CLASS DYNAMICS Peer Relationships
Student-to-student dynamics has been one of the most encouraging surprises we have found in the interactive classroom. Working on-line in groups seems to facilitate a new level of ease and openness among students workshopping essays, traditionally a difficult class dynamic for many instructors to maneuver. Students also find group and class discussion flowing more freely as they debate on line the issues raised by the assigned reading and sites they find on their own. In addition, variance in students’ prior exposure to computer technology affects the dynamics in the classroom community: There appears to be an increase in peer assistance and camaraderie involving the sharing of computer expertise. These new and encouraging levels of peer assistance occur not only in the computer lab but also in the traditional classroom setting, where we meet about the half time for face-to-face discussions, and even in after-hours sessions the students plan for themselves.
Presenter: Genie Davis
Category: Classroom practice
Target Audience: Not Applicable
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