How student discussions during group work influence learners' performance when doing a Department of Education prescribed life sciences activity.

[摘要] The aim of this research project was to examine how group discussions influencestudent performance in a DoE prescribed Life Sciences activity. The researchmethodology draws on collaborative group work and learner oriented assessmentframeworks. The case study was conducted in a suburban high school in southGauteng. Students were explicitly taught collaborative group work skills. Asgroup work discussions are dependent on subject content knowledge, studentswere required to complete the assessment activity individually first. Studentswere placed in groups of four or five that were academically heterogeneous, in anattempt to encourage robust discussions. Following group work discussionsstudents completed a final write up of the assessment activity. Findings from theresearch showed a statistically significant improvement in the mean pre groupwork assessment score to the post group work assessment score. All studentswere found to interact in a co-regulated way in that all were active participants.Each group had at least one member who was a hitch hiker. This student wasunprepared and was the most disengaged and passive throughout the group work.The hitch hiker tended to have the lowest post group work activity score for theirgroup. The student whose post group work activity score was the highest was theone who was the most prepared and except for a student whose home languagewas not the LOLT all others were the most active in their groups. Studentdiscussions were dependent on subject content knowledge. Where subject contentknowledge was sound, discussions resulted in cognitive conflict allowing for thesocial construction of knowledge. Poor content knowledge resulted in discussionswhich left students confused and seeking help from the teacher. Whilst moststudents perceived the group work to improve their understanding of the work,the heterogeneity of the groups was raised as a concern by a hitch hiker andstudents who obtained the highest post group work assessment scores. Thehitchhiker in one of the groups perceived that she was not taken seriously, whilstthe high academic achievers felt that they were providing information to studentswho were not well prepared. Most students valued the group work activity andrecommended its use for future Grade 11 Life Sciences students.

[发布机构] University of the Witwatersrand