Metapragmatic Awareness of Explanation Adequacy II

Abstract

Kaufman, Prelock, Weiler, Creaghead, and Donnelly (1994) showed that third-grade students improved in metapragmatic awareness immediately following training. However, training is only effective if it results in long-term changes. The present study reexamined 24 of the original 32 students in the Kaufman et al. study 6 months following intervention. Two groups of students, those who had participated in a collaborative, classroom-based communication skills unit (CSU) and those who had not, were asked to rate the adequacy of explanations modeled on videotape by children solving math problems and to provide a justification for their ratings. Results showed that students who had received training 6 months earlier maintained their understanding of the inadequacy of providing only the answer when explaining math problems. Some change also occurred for the untrained students, in that their understanding of the inadequacy of providing only the answer improved from third to fourth grade. Their level of understanding, however, did not surpass and was typically less than that of students who had received training. Results of the current study lend further support to training metapragmatic skills in the classroom, where students can apply their knowledge to enhance their academic and social learning.