Patterns of Experience Talk and Argumentation in Digital Peer Learning Discussions

Abstract

This article focuses on the usage of experience talk in asynchronous digital learning discussions. In particular, experience talk is analyzed in relation to argumentative practices. The data come from an online university course, Academic Writing in Finnish, that was situated in the e-learning space Moodle. Methodologically, the study combines conversation analysis with methods of technology-mediated communication. Experience talk is examined both on the single-turn level and on the inter-turn level, as part of the sequential turn-by-turn process of argumentation. The results show that in single turns, experience talk is constructed in three ways that can be placed on a continuum with regard to their degree of narrativity: 1) minimal narratives, 2) descriptions of singular or recurrent experiences, and 3) interpretations of experiences. At the narrative end of the continuum the experience and the argument are clearly separate in the turn, while at the non-narrative end they are closely intertwined. On the inter-turn level, experiences are co-constructed in ways that accomplish agreement as well as varying degrees of affiliation between the participants. The analyzed practices are shaped by the institutional learning context as well as the asynchronous digital context.