PHYSICS PROBLEM SOLVING

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CHAPTER 3
PATTERNS WITHIN A GROUP
Chapter Overview
The very nature of a qualitative case study makes this research an exercise in
discovery. As I worked out the procedures, I had some outcomes in mind, but the true
nature of the outcomes did not come into focus until I actually attempted to answer the
research questions. As I addressed the research questions, I continuously devised new
ways to look at the data. Hence the usual distinction between “method” and “results” is
not always clear and sharp. The “patterns” emerged very slowly.
At every turn, there was a surprise embedded in the students’ conversations. The
whole project was much like Forest Gump’s box of chocolates: I never knew what I was
going to get. Thus, although the following discussion of “Outcomes” discusses the
research questions one at a time, it will be clear that additional “procedures” evolved as I
attempted to answer the questions. The reference point of my own subjective
interpretation of the outcomes will play a large role in this chapter and the one that
follows.
This chapter examines argument co-construction within individual groups. Before
patterns or similarities common to all fourteen groups can be examined, each separate
group must be examined. It also is necessary to demonstrate that these groups are
engaging in the process of argument co-construction.