Strengthening discourse - intensive pedagogical practices : the utility of peer-facilitated small-group discussions to develop critical-analytic thinking

Abstract

Evidence-based research acknowledges the current shift in pedagogical practices from the conventional teacher-centred approaches to the collaborative, discourse-intensive practices that promote critical-analytic thinking in students. Among the discourse-intensive pedagogical practices, the use of small-group discussions has proved to be one of those most successful. The Sociocultural Theory from Vygotsky was employed to gain insight into interventions that enabled education in schools in challenged spaces by describing how peer-facilitation partnered in developing discourse-intensive pedagogical practices through the use of small-group English discussions. The interventions aimed to improve critical-analytic thinking in students in a remote South African rural secondary school, using discourse elements from the Quality Talk study as a model. A qualitative interpretive methodology was deployed to understand how peer-facilitation in small-group, text-based English discussions enriches teaching and learning. Classroom observations and interviews were used to collect data from one purposively selected rural secondary school. The participants included Grade 8 and 9 English teachers (n=2), two control groups of students (n=92 students), two intervention groups of students (n=94 students) from English classes, and peer-facilitators (n=13). Data was coded and analysed using qualitative thematic analysis. The findings indicate that higher student-talk and higher-level cognitive engagement through the use of discourse elements authenticated: (1) The use of peer-facilitation small-group discussions; and (2) the use of home language as scaffolding through code-switching as students co-constructively made-meaning of the English text under discussion. The trained peer-facilitators making use of the Quality Talk model succeeded in drawing most of the group members into active participation in class discussions. The current study highlights the salient role of peer-facilitation in enhancing participation in discourse-intensive small-group, text-based English discussions that develop high-level, critical-analytic thinking in students. Insights from this study can be used to improve English proficiency and the overall academic performance of students in a way that lessens the achievement gap between rural secondary school students and their urban counterparts. It is recommended that peer-facilitated small-group discussions be implemented across the curriculum in resource-constrained school settings and that code-switching be used as a resource for scaffolding students’ learning English as a second language.