Groupwork has become ubiquitous in language education, with the clear benefits of interaction and output on language acquisition. A body of research has investigated this interaction in pairs and small groups, and there is an increased understanding that individual group context is a key factor in determining the behavior of students. This article reports on a study that first investigated emergent leadership within groups, and the influence of the group on leader stability. The study then examined how leadership is represented in student task engagement. Students were placed into fixed small groups for the first semester, and then allowed to self-select into groups for the second semester. Perceptions of leadership were measured three times in each semester, and leaders were identified in each group. Results showed that changing group membership had a considerable impact on leadership stability, and student interaction was then analysed to determine how leadership influenced engagement with tasks. Students with high leadership displayed high engagement with tasks, and took a central role in driving the conversation. When a student chose to reject the role of leader there was a dramatic impact on their engagement in conversation. The stability of leadership and its impact on performance has practical implications both for researchers and teachers.

在语言教育中，团队合作已变得无处不在，在语言习得方面进行交互和输出具有明显的好处。大量研究对这种成对和小组的互动进行了研究，并且人们越来越了解，个人的小组环境是决定学生行为的关键因素。本文报道了一项研究，该研究首先调查了团队内部的新兴领导力以及该群体对领导者稳定性的影响。然后，研究研究了领导力在学生任务参与中的表现方式。在第一学期将学生分成固定的小组，然后在第二学期让他们自行选择小组。每个学期对领导力的感知进行三次测量，并在每组中确定领导者。结果表明，改变小组成员资格对领导的稳定性有相当大的影响，然后对学生的互动进行了分析，以确定领导如何影响参与任务的能力。高领导力的学生表现出对任务的高度投入，并在推动对话中发挥了核心作用。当学生选择拒绝领导者的角色时，对他们参与对话产生了巨大的影响。领导的稳定性及其对绩效的影响对研究人员和教师均具有实际意义。当学生选择拒绝领导者的角色时，对他们参与对话产生了巨大的影响。领导的稳定性及其对绩效的影响对研究人员和教师均具有实际意义。当学生选择拒绝领导者的角色时，对他们参与对话产生了巨大的影响。领导的稳定性及其对绩效的影响对研究人员和教师均具有实际意义。