A study of peer discourse in computer-supported collaborative learning environment

Working with peers at computers may cultivate social interaction but what patterns of student-student talk are associated with statistical thinking in an IT environment are not well studied. An observation study focusing on social interaction was therefore conducted in the context of statistics classroom teaching. It was found that most talk was of the exploratory type, characterised by reasoning and statistical thinking, and only a few instances were classified as cumulative when students were attempting straightforward learning tasks or maintaining harmonious social relations