Abstract:

In this work, an experiment was carried out consisting in studying teacher-student interaction during a problem-solving lesson of the Bachelor’s Degree of Primary Education, in order to identify the interaction styles (Verschaffell, Greer and De Corte, 2000; Turner et al., 2002) and the patterns of discussion (Wells, 2001), as well as to see their influences when it comes to presenting and solving problems correctly.

Ten students in the Bachelor’s Degree of Primary Education, who had received previous training in the application of heuristic problem-solving methods, and one novice teacher, participated in the study. From the data collected, the different interaction cycles, understood as the communication between individuals from the time the initial question is proposed until a solution is reached on the problem (Rosales, Vicente, Chamoso, Muñez, and Orrantia, 2012), were analysed. It has been observed that the predominant pattern of discussion is the IRF (Initiation-Response-Feedback) resulting in greater participation by the students in the discussion. The difficulty of the problem influences the participation of the students (the more difficult the problem, the less participation and vice versa) and the interaction styles used (with simple problems the style was non-invasive and genuine, encouraging feedback among the students themselves, and more superficial and invasive when the problems increased in difficulty, with little student participation) and, as a consequence, the way in which they understand problem-solving. As in Schoenfeld, Minstrell and Van Zee (1999), who made a comparison between an experienced and a novice teacher, when the novice teacher observed that the students did not solve the problem, and the discussion was non-productive, the problem was solved by the teacher.

References:
[1] Rosales, J., Vicente, S., Chamoso, J. M., Muñez, D., & Orrantia, J. (2012). Teacher-student interaction in joint Word problem solving. The role of situational and mathematical knowledge in mainstream classrooms. Teaching and Teacher Education, 28, 1185-1195.
[2] Schoenfeld, A. H., Minstrell, J., & Van Zee, E. (1999). The detailed analysis of an established teacher's non-traditional lesson. The Journal of Mathematical Behavior, 18(3), 281-325.
[3] Turner, J. C., Midgley, C., Meyer, D. K., Gheen, M., Anderman, E. M., Kang, Y., & Patrick, H. (2002). The classroom environment and students' reports of avoidance strategies in mathematics: A multimethod study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 94 (1), 88.
[4] Verschaffel, L., Greer, B., & De Corte, E. (2000). Making sense of Word problems. The Netherlands: Swets & Zeitlinger Publishers.
Wells, G. (Ed.). (2001). Action, talk, and text: Learning and teaching through inquiry. New York: Teachers College Press.

Keywords:

Discourse, interaction, feedback, problem-solving, non-routine problems.