Studies have shown that when young EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners participate in oral collaboration tasks, it may have both positive and negative effects for them. Nearly all of the research done in this area has been carried out on older learners, which makes the information related to younger learners relatively narrow. In the last decade, however, research done with young learners has gradually increased. This has led to elementary school teachers being given a wider range of knowledge regarding oral collaborative tasks and their impact on their students. Through a handful of selected research carried out on young English learners, this study’s aim is to highlight both positive and negative impacts that oral collaboration tasks may have on students in elementary school (K3). All of the research from our selected articles was conducted through observation in the classroom, in which two of them included students’ own perceptions. Different factors can have an influence on oral collaboration tasks, such as patterns of interaction, task content, attitudes and feelings, and the teacher’s role.

Efforts to improve university science education continue to emphasize the importance of active learning, including frequent formative assessment and timely feedback that helps students reach desired learning outcomes. Yet, nationwide, many instructors continue to use primarily lecture-based teaching methods, with limited use of formative assessment and feedback. Factors that affect instructor adoption and implementation of new teaching techniques include departmental norms, peer interaction, and classroom environment. In this work, a model of the impacts of departmental teaching and social norms and peer interactions on instructor innovation decision is presented. This model is then used to explore 1) instructor teaching-related interactions within a single biology department, assessing the conditions for innovation diffusion, and 2) instructor perceptions of norms and interactions in that department and their impact on decision-making. Finally, introductory biology instructors’ use of assessment and feedback techniques were characterized in a lecture hall and an active learning classroom to see how innovation adoption translates to specific assessment practice and investigate the impact of the active learning classroom. Results indicate that perceptions and practices vary widely, but that both peer interactions and active learning classrooms may have a positive impact on teaching innovation adoption and practices in a university biology department. In addition, the pattern of interactions within this department allows instructors of varying assessment experience to interact, making it potentially conducive to the spread of teaching ideas. The model and results presented here will assist in understanding the factors involved in instructor decision-making and can be leveraged to help promote the use of formative assessment and other evidence-based teaching practices.

No description available.

In the context of language instruction and learning, L2 willingness to communicate (WTC) is a relevant factor in learners’ language use. It is viewed as a volitional process influenced by individual, social, linguistic, and situationally dependent factors. Foundational research focuses on either trait or state WTC-influencing factors as separate entities. Current research considers the dynamic relationship that occurs between the two though less research exists on how WTC manifests in classroom interaction. This study investigates such differences by examining learners’ self-reported, perceived trait WTC and situational state WTC. It treats WTC as a dynamic entity which is shaped by learners’ investment in language learning and the identity they take on as language learners. It considers the relationship of WTC to its three most influential trait variables: motivation, L2 perceived competence, and L2 anxiety. It presents findings of additional variables influencing state WTC. Data were comprised of questionnaire surveys, focal participant interviews, and classroom observations. Quantitative data consisted of 39 participants, and qualitative data consisted of 12 focal participants. The importance of the present study lies in its investigation of WTC in relation to trait and state factors, and its stance that investment in L2 learning is a key factor in fostering classroom WTC. Finally, it explores how WTC can be positively fostered to optimize the learner’s language experience. / Spanish

