Supporting metacognitive talk during collaborative problem solving: a case study in Scottish primary school mathematics

Abstract

This small-scale study explored the presence of collaborative metacognitive talk (CMT) during collaborative problem solving (CPS) in a Scottish primary mathematics class. Content analysis was conducted on student and teacher group interactions during CPS (n = 12 students in 3 groups × 3 sessions). The largest proportion of CMT was teacher–student, suggesting the use of a dyadic teaching approach between teacher and student as opposed to the teacher facilitating student–student CMT. A teacher focus group provided some tentative explanations as to why the dyadic approach might be adopted over a facilitative role to support student–student CMT, including focussing on strategy use, school culture around CPS, and teacher beliefs about learners’ abilities. Implications for practice are discussed.