We investigated facets of the cognitive, emotional and behavioral engagement of a group of secondary education students who were particularly clever and fascinated with investigational activity. Audio and video recordings were used to categorize the kind of involvement showed during the activity. The categories are inspired within a psychoanalytical frame of reference based on the concepts of work group and basic assumptions. Aspects of the group configuration and the quality of interactions have implications for development. We checked that the learning situation mobilized multiple aspects of the engagement of the students at the level of the activity and at the level of the learning task quality of the interactions. There are implications for development in different dimensions. We conclude that without the help of the teacher clever and committed students are subject to unconscious escapes from the learning task that demands cognitive engagement.
Work group; Engagement; Laboratory activities; Investigation activities
