A Study on the Impact of ICT on Collaborative Learning Processes in Libyan Higher Education

This paper presents the conclusions of a study on the impact of ICT on collaborative learning processes in Libyan Higher Education (LHE). The quantitative analysis of the answers to a questionnaire (completed by Libyan full-time lecturers at the universities of Tripoli, Garyounis, Gharian and Ezawia) shows the necessity to design and develop more classroom activities and interactive online applications, enabling the development of team-building skills required by employers. The influence of limited Internet bandwidths in Libya on collaborative learning processes in HE is then presented. It is obvious that HE institutions need to develop proactive strategies that envisage and anticipate learners‟ future learning needs and requirements in this transition period of moving towards an increasingly digitalized, networked and knowledge-based society. The paper also contains the analysis of a SWOT model considering the factors that must be considered in relation to collaborative learning within the university teaching process, such as intelligent multimedia, Internet technologies, and knowledge management. The employment of modern technology will enable the development of innovative and inspiring collaborative learning environments where lecturers are expert designers of intellectual experiences for students, who become active participants to the learning processes

Towards Collaborative Conceptual Exploration

In domains with high knowledge distribution a natural objective is to create principle foundations for collaborative interactive learning environments. We present a first mathematical characterization of a collaborative learning group, a consortium, based on closure systems of attribute sets and the well-known attribute exploration algorithm from formal concept analysis. To this end, we introduce (weak) local experts for subdomains of a given knowledge domain. These entities are able to refute and potentially accept a given (implicational) query for some closure system that is a restriction of the whole domain. On this we build up a consortial expert and show first insights about the ability of such an expert to answer queries. Furthermore, we depict techniques on how to cope with falsely accepted implications and on combining counterexamples. Using notions from combinatorial design theory we further expand those insights as far as providing first results on the decidability problem if a given consortium is able to explore some target domain. Applications in conceptual knowledge acquisition as well as in collaborative interactive ontology learning are at hand.Comment: 15 pages, 2 figure

Ten-Competence:Life-Long Competence Development and Learning

Koper, R., & Specht, M. (2008). Ten-Competence: Life-Long Competence Development and Learning. In M-A. Cicilia (Ed.), Competencies in Organizational e-learning: concepts and tools (pp. 234-252). Hershey: IGI-Global.In most solutions for supporting learning today, one single approach is leading the selection, installation, and usage of information technology (IT)-based tools. Either content-based approaches lead to the creation of a content-based infrastructure with course management systems and content repositories, or a collaboration background leads to the usage of virtual classrooms and collaborative learning environments. The TEN-Competence project aims forward for integration of the different tools, perspectives, and learning environments in a common open source infrastructure based on today’s standards on the level of knowledge resources, learning activities, competence development programs, and learning networks. TEN-Competence will integrate tools in a service-oriented architecture (SOA) and evaluate the approach in a variety of pilot applications for lifelong competence development.This work has been sponsored by the EU project TENCompetenc

The Collaborative construction of knowledge through online forums for the development of sociocognitive writing skills

Changes in the production, transmission and access to information generated by information and communication technologies (ICTs) require new skills and offer cognitive and social opportunities for the construction of knowledge and collaborative learning. As a consequence, new literacy teaching models are required. In this context, literacy implies developing not only instrumental competences but also cognitive and social skills to interact with information and transform it into knowledge in a collaborative manner. Even though online learning projects have increased in popularity, web-based language learning (WBLL) is still uncommon in higher education around the world (Zheng, Warschauer & Farkas, 2013). In this context, the main objective of this paper is to analyse the impact of a blended learning project carried out in the virtual classroom of an English Language II university course, in which digital technologies are introduced for the collaborative construction of knowledge in virtual learning environments. The specific objectives are: (a) to carry out a forum debate in the virtual classroom as a pre-writing activity for the collaborative construction of knowledge, (b) to analyse the types of collaboration and the cognitive skills employed by the students, and (c) to carry out surveys to obtain the students' perceptions about this online activity. We present a theoretical framework about the educational role of ICTs to achieve the construction of knowledge and collaborative learning, two competences included in digital literacy, also called multiliteracy and new literacy by authors (Area & Pessoa, 2012; Pasadas Ureña, 2010) who coincide that literacy requires more complex processes than the instrumental use of technology. We also reflect on the implications of the collaborative construction of knowledge in WBLL environments and the usefulness of forum debates as a pre-writing activity. For this purpose, we develop a conceptual framework based on the classification of online collaboration proposed by Salmons (2008) and Collison et al. (in Arango, 2003), and Bloom's (1971) taxonomy of levels for the construction of knowledge and cognitive skills. We also describe the methodology used for the forum debate. Finally, we present the results and the limitations of this study, its pedagogical applications and future lines of research.http://www.faapi.org.ar/downloads/FAAPI2016SelectedPapers.pdfFil: Dalla Costa, Natalia. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Lenguas; Argentina.Fil: Gava, Yamina Ileana. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Lenguas; Argentina.Lingüístic

