Writing on the wall: How the use of technology can open dialogical spaces in lectures

Behind the scenes: Unpacking student discussion and critical reflection in lectures

“…In three previous studies based on survey and interviews from the same course (Krumsvik & Ludvigsen, 2012;Ludvigsen, Krumsvik, & Furnes, 2015;Ludvigsen, Ness, & Timmis et al, 2019), students claimed that the quality of the discussions had improved, compared to discussions without the support of a student response system. The reason for this was that the alternatives in the questions posed helped structure the discussion, and the fact that they had to submit a response made the activities felt more authentic than discussions that did not require a response (Krumsvik & Ludvigsen, 2012).…”

“…One student explained: “I notice that I cannot answer the questions until I discuss them out loud […] You argue with someone about why [your ideas] are right, and then suddenly you find arguments for why it is right and why it is wrong” (Ane) (Ludvigsen et al , 2015, p. 47). The act of explaining to a peer is a way of explaining their perspectives to themselves: “Even though you remember the words, then you should explain it to others, then they ask what it means, and then you realise that you did not know, then you notice” (S3) (Ludvigsen et al , 2019, p. 11). Articulating their thinking through explanations to their peers helps students to reflect on their learning, as stated by another student: “I can sit and read or hear and believe that I understand these things.…”

A network approach to teachers’ interactional management in whole-class discussions

“…Research has illustrated the potential of digital technology to facilitate various forms of participation and student engagement with content in school subjects (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine 2018). Microblogging is one specific technology that has demonstrated promising advantages for affecting the dynamics of communication through its transformation of interactional logic (Ludvigsen, Ness and Timmis 2019). However, there is scarce knowledge of how such technology can function as a co-mediator in supporting the realisation of student voices in classroom discussions on science education topics that are perceived as sensitive.…”

A Guide to Student-active Online Learning in Engineering

“…Online collaborative whiteboards (e.g., flinga.fi, padlet, etc. ), where students can post ideas or questions or reflect on concepts in real time to support peer or whole-class discussions, have been shown to create an informal atmosphere that encourages students to ask more questions, and also to create a sense of social connectedness between students as reported in Ludvigsen et al (2019). These collaborative whiteboards may be particularly important for larger groups, and especially if there are few social relations between students from before.…”