Shaping classroom social experiences through collaborative small‐group discussions

Abstract

Background. Students form interpersonal and intrapersonal classroom social experiences with peers. While diverse intervention programmes have been developed, few have integrated social-emotional learning into academic activities to maximize the potential for learning and development.Aims. This study examined the effects of collaborative small-group discussions on students' classroom social experiences at the interpersonal and intrapersonal levels.Sample. The study included 250 students (M age = 10.98, female = 52%) and six teachers from 12 English language arts fifth-grade classrooms in two public schools in the United States.Methods. Students were assigned to one of three conditions: Collaborative Social Reasoning (CSR), Read-Aloud (RA), or Regular Instruction (RI). Students in the CSR condition participated in recurrent collaborative small-group discussions about stories related to complex social-moral issues, including friendship, social exclusion, ethics of care, and responsibility. Students in the RA condition read the same stories without discussions.Results. Collaborative Social Reasoning students were more socially accepted by peers and were less aggressive to others compared to students in the other conditions. RA students revealed more aggressive behaviour than other groups. In a post-intervention interview, CSR students reported improved communication and group work strategies, ability to maintain harmonious relationships, and class participation. A higher proportion of CSR students in the CSR than the other conditions reported experiencing positive change in classroom relationships. Teacher interviews were used in conjunction with student interviews to triangulate conclusions from qualitative interview data. Conclusion.Findings suggest effective ways to structure collaborative small-group discussions to foster positive classroom social experiences with peers.

How Do Children Socially Learn from Narrative Fiction: Getting the Lesson, Simulating Social Worlds, or Dialogic Inquiry?

“…Nonetheless, if teachers successfully balance the cognitive and social dimensions of group dialogues, they not only support the development of students' social reasoning, but also their interpersonal negotiation strategies, which transfer to children's social life in the classroom. Accordingly, Lin et al (2021) showed that compared with children in the control group (read-aloud and regular instruction), children participating in the CSR group were accepted more by peers and showed less peernominated aggressive behavior.…”

“…Collaborative Social Reasoning (CSR) (Lin et al, 2019(Lin et al, , 2021) is a six-week literary program that includes six to ten discussions about narrative fictional texts. The texts address provocative questions about friendships, social exclusion, ethics of care, and responsibility that should invite controversial discussions around a "big question."…”

The Development of Early Adolescents’ Social Perspective Taking Through Small-Group Discussion

“…Collaborative Social Reasoning (Lin et al, 2019, 2022) is a peer-centered small group dialogic approach informed by the literature on Collaborative Reasoning (Chinn et al, 2001; Reznitskaya et al, 2009). The CSR approach provides an ideal context to examine the links between collaborative dialogue and individuals’ SPT as an internalized ability because it has been found to promote individuals’ positive social experiences and social reasoning (Lin et al, 2019, 2022), both of which are positive correlates of SPT development (Batanova & Loukas, 2011; Kim et al, 2023; Smith & Rose, 2011). The design of CSR involves three theoretical and research-driven features aimed at creating collaborative, reciprocal, and supportive social contexts to facilitate SPT.…”

A comparison of flipped learning with traditional learning (face-to-face) in large calculus courses: The effects on students’ achievement and cognitive engagement

“…Each student's ability to learn and interact with educators is influenced by their personality, family backgrounds, mental processes, learning styles, priorities, maturity levels, and academic ambitions (Tucker, 2021). Social constructivist theories suggest that learning is effective when students feel they are part of a community of positively interacting peers who learn from and with each other (Lin et al, 2021). Discussion with peers is critical to student learning and improves comprehension and engagement in various settings (Cazden, 2001).…”

“…Discussion with peers is critical to student learning and improves comprehension and engagement in various settings (Cazden, 2001). Through peer discussion in the classroom, students have the opportunity to jointly use their interpersonal and intrapersonal thinking skills to improve collective and individual learning (Lin et al, 2021). Effective classroom discussion provides important opportunities for students to practice social and emotional skills, including communicating effectively and disagreeing respectfully.…”