Exploring epistemic agency in students’ problem-solving activities

Abstract

This case study presents an exploration of epistemic agency in a middle school context. The main focus of this study was to identify and characterize the actions indicative of epistemic agency that emerged in student interactions. The study was conducted with sixth graders. Data were collected from multiple sources including records of student participation in the classroom and in the virtual space, student-created artifacts, and non-participant observations. A qualitative data analysis was conducted to identify actions indicative of epistemic agency. The findings showed that eleven actions emerged in students’ activities: generating new ideas, revising ideas, negotiating new ideas, sharing ideas, sharing data/information, drawing on other group’s ideas, drawing on other groups’ data/findings, collecting additional information, engaging in shared construction of data collection instruments, examining research data–seeking support for ideas, and creating a joint plan of actions. Future research identified by this study suggests further investigations of the interactional processes that may reveal key actions that trigger subsequent actions.