Computational Design Principles to Support the Monitoring of Collaborative Learning Processes

Abstract

Discussions of collaborative learning and its benefits have become common currency in many studies. Proponents argue that it promotes active learning, critical thinking, conceptual understanding, long-term retention of material, and high levels of student satisfaction. Despite this list of impressive potential outcomes and the attention it has received, many teachers are unclear as to what precisely is considered the impact of technology in the collaborative learning process. The authors present design principles intended to be useful to teachers in evaluating and monitoring the collaborative learning process. They outline design principles involving two aspects: the participation of the teacher during the collaborative learning process, and the inclusion of a strategy that generates conflicts among members of the group. They also describe the development of two software tools based on the principles they propose.

Collaborative Learning and Skills of Problem-based Learning: A Case of Nigerian Secondary Schools Chemistry Students

“…Students working in small groups tend to learn more and retain the knowledge longer. In collaborative learning: students set learning goals, share knowledge by teaching each other, freely ask questions and assess their learning outcome, and actively work together in group's task under the teacher's guide (Collazos, Guerrero & Pino, 2001;Soller & Lesgold, 2000).…”

Collaborative Scenarios to Promote Positive Interdependence among Group Members

“…The game continues until all cards are uncovered. The game is played in a distributed fashion, with communication allowed through a chat tool [3]. Also it provides a space where the player places his name to be able to connect himself to the server (see Figure 2).…”

“…In a similar way to MemoNet, this game provides communication through chat. The problem is there is only one way to arrange the tokens, therefore they need to communicate in order to win the game [3].…”

Improving the Use of Strategies in Computer-Supported Collaborative Processes

“…Observations allow to measure and to understand the quality of each group interaction and its progress on the assignment [10]. The facilitator not only can observe the interactions among members of the group, but also she can intervene anytime she considers it as necessary.…”