Knowledge co-construction activities and task-related monitoring in scripted collaborative learning

Abstract This study explores teacher education students' knowledge co-construction activities, task-related monitoring and script use in collaborative learning situations. The specific aims are to investigate how students engage in knowledge co-construction activities and to compare task-related monitoring and script use in groups with active and passive knowledge co-construction. The participants of this study were five small groups of teacher education students (N = 19); collaborative learning in these groups was supported with a designed script for regulation of learning over a six-weeks environmental science course. The data was collected by videotaping the groups' face-to-face interaction, and analysed by focusing on verbalised knowledge co-construction activities, task-related monitoring and script use. The results show that there were differences in the quantity and quality of knowledge co-construction activities, task-related monitoring and script use between the groups. Compared to groups with more passive knowledge co-construction, the group with more active knowledge co-construction also showed more task-related monitoring, particularly monitoring of content understanding, and more thorough use of the script for supporting their learning. Based on the findings, it was concluded that qualitative differences between groups in collaborative learning extend from differences in knowledge co-construction activities to differences in monitoring processes and the use of script.