Collaboration and teamwork: immersion and presence in an online learning environment

In the world of OTIS, an online Internet School for occupational therapists, students from four European countries were encouraged to work collaboratively through problem-based learning by interacting with each other in a virtual semi-immersive environment. This paper describes, often in their own words, the experience of European occupational therapy students working together across national and cultural boundaries. Collaboration and teamwork were facilitated exclusively through an online environment, since the students never met each other physically during the OTIS pilot course. The aim of the paper is to explore the observations that here was little interaction between students from different tutorial groups and virtual teamwork developed in each of the cross-cultural tutorial groups. Synchronous data from the students was captured during tutorial sessions and peer-booked meetings and analysed using the qualitative constructs of ‘immersion’, ‘presence’ and ‘reflection in learning’. The findings indicate that ‘immersion’ was experienced only to a certain extent. However, both ‘presence’ and shared presence were found by the students, within their tutorial groups, to help collaboration and teamwork. Other evidence suggests that communities of interest were established. Further study is proposed to support group work in an online learning environment. It is possible to conclude that collaborative systems can be designed, which encourage students to build trust and teamwork in a cross cultural online learning environment.</p

Community building and virtual teamwork in an online learning environment

In the world of OTIS, an online Internet School for occupational therapists, students from four European countries were encouraged to work collaboratively through problem based learning by interacting with each other in a virtual semi-immersive environment. This paper aims to explore the issues that there was little interaction between students from different tutorial groups and virtual teamwork developed in each of the cross cultural tutorial groups. Synchronous data from European students was captured during tutorial sessions and peer booked meetings and evidence suggests that communities of interest were established. It is possible to conclude that collaborative systems can be designed, which encourage students to build trust and teamwork in a cross cultural online learning environment. </p

Exploring the Impact of Peer Mentoring on Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning among Undergraduate Students

Research indicates that peer mentoring supports students learning and emotional stability. However, its usability and impact in Computer-Supported collaborative (CSCL) learning activities that enhance students’ learning in and outside the classroom require contextual exploration. Hence, this study examined the usability and impacts of peer mentoring in CSCL among undergraduate students using a mixed-methods research approach. Data collection was conducted by administering a questionnaire with both qualitative and quantitative elements. Data analyses started with thematic coding of the nuanced texts collected through open-ended questions, and structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to analyze the quantitative data. Findings show that students have a different understanding of collaborative learning, but a common acknowledgment is that peer mentoring is beneficial in CSCL. Importantly, student views are impacted by gender, college affiliations, and CSCL experience. Drawing on the findings, we conclude that peer mentoring’s acceptability in CSCL is feasible and can affect students’ learning positively. However, it should be planned effectively and deployed based on contextual data showing students’ preference for CSCL and their peculiar need for peer mentoring

Collaborative trails in e-learning environments

This deliverable focuses on collaboration within groups of learners, and hence collaborative trails. We begin by reviewing the theoretical background to collaborative learning and looking at the kinds of support that computers can give to groups of learners working collaboratively, and then look more deeply at some of the issues in designing environments to support collaborative learning trails and at tools and techniques, including collaborative filtering, that can be used for analysing collaborative trails. We then review the state-of-the-art in supporting collaborative learning in three different areas – experimental academic systems, systems using mobile technology (which are also generally academic), and commercially available systems. The final part of the deliverable presents three scenarios that show where technology that supports groups working collaboratively and producing collaborative trails may be heading in the near future

THE EFFECT OF THE COLLABORATIVE TECHNOLOGY-ENHANCED ACTIVITIES ON STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION

The collaborative technology-enhanced activities developed for Algorithm Calculation course in Medical engineering subject-discipline and Computer Workshop courses in two Computer and IT engineering subject-disciplines in two consecutive semesters. Mixed-method research design was used in this study .Content of each course was used in order to develop the activities. Motivational Strategies for Leaning Questionnaire (MSLQ) was utilized for collecting quantitative data while qualitative data was collected using interview protocol for further investigation. The analyses showed that the “intrinsic value” was the category with the higher mean score for all students with three different subject-disciplines which is followed by cognitive strategy use. Moreover, the results showed that the students’ level of anxiety decreased after using the activities. Analysis of interview data showed that the students emphasized on the role of activities in terms of increasing their “collaboration” with their peers and instructor. Moreover, they perceived that the activities make the course more interesting for them. They also explained that using computerized devices especially mobile ones facilitated their communication and material-sharing. &nbsp

Improving Hybrid Brainstorming Outcomes with Scripting and Group Awareness Support

Previous research has shown that hybrid brainstorming, which combines individual and group methods, generates more ideas than either approach alone. However, the quality of these ideas remains similar across different methods. This study, guided by the dual-pathway to creativity model, tested two computer-supported scaffolds – scripting and group awareness support – for enhancing idea quality in hybrid brainstorming. 94 higher education students,grouped into triads, were tasked with generating ideas in three conditions. The Control condition used standard hybrid brainstorming without extra support. In the Experimental 1 condition, students received scripting support during individual brainstorming, and students in the Experimental 2 condition were provided with group awareness support during the group phase in addition. While the quantity of ideas was similar across all conditions, the Experimental 2 condition produced ideas of higher quality, and the Experimental 1 condition also showed improved idea quality in the individual phase compared to the Control condition

Designing Prototype Model of an Online Collaborative Learning System for Introductory Computer Programming Course

AbstractThis paper discusses the design of the prototype model of the online collaborative learning system for introductory computer programming course. The methodology used involves three phases which are the data collection, analysis and design and the implementation phase. Initially, fifty respondents from the first year students of the Diploma in Computer Science in Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Perlis, Malaysia have been randomly selected to participate in the data collection phase in order to investigate the students’ interests, learning styles as well as their learning preferences. The results have shown the need for the development of online small group discussions that could facilitate online communication and collaboration from dispersed location, hence encouraging distance learning education. A design of a structure model for an online collaborative learning system has been constructed in order to support the online collaborative learning activities in a virtual environment. The logical designs of the Online Collaborative Learning System or OCLS are being designed using the object-oriented models which are the use-case model and class diagram in order to show the concise processes of virtual “Think-Pair-Share” collaborative activities. The “Think-Pair-Share” collaborative learning technique that is being used in the design structures has been chosen because of its simplicity and relatively low-risk. Later, the physical design of the prototype model is being constructed using the Web-based technologies which are the MySQL database, PHP and Apache web server. This paper also discusses the impact of the online collaborative learning system towards the students’ performance where analysis has shown that the t-test result had a significant value of 0.01, which is less than 0.05 (sig. 2-tailed)

Collaborative Learning in Software Development Teams

Recently Web 2.0 has emerged as a framework to study collaborative learning. Assessing learning in team projects is onemechanism used to improve teaching methodologies and tool support. Web 2.0 technologies enable automated assessmentcapabilities, leading to both rapid and incremental feedback. Such feedback can catch problems in time for pedagogicadjustment, to better guide students toward reaching learning objectives. Our courseware, SEREBRO, couples a social,tagging enabled, idea network with a range of modular toolkits, such as wikis, feeds and project management tools into aWeb 2.0 environment for collaborating teams. In this paper, we first refine a set of published learning indicators intocommunication patterns that are facilitated in SEREBRO. We apply these indicators to student software development teamdiscussions regarding their collaborative activities. We show how the refined patterns, captured by SEREBRO\u27s Web 2.0modules, are catalysts to the learning process involved in software development