FACILITATING LANGUAGE-FOCUSED COOPERATIVE LEARNING IN INTRODUCTORY STATISTICS CLASSROOMS: A CASE STUDY

Abstract

With the GAISE emphasis on prioritising concept development over mathematical calculation in statistics education, statistical language has increasingly become the focus of research. Yet, there is a dearth of research investigating techniques to teach statistical language. To redress this gap, we introduced a group of statistics tutors to some cooperative learning techniques commonly used to teach language and concepts in other disciplines (Jigsaw and Think-Pair-Share). The twofold aim was to
explore the tutors’ uptake of the techniques and how to improve their proficiency in implementing the techniques. The techniques were delivered experientially with tutors through a professional development session followed by implementation of the techniques in their tutorials. A semester-long exploratory case study was conducted using surveys, focus group sessions and shared self-reflection on a digital discussion board. From the tutors’ reported experience and feedback, areas for improvement in the implementation of the techniques were identified, pertaining to the effectiveness of the techniques, expectations of teacher and student roles in learning, and classroom management. Plans for addressing these areas for improvement in future studies are presented, which include enhancing the professional development and adding in-class mentoring of tutors.

First published November 2018 at Statistics Education Research Journal Archives