Thinking, Interthinking, and Technological Tools

Knight, Simon and Littleton, Karen (2015). Thinking, Interthinking, and Technological Tools. In: Wegerif, Rupert; Li, Li and Kaufman, James C. eds. The Routledge International Handbook of Research on Teaching Thinking. Routledge International Handbooks of Education. Abingdon, New York: Routledge, pp. 467–478.

URL: http://www.routledge.com/books/details/97804157474...

Abstract

Language use is widely regarded as an important indicator of high quality learning and reasoning ability. Yet this masks an irony: language is fundamentally a social, collaborative tool, yet despite the widespread recognition of its importance in relation to learning, the role of dialogue is undervalued in learning contexts. In this chapter we argue that to see language as only a tool for individual thought presents a limited view of its transformative power. This power, we argue, lies in the ways in which dialogue is used to interthink – that is, to think together, to build knowledge co-constructively through our shared understanding. Technology can play an important role in resourcing thinking through the provision of information, and support to provide a space to think alone. It can moreover provide significant support for learners to build shared representations together, particularly through giving learners access to a wealth of ‘given’ inter-related texts which resource the co-construction of knowledge.

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