ERIC Number: EJ1103293
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0950-0693
EISSN: N/A
Individual to Collaborative: Guided Group Work and the Role of Teachers in Junior Secondary Science Classrooms
Fung, Dennis; Lui, Wai-mei
International Journal of Science Education, v38 n7 p1057-1076 2016
This paper, through discussion of a teaching intervention at two secondary schools in Hong Kong, demonstrates the learning advancement brought about by group work and dissects the facilitating role of teachers in collaborative discussions. One-hundred and fifty-two Secondary Two (Grade 8) students were divided into three pedagogical groups, namely "whole-class teaching", "self-directed group work" and "teacher-supported group work" groups, and engaged in peer-review, team debate, group presentation and reflection tasks related to a junior secondary science topic (i.e. current electricity). Pre- and post-tests were performed to evaluate students' scientific conceptions, alongside collected written responses and audio-recorded discussions. The results indicate that students achieved greater cognitive growth when they engaged in cooperative learning activities, the interactive and multi-sided argumentative nature of which is considered to apply particularly well to science education and Vygotsky's zone of proximal development framework. Group work learning is also found to be most effective when teachers play a role in navigating students during the joint construction of conceptual knowledge.
Descriptors: Teacher Role, Science Instruction, Science Education, Group Activities, Energy, Physics, Foreign Countries, Secondary School Science, Pretests Posttests, Scientific Concepts, Group Discussion, Science Teachers, Science Curriculum, Control Groups, Experimental Groups, Quasiexperimental Design, Achievement Tests, Elementary Secondary Education, International Assessment, Mathematics Achievement, Mathematics Tests, Science Achievement, Science Tests, Secondary School Students, Secondary School Teachers, Constructivism (Learning), Secondary Schools, Grade 8, Statistical Analysis
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education; Elementary Secondary Education; Grade 4; Intermediate Grades; Elementary Education; Grade 8; Junior High Schools; Middle Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Hong Kong
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A