Effects of Changing Study Partners on Pair Learning

Abstract

This paper reports preliminary findings about the effects of changing study partners in pair learning. We hypothesize that the number of study partners, frequency of changing study partners and the amount of interaction between study partners can influence pair learning enjoyment, which in turn affects the effectiveness of pair learning. In our study, we also explored the effects of perceived usefulness of pair learning on enjoyment. Despite a lack of statistically significant evidence, our observation suggests that it is imperative for educators to consider, when designing and planning pair learning activities, giving students some degree of autonomy (freedom) in determining the number of study partners and frequency of changing partners.