A presente tese de doutorado tangencia a temática da Inclusão Escolar a partir da análise dos processos de interação de pares em contexto de Educação Infantil. Dentro desse complexo e amplo fenômeno, o foco do processo investigativo recaiu sobre as possibilidades de desenvolvimento da criança com déficit intelectual, discutindo, a partir da perspectiva Histórico-Cultural, o conceito teórico da Zona de Desenvolvimento Proximal de Lev S. Vygotsky. A partir desse recorte, buscou-se apreender os processos interativos de crianças com e sem déficit intelectual no contexto institucional escolar, analisar como as relações estabelecidas entre pares são construídas e, nessa construção, como possibilitam a transformação das habilidades potenciais em habilidades reais, em diferentes atividades. O objetivo específico foi identificar se existiam indícios empíricos que sustentariam a discussão conceitual de que o impacto das regulações e corregulações de comportamento por pares de idade também poderia ser considerado elemento que cria Zonas de Desenvolvimento Proximal às crianças com déficit intelectual. Para tanto, optou-se por desenvolver um processo investigativo de base epistemológica qualitativa, a partir das contribuições teóricas provenientes da Rede de Significações, por meio de três diferentes recursos de coleta de dados: o vídeo registro, as entrevistas semiestruturadas e o diário de campo. Os participantes da pesquisa foram três crianças pivôs diagnosticadas como tendo déficit intelectual, de idade entre três anos e meio e cinco anos, de duas Instituições de Educação Infantil. Para além, foram considerados participantes os familiares das três crianças, seus respectivos professores e as demais crianças que compartilhavam o contexto institucional. A análise dos dados foi realizada em três etapas distintas. Na primeira etapa, às entrevistas foi aplicada uma metodologia de análise de conteúdo, permitindo que informações do histórico familiar, a partir dos relatos das mães e sobre as concepções pedagógicas dos professores, fossem explicitadas e trabalhadas. Para além, analisaram-se os vídeos registros, considerando como elemento central os contatos físicos entre as crianças. Na segunda etapa, uma nova análise foi realizada junto ao material de vídeo, neste momento priorizando a análise microgenética dos episódios de regulações de comportamento no campo interativo. Na terceira e última etapa, a microgenética foi utilizada novamente, longitudinalmente, agora privilegiando os episódios interativos em que foram identificadas corregulações de comportamento. As três etapas de análise resultaram nos seguintes elementos: (1) a configuração do espaço\\atividade pode interferir na quantidade de contatos físicos nas interações de pares, sendo o ritmo das atividades e a presença (ou ausência) direta do adulto um fator que influencia nas iniciativas da interação; (2) o contato físico se configurou por meio de diferentes comportamentos\\gestos e em meio a diversas situações, representando as distintas, ambíguas e complementares formas de estabelecer contato com o outro; (3) há reciprocidade na busca por interação; (4) a atenção conjunta e o compartilhamento de objetos representam elementos fundamentais, permitindo a possibilidade da reciprocidade na troca de informações (corregulação); (5) foram identificadas, em todos os três casos, transformações na forma como as interações são constituídas ao longo do tempo, apresentando um gradativo aumento na sua complexidade; (6) as aprendizagens construídas nas corregulações de comportamento foram diversificadas, ora tangenciando aspectos sociais do processo de escolarização, ora se referindo a uma atividade específica; (7) a imitação aparece como elemento central e estruturador dos processos regulatórios; e, (8) o interesse\\envolvimento dos pares no fazer conjunto com a criança pivô e o percurso histórico dessas interações no cotidiano escolar desempenharam um papel importante na criação das Zonas de Desenvolvimento Proximais e de desenvolvimento dos participantes pivôs. A partir dos resultados, defende-se que na interação de pares são criadas Zonas de Desenvolvimento Proximal, o que permite a reflexão sobre o papel do par no processo de aprendizagem, desenvolvimento e inclusão da criança com déficit intelectual em contextos escolares de Educação Infantil / This thesis focused on the theme of Inclusive Education from the analysis of peers interactional processes in Early Childhood context. Within this complex and broad phenomenon, the investigative process concentrated on the possibilities of development of the child with intellectual deficit, discussing from the Historical-Cultural perspective the theoretical concept of Zone of Proximal Development, by Lev S. Vygotsky. We sought to understand the interactive processes of children with and without intellectual deficit in the school institutional context; to analyze how the relationships peer interaction are constructed and, in this construction, how they enable the transformation of potential abilities into real, in different activities. The specific objective was to identify if there is empirical evidence that would support the conceptual discussion that the impact of age-adjusted behavioral regulation and co-regulation could also be considered as an element that creates Zones of Proximal Development for children with intellectual deficit. In order to do so, we adopted a qualitative epistemological basis research process, based on theoretical contributions from the Network of Meanings, through three different data collection resources: video recording, semi-structured interviews and the field diary. The participants were three children aged between three and a half and five years of two Early Childhood Education Institutions, diagnosed with intellectual deficit. In addition, the families of the three pivot children and their respective teachers were considered as participants. Data analysis was performed in three distinct stages. In the first stage, a content analysis methodology was applied to the interviews, allowing information on the family history from the mothers\' reports and on the pedagogical conceptions of the teachers to be explained and worked out. In addition, we analyzed the video recordings considering as central element the physical contacts between the children. In the second stage, a new analysis was performed with the video material, prioritizing the microgenetic analysis of the episodes of behavior regulation in the interactive field. In the third and last stage, the microgenetic was used again, now privileging the interactive episodes in which behavioral modifications were identified. The three stages of analysis resulted in the following elements: (1) the configuration of space \\ activity may interfere in the amount of physical contacts in the pair interactions, with the activity rhythm and adult presence (or absence) being a factor influencing the Interaction initiatives; (2) physical contacts are shaped by different behaviors and gestures and in the midst of various situations, representing the distinct, ambiguous and complementary ways of establishing contact with the Other; (3) there is reciprocity in the search for interaction; (4) joint attention and the sharing of objects represent fundamental elements, allowing the possibility of reciprocity in the exchange of information (co-regulation); (5) transformations were identified in all three cases in the way interactions are constituted over time, presenting a gradual increase in their complexity; (6) the learning constructed in the behavioral configurations were diversified, sometimes involving social aspects of the schooling process, sometimes referring to a specific activity; (7) imitation appears as the central and structuring element of regulatory processes; And (8) the interest and involvement of peers in the joint development of the pivotal child and the historical course of these interactions in the daily school life played an important role in the creation of the Proximal Development Zones and the development of the pivot participants. From the results, we defend that the peer interaction creates situation, which can be understood as Zones of Proximal Development, and we point towards the reflection of the active role of peers to the learning, development and inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities within Early Childhood Educational contexts