Competences for collaboration and knowledge sharing in digital society - a case study with an erasmus intensive programme

With the advent of social and collaborative environments, students became more active and participative - they not only have access to contents but also create and share them, becoming proactive. Communication has evolved, and with this evolution came the new media and the possibility of live conferencing, video sharing, social networking, collaborative tools, allowing the student to create, work collaboratively and communicate in a more direct way with their peers and their teachers. Instead of merely searching for information, applications such as bookmarking, feeds, tweeter and pinboards, digital portfolios, etc., along with the possibility of creating your own personal webpage, today’s Web gives students also the chance to create a PLE - A Personal Learning Environment. A PLE “recognizes that learning is continuing and seeks to provide tools to support that learning” (Attwell, 2007). The Individuals are responsible for the management of their own learning environment and for the selection of tools and contexts where learning will take place. Students need to acquire certain skills and competences, specific of a digital and connected society, in order to “effectively benefit from e-government, e-learning and e-health services, and participate actively in the knowledge society as co-creators, and not simply consumers, as highlighted by the European e-skills strategy” (McCormack, 2010). To only possess hard skills (that comes with experience and formal education) may not be enough to get someone a job. Besides e-skills and e-literacy competences, soft and social skills are also required. These can be practiced and enhanced in virtual environments. Digital literacy, and therefore e-skills, are transversal competences needed to every citizen. In this paper we will present the results of a case study carried out with attendees of an Erasmus Intensive Programme, which has promoted the development of digital literacies among participants. The Programme took place during 2013 summer and involved students and teachers (of teacher education and social service fields) from 3 different countries. The classes covered different tools and 12 tutors were involved. The main objectives were to provide students with information and communication technologies (ICT) skills for a digital society, namely: • Identification of students’ competencies in ICT; • Present students with different available collaboration tools by exploring the web 2.0; • Selection of specific tools to create students' personal learning environment (PLE); • Acquire necessary knowledge to master the selected tools; • Work collaboratively with the web 2.0 tools; • Establish methods for instruction and course design based on Web 2.0 (teacher education) with the goal to integrate technology enhanced learning and individual knowledge management in educational processes. At the end attendees were able to: • Master the different tools & services; • Be capable to use and select the most adequate web 2.0 tools & services; • Create and manage their PLE; • Share and to work collaboratively; • Be digitally skilled.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A comparison of immersive realities and interaction methods: cultural learning in virtual heritage

In recent years, Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Virtuality (AV), and Mixed Reality (MxR) have become popular immersive reality technologies for cultural knowledge dissemination in Virtual Heritage (VH). These technologies have been utilized for enriching museums with a personalized visiting experience and digital content tailored to the historical and cultural context of the museums and heritage sites. Various interaction methods, such as sensor-based, device-based, tangible, collaborative, multimodal, and hybrid interaction methods, have also been employed by these immersive reality technologies to enable interaction with the virtual environments. However, the utilization of these technologies and interaction methods isn’t often supported by a guideline that can assist Cultural Heritage Professionals (CHP) to predetermine their relevance to attain the intended objectives of the VH applications. In this regard, our paper attempts to compare the existing immersive reality technologies and interaction methods against their potential to enhance cultural learning in VH applications. To objectify the comparison, three factors have been borrowed from existing scholarly arguments in the Cultural Heritage (CH) domain. These factors are the technology’s or the interaction method’s potential and/or demonstrated capability to: (1) establish a contextual relationship between users, virtual content, and cultural context, (2) allow collaboration between users, and (3) enable engagement with the cultural context in the virtual environments and the virtual environment itself. Following the comparison, we have also proposed a specific integration of collaborative and multimodal interaction methods into a Mixed Reality (MxR) scenario that can be applied to VH applications that aim at enhancing cultural learning in situ

Examining the use of Web-Based Tools in Fully Online Learning Community Environments

