Bubble Dialogue: Tools for supporting literacy and mind

Abstract

Bubble Dialogue, a computer software tool developed by the Language Development and Hypermedia Research Group (D. J. Cunningham et al, 1992), was intended to provide a language awareness support structure for the acquisition of literacy. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the instructional framework within which the authors used Bubble Dialogue with 50 3rd–6th grade students, discuss the different modes of interaction or communication that took place during the literacy process, and present the authors' current thinking on how Bubble Dialogue can be used as an assessment tool for literacy. Results of the study show that literacy is a process of exchanging ideas, jointly constructing and negotiating meaning, and becoming aware of the dialogic process. The authors conclude with recommendations for the design of collaborative learning environments as these emerge from their research with Bubble Dialogue. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)