Collaborative work in pairs or groups is a common practice in the workplace, in content courses, and in classrooms across languages, settings, and geopolitical boundaries. However, research on collaborative writing—working with a partner to jointly produce a text, including both planning and writing phases—is limited. In addition, it has resulted in contradictory findings, especially in terms of whether learners deliberate about language and how the composition process affects the written texts produced learners produce. The present study, carried out in a fifth-semester university Spanish Writing course, examines the process (i.e., interaction) and product (i.e., written document) of a collaborative writing module that focused on the creation of narratives. The analysis of learners’ collaborative dialogue produced during the planning and writing phases of the interaction focuses on: (1) at a macro level, how learners apportion their time while collaboratively planning and producing a written narrative (e.g., planning, formulating, revising); and (2) at a micro level, the types (e.g., discourse, grammatical, lexical, mechanical), frequency, and resolution (e.g., resolved, unresolved, resolved incorrectly) of their language-related episodes (i.e., the instances where they talk about the language they are producing and question their language use). Learners’ jointly produced texts were examined analytically in terms of complexity, fluency, and accuracy measures, as well as holistically using a rubric. Additionally, a microdiscourse analytic approach was used to examine the means by which members of a collaborative pair position themselves as partners in a collaborative writing activity. Results indicate that a fully collaborative writing event is a productive site for co- constructed learning as students pool their knowledge to solve language-use problems, particularly those related to word choice and grammatical structures. Additionally, the texts composed collaboratively are of higher quality, based on several of the measures utilized, than texts composed individually by members of the collaborative pair. Finally, implications for implementing collaborative writing tasks in L2 classrooms are discussed.

<p>Pre-school as a Meeting Place – Children’s Access-strategies and Exclusions in Play and Conversation</p><p>Abstract</p><p>The research reported in this thesis attempts to understand what happens when children interact with each other in the context of activities in a pre-school setting (here called Daggkåpan) when adults are not involved. By using ethnographically inspired methodology, in combination with conversation-analysis, this project has been analysing everyday interaction between children who are three to five years old. The aim of the project was to understand how children at Daggkåpan create relationships and how they defend and protect their interactional spaces. I have studied how children shape, maintain and interrupt relationships and interactions with one another. I have studied and analysed what kinds of access-strategies the children utilize and create and also how these children exclude one another in play activities and everyday conversations. Sociocultural and interactionistic perspectives have been used. Findings suggest that it is very important for these children to maintain interactions with peers and gain access to play groups. The children of Daggkåpan create and use several different strategies for gaining access. The results also indicate that gaining access to play groups is particularly difficult in preschool settings since young children tend to protect shared spaces and ongoing play activities from children outside the realms of these spaces and activities. Children also co-construct a number of strategies for excluding peers from their interactional spaces. Steering clear from the dominating perspective that categorizes children and focuses on the individual child, I have in contrast focused children during their interaction with one another in peer group activities. In other words I have discussed peer-relations, peer-socialization and peer-perspectives from an interactional view. Studying peer-interactions through microanalysis allows for understanding what is meaningful for children in their peer-culture in preschool.</p><p>Britt Tellgren</p>

