Participant Structures, Scientific Discourse, and Student Engagement in Fourth Grade

Abstract

The overall aim of this study was to examine the complex interrelations among stu- dent engagement, scientific thinking practices, and student role taking and social interaction in the context of school-based science lessons. Typically, elementary hands-on science classes are organized with 3 main parts to every lesson: (a) teacher introduction, (b) small group investigation time, and (c) whole class reporting time in which students report about their small group investigations to the class. In this study, 2 classroom interventions, based in part on this standard format, were designed to guide students in constructing scientific understanding. Both interventions involved instruction in the same set of intellectual roles that could be applied during small group investigation time. These roles included (a) predicting and theorizing; (b) summarizing results; and (c) relating predictions, theories, and results. The difference between the intervention classes was that 1 class received specific audience role assignments during reporting that corresponded to the intellectual roles and required students to check other students' work (ROLES + AUD ROLES). The other intervention class did not receive audience role assignments during reporting, although the students were still using the intellectual roles during the small group investigation time (ROLES). The purpose of such a design was to examine if the intellectual roles and corresponding audience roles would encourage student engagement more effectively than the use of the intellectual roles alone. Transcripts of whole class reporting time were coded using 4 engagement categories based on the work of Hatano and Inagaki (1991): (a) negotiating understanding of classroom procedures and standards, (b) monitoring comprehension of content, (c) challenging, and (d) coordinating theories and evidence. Students in the ROLES + AUD ROLES class were more active in initiating engagement episodes of every type than students in the ROLES class. Teacher-initiated engagement episodes demonstrated a different pattern, with the teacher initiating more negotiating and monitoring comprehension episodes in the ROLES + AUD ROLES class and more coordinating theories and evidence episodes in the ROLES class. Findings are discussed in terms of the importance of combining guidance in the social as well as intellectual norms associated with scientific thinking and discourse.