This study investigates how structured Mediated Learning Experiences may improve peer-cooperative communication within problem-solving task exercises. Two groups (n = 22) of Year 8 students (mean age 13 +/− 5 months) were randomly selected to participate in this study. The study began with two one-hour sessions of activity-based problem-solving tasks for the control and experimental groups. These sessions were coded for on and off-task communication. The experimental group then participated in a Mediated Learning Experience (MLE) focusing on building trust, effective communication and pro-social behaviour. Following the MLE, a one-hour problem-solving exercise for the collection of data related to on- and off-task communication was conducted for both the control and experimental groups. Results demonstrate that cooperative group on-task communication can be effectively influenced, both intra-group and inter-group, implying that the success associated with cooperative learning may be enhanced by first teaching students how to cooperate.
AmesG. J.MurrayF. B. (1982). When two wrongs make a right: Promoting cognitive change by social conflict. Developmental Psychology, 18(6), 894–897.
2.
AuthorJ., (2005). The re-emergence of character education in British education policy. British Journal of Educational Studies, 53, 239–254.
3.
BarkleyR. A. (1997). Behavioral inhibition sustained, attention, and executive functions: Constructing a unifying theory of ADHD. Psychological Bulletin, 121, 65–94.
4.
BarronB. (2000a). Achieving coordination in cooperative problem-solving groups. The Journal of the Learning Sciences, 9(4), 403–436.
5.
BarronB. (2000b). Problem solving in video-based microworlds: Cooperative and individual outcomes of high-achieving sixth-grade students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 92(2), 391–398.
6.
Brooks-GunnJ.BerlinL. J.LeventhalT.FuligniA. (2000). Depending on kindness of strangers: Current national data initiatives and developmental research. Child Development, 71, 257–267.
7.
BrunerJ. S. (1966). Toward a theory of instruction, Cambridge, MA: Belkapp Press.
8.
BrunerJ. S. (1971). The relevance of education, New York: Norton.
9.
ChiM. T. H. (1996). Constructing self-explanations and scaffolded explanations in tutoring. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 10(Spec Issue), S33–S49.
10.
CobbP.WoodT.YackelE. (1993). Discourse, mathematical thinking, and classroom practice. In FormanE.MinickN.StoneC. (Eds.) Education and mind: Institutional, social, and developmental processes (pp. 91–119). New York: Oxford University Press.
11.
CohenE. G. (1994). Restructuring the classroom: Conditions for productive small groups. Review of Educational Research, 64, 1–35.
12.
CohenJ. A. (1960). Coefficient of agreement for nominal scales. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 20, 37–46.
13.
DillenbourgP. (1999). What do you mean “cooperative learning”? In DillenbourgP. (Ed.), Cooperative learning: Cognitive and computational approaches (pp. 1–19). Oxford: Elsevier.
14.
DiPernaJ. C.ElliottS. N. (1999). The development and validation of the Academic Competence Evaluation Scales. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 17, 207–225.
15.
FormanE. A.CazdenC. B. (1985). Exploring Vygotskian perspectives in education: The cognitive value of peer interaction. In WertschJ. W. (Ed.), Culture, communication, and cognition (pp. 323–347). New York: Wiley.
16.
GoodT. L.ReysB. J.GrouwsD. A.MulryanC. M. (1990). Using work groups in mathematics instruction. Educational Leadership, 47(4), 56–62.
17.
HillG. W. (1982). Group versus individual performance: Are N + 1 heads better than one?Psychological Bulletin, 91(3), 517–539.
18.
HinshawS. P. (1992). Externalizing Behaviour problems and academic under-achievement in childhood and adolescence: Causal relationships and underlying mechanisms. Psychological Bulletin, 111, 127–155.
19.
HoganK.NastasiB. K.PressleyM. (1999). Discourse patterns and cooperative scientific reasoning in peer and teacher-guided discussions. Cognition and Instruction, 17(4), 379–432.
20.
JohnsonD. W.JohnsonR. T. (1992). Positive interdependence: Key to effective cooperation. In Hertz-LazarowitzR.MillerN. (Eds.), Interaction in cooperative groups: The theoretical anatomy of group learning (pp. 174–199). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
21.
KneserC.PloetznerR. (2001). Cooperation on the basis of complementary domain knowledge: Observed dialogue structures and their relation to learning success. Learning and Instruction, 11, 53–83.
22.
KozulinA. (1990). Vygotsky's psychology: A biography of ideas. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
23.
KozulinA. (2000). Diversity of instrumental enrichment applications. In KozulinA.RandY. (Eds.), Experience of mediated learning: An impact of Feuerstein's theory in education and psychology. (pp. 257–273) Oxford: Pergamon.
24.
MaherN. (1995). The guided construction of knowledge: Talk amongst teachers and learners. Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.
25.
MaleckiC. K.DemarayM. K.ElliottS. N. (2000). The child and adolescent social support scale. DeKalb: Northern Illinois University.
26.
MillerS. A.BrownellC. A. (1975). Peers, persuasion, and Piaget: Dyadic interaction between conservers and nonconservers. Child Development, 46, 992–997.
27.
MillsC. W. (1959). The sociological imagination. New York: Oxford University Press.
28.
PhelpsE.DamonW. (1989). Problem solving with equals: Peer cooperation as a context for learning mathematics and spatial concepts. Journal of Educational Psychology, 81, 639–646.
29.
RonkeK. (1989). Silver bullets: A guide to initiative problems, adventure games and trust activities. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt.
30.
SchwartzB. B.NeumanY.BiezunerS. (2000). Two wrongs may make a right … if they argue!Cognition and Instruction, 18(4), 461–494.
31.
SlavinR. E. (1990). Cooperative learning: Theory, research, and practice. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
32.
TeasleyS. D.RoschelleJ. (1993). Constructing a joint problem space: The computer as a tool for sharing knowledge. In LajoieS. P.DerryS. J. (Eds.), The computer as a cognitive tool (pp. 229–258). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
33.
TudgeJ. (1989). When cooperation leads to regression: Some negative consequences of sociocognitive conflict. European Journal of Social Psychology, 19, 123–138.
34.
VygotskyL. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological Processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
35.
WebbN. M.PalincsarA. S. (1996). Group processes in the classroom. In BerlinerD. C.CalfeeR. C. (Eds.), Handbook of educational psychology (pp. 841–873). New York: Macmillan Library Reference USA; London, UK: Prentice Hall International.
36.
WentzelK. R.AsherS. R. (1995). The academic lives of neglected, rejected, popular, and controversial children. Child Development, 66, 754–763.
37.
ZinsJ.WeissbergR. P.WangM. C.WalbergH. J. (2004). Building academic success on social and emotional learning. New York: Teachers College Press.