A presente tese de doutorado tangencia a temática da Inclusão Escolar a partir da análise dos processos de interação de pares em contexto de Educação Infantil. Dentro desse complexo e amplo fenômeno, o foco do processo investigativo recaiu sobre as possibilidades de desenvolvimento da criança com déficit intelectual, discutindo, a partir da perspectiva Histórico-Cultural, o conceito teórico da Zona de Desenvolvimento Proximal de Lev S. Vygotsky. A partir desse recorte, buscou-se apreender os processos interativos de crianças com e sem déficit intelectual no contexto institucional escolar, analisar como as relações estabelecidas entre pares são construídas e, nessa construção, como possibilitam a transformação das habilidades potenciais em habilidades reais, em diferentes atividades. O objetivo específico foi identificar se existiam indícios empíricos que sustentariam a discussão conceitual de que o impacto das regulações e corregulações de comportamento por pares de idade também poderia ser considerado elemento que cria Zonas de Desenvolvimento Proximal às crianças com déficit intelectual. Para tanto, optou-se por desenvolver um processo investigativo de base epistemológica qualitativa, a partir das contribuições teóricas provenientes da Rede de Significações, por meio de três diferentes recursos de coleta de dados: o vídeo registro, as entrevistas semiestruturadas e o diário de campo. Os participantes da pesquisa foram três crianças pivôs diagnosticadas como tendo déficit intelectual, de idade entre três anos e meio e cinco anos, de duas Instituições de Educação Infantil. Para além, foram considerados participantes os familiares das três crianças, seus respectivos professores e as demais crianças que compartilhavam o contexto institucional. A análise dos dados foi realizada em três etapas distintas. Na primeira etapa, às entrevistas foi aplicada uma metodologia de análise de conteúdo, permitindo que informações do histórico familiar, a partir dos relatos das mães e sobre as concepções pedagógicas dos professores, fossem explicitadas e trabalhadas. Para além, analisaram-se os vídeos registros, considerando como elemento central os contatos físicos entre as crianças. Na segunda etapa, uma nova análise foi realizada junto ao material de vídeo, neste momento priorizando a análise microgenética dos episódios de regulações de comportamento no campo interativo. Na terceira e última etapa, a microgenética foi utilizada novamente, longitudinalmente, agora privilegiando os episódios interativos em que foram identificadas corregulações de comportamento. As três etapas de análise resultaram nos seguintes elementos: (1) a configuração do espaço\\atividade pode interferir na quantidade de contatos físicos nas interações de pares, sendo o ritmo das atividades e a presença (ou ausência) direta do adulto um fator que influencia nas iniciativas da interação; (2) o contato físico se configurou por meio de diferentes comportamentos\\gestos e em meio a diversas situações, representando as distintas, ambíguas e complementares formas de estabelecer contato com o outro; (3) há reciprocidade na busca por interação; (4) a atenção conjunta e o compartilhamento de objetos representam elementos fundamentais, permitindo a possibilidade da reciprocidade na troca de informações (corregulação); (5) foram identificadas, em todos os três casos, transformações na forma como as interações são constituídas ao longo do tempo, apresentando um gradativo aumento na sua complexidade; (6) as aprendizagens construídas nas corregulações de comportamento foram diversificadas, ora tangenciando aspectos sociais do processo de escolarização, ora se referindo a uma atividade específica; (7) a imitação aparece como elemento central e estruturador dos processos regulatórios; e, (8) o interesse\\envolvimento dos pares no fazer conjunto com a criança pivô e o percurso histórico dessas interações no cotidiano escolar desempenharam um papel importante na criação das Zonas de Desenvolvimento Proximais e de desenvolvimento dos participantes pivôs. A partir dos resultados, defende-se que na interação de pares são criadas Zonas de Desenvolvimento Proximal, o que permite a reflexão sobre o papel do par no processo de aprendizagem, desenvolvimento e inclusão da criança com déficit intelectual em contextos escolares de Educação Infantil / This thesis focused on the theme of Inclusive Education from the analysis of peers interactional processes in Early Childhood context. Within this complex and broad phenomenon, the investigative process concentrated on the possibilities of development of the child with intellectual deficit, discussing from the Historical-Cultural perspective the theoretical concept of Zone of Proximal Development, by Lev S. Vygotsky. We sought to understand the interactive processes of children with and without intellectual deficit in the school institutional context; to analyze how the relationships peer interaction are constructed and, in this construction, how they enable the transformation of potential abilities into real, in different activities. The specific objective was to identify if there is empirical evidence that would support the conceptual discussion that the impact of age-adjusted behavioral regulation and co-regulation could also be considered as an element that creates Zones of Proximal Development for children with intellectual deficit. In order to do so, we adopted a qualitative epistemological basis research process, based on theoretical contributions from the Network of Meanings, through three different data collection resources: video recording, semi-structured interviews and the field diary. The participants were three children aged between three and a half and five years of two Early Childhood Education Institutions, diagnosed with intellectual deficit. In addition, the families of the three pivot children and their respective teachers were considered as participants. Data analysis was performed in three distinct stages. In the first stage, a content analysis methodology was applied to the interviews, allowing information on the family history from the mothers\' reports and on the pedagogical conceptions of the teachers to be explained and worked out. In addition, we analyzed the video recordings considering as central element the physical contacts between the children. In the second stage, a new analysis was performed with the video material, prioritizing the microgenetic analysis of the episodes of behavior regulation in the interactive field. In the third and last stage, the microgenetic was used again, now privileging the interactive episodes in which behavioral modifications were identified. The three stages of analysis resulted in the following elements: (1) the configuration of space \\ activity may interfere in the amount of physical contacts in the pair interactions, with the activity rhythm and adult presence (or absence) being a factor influencing the Interaction initiatives; (2) physical contacts are shaped by different behaviors and gestures and in the midst of various situations, representing the distinct, ambiguous and complementary ways of establishing contact with the Other; (3) there is reciprocity in the search for interaction; (4) joint attention and the sharing of objects represent fundamental elements, allowing the possibility of reciprocity in the exchange of information (co-regulation); (5) transformations were identified in all three cases in the way interactions are constituted over time, presenting a gradual increase in their complexity; (6) the learning constructed in the behavioral configurations were diversified, sometimes involving social aspects of the schooling process, sometimes referring to a specific activity; (7) imitation appears as the central and structuring element of regulatory processes; And (8) the interest and involvement of peers in the joint development of the pivotal child and the historical course of these interactions in the daily school life played an important role in the creation of the Proximal Development Zones and the development of the pivot participants. From the results, we defend that the peer interaction creates situation, which can be understood as Zones of Proximal Development, and we point towards the reflection of the active role of peers to the learning, development and inclusion of children with intellectual disabilities within Early Childhood Educational contexts

