Gender Effects on Collaborative Learning

Learning is more than a cognitive process. There is also a social dimension to it. Experimental studies have shown that individuals working in groups outperformed those working individually, with the benefit carried over to subsequent individual cognitive development. This has been replicated in tasks across domains, ranging from spatial coordination (Hatano & Inagaki, 1994) to science (Saner, McCaffrey, Stecher, Klein & Bell, 1994) to language (Guerrero, Madariaga, Collazos, Pino & Ochoa, 2005). However, it is important to note that not all peer collaborations are deemed successful. The two major paradigms that sought to explain the underlying mechanism by which peer collaboration benefits cognitive development identified aspects of effective peer interaction. From a Piagetian perspective, the exposure to differed viewpoints from group members of an equal status facilitates learning (Doise & Mugny, 1984). This presence of socio-cognitive conflicts in peer interaction induces a state of disequilibrium, which prompts the individual to resolve the conflict by restructuring understanding, and hence drives the learning process. On the other hand, the social constructionist perspective posited that cooperation, rather than conflicts, enhances an individual’s cognitive development (Vygotsky, 1978). It emphasised the role of inter-subjectivity in learning, whereby individuals with different opinions co-construct a shared meaning through dialogues. Although the two theories held different positions, both highlighted the importance of a critical discussion of multiple perspectives through interacting with peers in learning (Kruger, 1993). Nevertheless, this interactional process that is imperative to collaborative learning is dependent on the individuals’ behavioural dynamics, which could be guided by the child’s gender (Leman, 2010). Although research has supported that males and females communicate differently in a group context (Wood, 1987), inconsistent findings have been found about which gender benefits more from collaborative learning. This essay seeks to highlight the importance of other individual differences and contextual factors that can interact with gender in moderating the quality of the peer interaction process through the influence on the child’s behaviours, and hence the subsequent learning outcome from collaboration.

Gendered communication styles were exhibited as early as in young childhood, and its relationship with cognitive development in a collaboration context seemed to benefit boys more than girls. For instance, boys were found to use significantly more assertive language, whereas girls used significantly more affiliative language (Leaper & Smith, 2004; Leman, Skipper, Watling & Rutland, 2016). This gender difference in communication style affected the conversation dynamics, where boys’ assertive interactions elicited more disagreements. According to Piaget, boys should therefore experience