Abstract
Classroom interactions play an important role in the learning and teaching of mathematics, and feedback emanating from these interactions is a powerful tool for enhancing student learning. These exchanges have been widely studied in higher education, but very few investigations have been carried out at the level of elementary students and teachers. This study aimed to contribute to existing knowledge of feedback, and to formulate guidelines to improve teacher feedback in elementary school. The specific objectives were to analyse the focus of feedback a) by pedagogical moment and type of interaction, b) by type of question and student’s answer, and c) by gender and student achievement. Participants comprised five teachers and their 82 third-grade students attending an elementary school in Portugal. Mathematics lessons were video-recorded and a categorisation system to assess teacher-student interaction was developed, based on a review of the literature and empirical data. The results showed that most of the teacher–student interactions contained feedback, which was usually focused on a specific task, and less frequently on the ways in which tasks were processed. In all pedagogical moments, teachers’ feedback was evaluative, especially when they had initiated the interaction. Feedback became more effective when the initial move was made by the students. The focus of feedback was not related to the type of question asked, but it was associated with the certitude of the students’ answers. We also observed an interaction effect between the focus of feedback, gender and achievement, with high-achievement boys receiving advantages. Our results hold important implications for teachers’ classroom practices and professional development
Highlights
Sociocultural researchers (e.g., Mercer, 2010; Mercer and Howe, 2012) have focussed their attention to the effects of teacher-student dialogues on problem-solving, learning, and conceptual change
The aim of the current study is to examine teacher-student interactions, mainly to characterise the focus of feedback used by thirdgrade teachers and whether it differs according to the type of interaction, the lesson purpose, the type of question used by the teacher, the type of answer given by the student, and the students’ gender and prior achievement
In order to characterise teacher feedback during active learning we examined the focus of the feedback, especially the four levels of feedback, and four research questions guided our study: 1. What are the characteristics of teacher–student interactions related to the teacher feedback move during active learning during mathematics lessons in the third grade of primary schools?
Summary
Sociocultural researchers (e.g., Mercer, 2010; Mercer and Howe, 2012) have focussed their attention to the effects of teacher-student dialogues on problem-solving, learning, and conceptual change. In the mathematical learning process, interaction between teacher and students can facilitate students’ learning (Apriliyanto and Saputro, 2018). For socio-constructivists (e.g., Hardman et al, 2003) learning is a social, active process involving others, and takes the form of a constant interplay between student and teacher that assists the learner in acquiring the necessary skills and knowledge. The learning process comprises a succession of steps that the student takes, building on the scaffolding provided by the teacher, leading to the learner’s self-regulation and development through a process of internalisation (Vygotsky, 1978). Socio-constructivists argue that language serves to mediate higher order thinking, thereby playing a critical role in the teaching-learning process.
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