Pre-school as a Meeting Place – Children’s Access-strategies and Exclusions in Play and Conversation The research reported in this thesis attempts to understand what happens when children interact with each other in the context of activities in a pre-school setting (here called Daggkåpan) when adults are not involved. By using ethnographically inspired methodology, in combination with conversation-analysis, this project has been analysing everyday interaction between children who are three to five years old. The aim of the project was to understand how children at Daggkåpan create relationships and how they defend and protect their interactional spaces. I have studied how children shape, maintain and interrupt relationships and interactions with one another. I have studied and analysed what kinds of access-strategies the children utilize and create and also how these children exclude one another in play activities and everyday conversations. Sociocultural and interactionistic perspectives have been used. Findings suggest that it is very important for these children to maintain interactions with peers and gain access to play groups. The children of Daggkåpan create and use several different strategies for gaining access. The results also indicate that gaining access to play groups is particularly difficult in preschool settings since young children tend to protect shared spaces and ongoing play activities from children outside the realms of these spaces and activities. Children also co-construct a number of strategies for excluding peers from their interactional spaces. Steering clear from the dominating perspective that categorizes children and focuses on the individual child, I have in contrast focused children during their interaction with one another in peer group activities. In other words I have discussed peer-relations, peer-socialization and peer-perspectives from an interactional view. Studying peer-interactions through microanalysis allows for understanding what is meaningful for children in their peer-culture in preschool.

Behavior problems are quite common in preschool.  Without effective intervention, children with behavior problems are at risk for rejection by teachers, peers and academic failure. But many children in preschool are not diagnosed and are not getting the support they need. At the age of two, children can show both prosocial and aggressive behavior with peers. Researchers stress the importance of positive peer relationships in childhood, because early childhood is the time children learn how to interact with each other. Through peer interactions children develop social, cognitive and language skills. The aim of this systematic literature review is to identify, and critically analyze, special support in preschool which promote peer interaction of children with behavior problems (age of 2-5 years). Five studies, with different interventions have been found through the search procedure. The results show that all the implemented interventions had positive effect on peer interactions and did reduce behavior problems in the classrooms. The results show that the studies focused on different behavior problems, but aggression was found in all the articles.  The studies were focused on different participants in order to influence behavior problems and peer interactions. Four major groups of special support orientations were found: Teacher oriented support, Team-based oriented support, Peer oriented support and Support oriented toward target children. This review presents a good overview on available special support in preschool settings, however more research still needs to be done.