Poster #20 - Facilitating Small-Group Discussions: Effects of Teacher Discourse Moves Across Various Group Compositions

• In Event: 21.063 - MTCC Poster Session Three
  In Poster Session: 21.063-2 - Social and Cognitive Influences on Academic Performance

Abstract

Engaging in small-group discussions promotes students’ high-level comprehension and critical-thinking. Unfortunately, not all discussions produce the type of rich talk that leads to such favorable outcomes. The challenge, therefore, becomes structuring discussions in a way that does not simply increase the quantity of student talk but also increases the quality of student talk. Two factors that influence the quality of student talk are group composition and teacher facilitation practices. This study investigates whether there is an interaction between these two factors, and how that interaction influences the quality of student talk via a systematic examination of teacher-student exchanges during small-group discussions. The results suggest that teachers’ facilitation practices function differently across group composition.

Authors

• Rachel Miriam Vriend Croninger, The Pennsylvania State University

• P. Karen Murphy, The Pennsylvania State University

• Carla Marie Firetto, Arizona State University

• Mengyi Li, American Institutes for Research

• Liwei Wei, The Pennsylvania State University

• Sara Elizabeth Baszczewski, The Pennsylvania State University