An inquiry into a group of five-to-six-year-old children's negotiated meaning in problem solving

By making sense of children’s discourses, this paper draws up what socially shared cognition looks like in the real preschool classroom context. The findings reveal that children as a group can strive to a negotiated resolution in problem-solving activity. Socially shared cognition takes place in an ongoing process through which children make sense of a shared experience. One of the forms of socially shared cognition is children playing primary roles in cognitive activities in the reciprocal approach. Children take turns to express themselves in adjustment to other’s perspective. Shifts of perspective leading to the shifts of discussion focus are distinguished in the course of children’s participation in the sense-making experiences. Apart from the notable illustration of the dynamics out of the interactive process, the influence of natural line development is also recognized to be important for learning. Further study on the nature and relationship of the social and natural lines of development are vital for understanding of children’s development. Copyright © 2005 Korean Society for Early Childhood Education.