ABSTRACT. This article addresses the issue of helping students who work collaboratively on mathematical problems with the aim of raising the level of their mathematical understanding and competence. We investigated two kinds of teacher interventions aimed at helping students. The rationale of these interventions was based on a process model for interaction and mathematical level raising. One kind of interventions focused on the interaction between the students, the other -on the mathematical content of the tasks. The effects of the two kinds of interventions were investigated using a pre-test -posttest comparison of students' learning outcomes and analyzing the transcripts of students' verbal utterances and worksheets. Our analyses point to interventions focused on students' interactions as more effective in terms of students' learning outcomes. Theoretical and practical implications of the research are discussed.

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Students from 11 to 12 years old were invited to derive the meaning of five unknown words, each embedded in three contexts. We focused on the students' proficiency in three activities: decontextualization of the target word meanings from the contexts (decontextualization), testing initial ideas about the word meanings with subsequent contexts (cumulative testing), and formulating dictionarylike definitions (defining). We compared eight students of high and eight students of low verbal ability. The students were led individually through the process of deriving the meaning of the target words, while thinking aloud. The study showed that even young students of low verbal ability are capable of performing meaning-derivation activities that are in general ascribed to mature students of high verbal ability.

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How children regulate their own collaborative learningDekker, R.; Elshout-Mohr, M.; Wood, T. Disclaimer/Complaints regulationsIf you believe that digital publication of certain material infringes any of your rights or (privacy) interests, please let the Library know, stating your reasons. In case of a legitimate complaint, the Library will make the material inaccessible and/or remove it from the website. Please Ask the Library: http://uba.uva.nl/en/contact, or a letter to: Library of the University of Amsterdam, Secretariat, Singel 425, 1012 WP Amsterdam, The Netherlands. You will be contacted as soon as possible. In this article we analyze the dialogic learning of one pair of students in order to investigate how these students cope with a collaborative learning situation in the classroom. Our aim is to substantiate the claims that not only are young students (8 year olds) capable of solving mathematical problems collaboratively, but that they also take an active role in regulating their collaborative learning activities. More specifically, our claim is that children appear to apply constructs of 'mathematical level raising', 'social interaction' and 'division of time' to steer their own collaborative learning and that they are rather successful in balancing these three aspects. The analysis is exploratory, but this new perspective on collaborative learning is relevant theoretically and consequential for classroom practice.

In expository texts, examples are indispensable. The findings suggest that main ideas are useful, and, in order to prevent interference effects, the more so when they are put at the end of sections.

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