The effect of talk and writing on learning science: An exploratory study

This study investigated the role of talk and writing on learning science. The purpose was to explore the effect of talk, writing, and talk and writing on the learning and retention of simple and integrated knowledge, and to describe the mechanisms by which talk and writing mediate these processes. Forty-three students were randomly assigned to four groups, all stratified for gender and ability. At intervals during an instructional unit, three treatment groups received problem tasks that involved constructing scientific explanations for real-world applications of ecological concepts. A control group received simpler descriptive tasks based on similar content. Students in the talk-only treatment group (T) discussed the problem tasks in small peer groups. Students in the writing-only treatment group (W) individually wrote responses for each of the tasks, but without first talking to other students. Students in the combined talk and writing treatment group (TW) discussed the problems in groups prior to individually writing their explanations. Dependent variables included simple, integrated, and total knowledge scores based on multiple-choice tests, essay questions, and concept maps obtained at three timepoints during the study: a pretest; an immediate posttest; and a delayed posttest. Records of student talk and writing were also analyzed to describe the mechanisms involved. The findings suggest that talk is important for sharing, clarifying, and distributing knowledge among peers, while asking questions, hypothesizing, explaining, and formulating ideas together are all important mechanisms during peer discussions. Analytical writing is an important tool for transforming rudimentary ideas into knowledge that is more coherent and structured. Furthermore, talk combined with writing appears to enhance the retention of science learning over time. Moreover, gender and ability may be important mediating variables that determine the effectiveness of talk and writing for enhancing learning. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Sci Ed 84:566–593, 2000.