To Ask or Not to Ask? A Dynamic Systems Perspective on Help Seeking in an Introductory Statistics Classroom

Abstract

Student-generated questions are an important mechanism for learning and self-regulation, yet their scarcity in classroom discourse points to a need to understand how students decide to ask or withhold their questions. This study examined how 12 graduate students in an introductory statistics course made decisions about asking questions during whole group instruction. Help seeking decisions were framed as arising from a dynamic system of a student’s situated role identity as a class participant. Qualitative analysis of post-class interviews illustrated the highly contextual, dynamic nature of students’ decisions to ask or withhold questions. Analyses revealed an array of microdecisions that involved determining whether help was needed, anticipating social impressions, and considering impacts on others. Results revealed a prominent configuration of ontological beliefs, self-perceptions, goals, and perceived action possibilities that led students to withhold questions. The findings highlight tensions and dynamics among role identity elements, including distinct appraisals of one’s own vs. classmates’ questions. The study illuminates how context, questions, and interacting identity elements frame students’ willingness to ask questions during class.