - Science Learning and Teaching Posters II

Abstract

Research has shown that relational reasoning plays an important role in scientific learning (Dumas, Alexander, & Grossnickle, 2013; Jablansky, Alexander, Dumas, & Compton, 2016). However, little is known about the interactive pattern of relational reasoning between teacher and students in the nature course of instruction. By analyzing the TIMSS 1999 Video Study, we found that when teachers explained content to students using a specific type of relational reasoning (e.g. analogy or antinomy), it was followed by students’ response in the same line of reasoning to a significant degree. Moreover, we found that even when teachers were using a more general prompt to compare and contrast, students would take the hint and demonstrate using relational reasoning in their following discourse.

Authors

• Hongyang Zhao, University of Maryland - College Park

• Yuting Sun, University of Maryland - College Park

• Patricia A. Alexander, University of Maryland - College Park