Description:

Co-Principal Investigators:Soter, Anna; Murphy, P. Karen

Purpose: In this project, the researchers proposed to identify which types of communication during group discussion enhance grade 4 and 6 students' high-level comprehension and develop instructional approaches and necessary supporting materials to facilitate the use of group discussion to improve such comprehension and, ultimately, reading comprehension.

In the early 2000s, research suggested that students often lacked the necessary skills to comprehend complex text. A primary goal of reading instruction in upper elementary school at the time was to foster the development of these skills. Although there was not consensus as to the best way to foster the development of these high-level comprehension skills, one promising instructional tool thought to foster critical, reflective thinking about text was group discussion. Thus, the researchers proposed to synthesize converging evidence on the use of group discussions to promote high-level comprehension of text and to advance understanding of how teachers can implement discussions and assess their effects in ways that are address instructional goals.

Structured Abstract

THE FOLLOWING CONTENT DESCRIBES THE PROJECT AT THE TIME OF FUNDING

The specific objectives of the project are to

1. develop a conceptual framework to help teachers understand different approaches to conducting group discussions of text
2. examine evidence of the effects of different approaches to conducting group discussions, including estimation of the magnitude of effects and analysis of indicators of quality discussions
3. implement a professional development program for teachers to facilitate quality discussions
4. develop tools for assessing individual students' cognitive and affective processes during discussions as well as their higher-level responses to texts

The researchers will complete three activities. First, they will synthesize research on group discussions designed to promote high-level comprehension of text. Second, they will validate and extend the findings from the synthesis by evaluating the discussion approaches on a common set of discourse features known to characterize 'quality' discussions. Finally, the research team will use the conceptual framework and model of group discussion, derived from the research synthesis and discourse analysis of 'quality' discussions, in an experimental design to examine teachers' implementations of this model in grade 4 and 6 language arts and other content area classrooms, and they will examine tools for assessing the impact of discussion on students' high-level comprehension of text.

Related IES Projects: Dialogic Teaching: Professional Development in Classroom Discussion to Improve Students' Argument Literacy (R305A120634) and Quality Talk: Developing Students' Discourse to Promote Critical-Analytic Thinking, Epistemic Cognition, and High-Level Comprehension (R305A130031)

Products and Publications

ERIC Citations: Find available citations in ERIC for this award here.

Select Publications:

Book chapters

Soter, A.O. (2007). The Use of Discussion as a Pedagogical Tool in the University Context. In J. Donnermeyer (Ed.), Talking About Teaching: Essays by Members of the Ohio State University Academy of Teaching (pp. 30–43). Columbus, Oh: Ohio State University Academy of Teaching.

Soter, A.O. (2008). Engaging Readers: Variations on Reader Response. In A.O Soter, M. Faust, and T. Rogers (Eds.), Interpretive Play: Using Critical Perspectives to Teach Young Adult Literature (pp. 33–36). Norwood, MA: Christopher-Gordon Publishers.

Wilkinson, I.A.G. (2009). Discussion Methods. In E.M., Anderman, and L.H., Anderman (Eds.), Psychology of Classroom Learning: An Encyclopedia (pp. 330–336). Detroit, MI: Gale Cengage.

Wilkinson, I.A.G., and Hye Son, E. (2009). Questioning. In E.M. Anderman, and L.H. Anderman (Eds.), Psychology of Classroom Learning: An Encyclopedia(pp. 723–728). Detroit, MI: Gale Cengage.

Wilkinson, I.A.G., Soter, A.O., and Murphy, P.K. (2010). Developing a Model of Quality Talk About Literary Text. In M.G. McKeown, and L. Kucan (Eds.), Bringing Reading Research to Life: Essays in Honor of Isabel L. Beck (pp. 142–169). New York: Guilford Press.

Journal articles

Murphy, P.K. (2007). The Eye of the Beholder: The Interplay of Social and Cognitive Components in Change. Educational Psychologist, 42(1): 41–53.

Murphy, P.K., Wilkinson, I.A.G., Soter, A.O., Hennessey, M.N., and Alexander, J.F. (2009). Examining the Effects of Classroom Discussion on Students' Comprehension of Text: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 101(3): 740–764.

Soter, A.O., Connors, S., and Rudge, L. (2008). Use of a Coding Manual When Providing a Meta-Interpretation of Internal-Validity Mechanisms and Demographic Data Used in Qualitative Research. Journal of Ethnographic and Qualitative Research, 2: 269–280.

Soter, A.O., Wilkinson, I.A.G., Murphy, P.K., Rudge, L., Reninger, K., and Edwards, M. (2008). What the Discourse Tells Us: Talk and Indicators of High-Level Comprehension. International Journal of Educational Research, 47(6): 372–391.