In order to participate in the co-creation of the digital space inherent in Fully Online Learning Community (FOLC) environments (vanOostveen, DiGiuseppe, Barber, Blayone & Childs, 2016), learners must be familiar with the types of web-based tools that are available, and how they can be used to support collaborative learning. Bower (2015) states that educators have a narrow conception of web-based technologies and consequently there are many web-based applications which have not yet been found or utilized. It is suspected that this is also the case for many learners. This paper examines the awareness of web-based tools as well as their use in learning contexts by instructors and students working in FOLC environments. Specifically, the investigation looks to determine if learners and faculty are aware of web-based tools that can help learners to understand concepts, models and theories and how the tools allow for the development of learner autonomy and resilience within fully online learning environments. Participants in fully online courses at a medium-sized Canadian university were asked to respond to a survey as well as participate in a series of repertory grid focus group sessions, held in an audio-video conferencing virtual room. Preliminary results suggest that while awareness of some tools is more prevalent than previously suspected, the use of these types of tools is constrained by a number of factors including a lack of knowledge of how to incorporate the tools into online environments, and a lack of interest in using these tools. The paper includes a full analysis of all collected data

Konsep Pengembangan Pembelajaran Kolaboratif Berbasis Mobile Learning

Abstract - Collaborative learning is a philosophy of interaction of learning through cooperation, then this can be done not only in the classroom but also in the classroom, including through mobile devices. Collaborative learning emphasizes the ability to obtain or provide educational content on personal devices that can be taken anywhere. Traditional collaborative learning has so far had constraints on sharing, collaborating and collecting knowledge between individuals and groups especially when linked to geographic and learning environments. The presence of mobile devices such as notebooks, smartphones and tablets that increasingly worldwide will certainly be a solution in collaborative learning. This can be realized by developing mobile-based learning applications with collaborative learning concepts that exist in the world of education. Mobile-based collaborative learning provides advantages such as self-learning context, portability, connectivity, and social interaction. With this system is expected to learners can have a high motivation to explore the ability and share and cooperate with other students and teachers to achieve shared learning objectives. Keywords: collaborative learning, mobile learning, application, mobile learning Abstrak - Pembelajaran kolaboratif merupakan filsafat interaksi pembelajaran melalui kerjasama, maka hal ini bisa dilakukan tidak hanya di kelas tetapi juga di luas kelas, termasuk melalui perangkat mobile. Pembelajaran kolaboratif menekankan pada kemampuan untuk mendapatkan atau menyediakan konten pendidikan pada perangkat pribadi yang dapat dibawa kemana saja. Pembelajaran kolaboratif secara tradisional selama ini memiliki kendala dalam hal berbagi, bekerjasama dan mengumpulkan pengetahuan antara individu dan kelompok terutama jika dikaitkan dengan faktor geografis dan lingkungan belajar. Kehadiran perangkat mobile seperti notebook, smartphone dan tablet yang semakin lama semakin memasyarakat tentunya dapat menjadi solusi dalam pembelajaran kolaboratif. Hal ini dapat diwujudkan dengan mengembangkan aplikasi pembelajaran berbasis mobile dengan konsep-konsep pembelajaran kolaboratif yang ada dalam dunia pendidikan. Pembelajaran kolaboratif berbasis mobile memberikan berbagai keuntungan seperti konteks belajar mandiri, portabilitas, konektivitas, dan interaksi sosial. Dengan sistem ini diharapkan agar peserta didik dapat memiliki motivasi yang tinggi untuk mengeksplorasi kemampuannya serta berbagi dan bekerjasama dengan peserta didik lain maupun guru untuk mencapai tujuan pembelajaran yang ditetapkan bersama. Kata kunci : pembelajaran kolaboratif, pembelajaran mobile, aplika, mobile learnin

Towards a generic platform for developing CSCL applications using Grid infrastructure

The goal of this paper is to explore the possibility of using CSCL component-based software under a Grid infrastructure. The merge of these technologies represents an attractive, but probably quite laborious enterprise if we consider not only the benefits but also the barriers that we have to overcome. This work presents an attempt toward this direction by developing a generic platform of CSCL components and discussing the advantages that we could obtain if we adapted it to the Grid. We then propose a means that could make this adjustment possible due to the high degree of genericity that our library component is endowed with by being based on the generic programming paradigm. Finally, an application of our library is proposed both for validating the adequacy of the platform which it is based on and for indicating the possibilities gained by using it under the Grid.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Conceptual and socio-cognitive support for collaborative learning in videoconferencing environments

Studies have shown that videoconferences are an effective medium for facilitating communication between parties who are separated by distance. Furthermore, studies reveal that videoconferences are effective when used for distance learning, particularly when learners are engaged in complex collaborative learning tasks. However, as in face-to-face communication, learners benefit most when they receive additional support for such learning tasks. This article provides an overview of three empirical studies to illustrate more general insights regarding some of the more and less effective ways of supporting collaborative learning with videoconferencing. The focus is on conceptual support, such as structural visualization and socio-cognitive support, such as scripts. Based on the results of the three studies, conclusions can be drawn about the conceptual and socio-cognitive support measures that promote learning. Conclusions can also be reached about the need for employing both conceptual and socio-cognitive support to provide learners with the most benefit