viii, 170 h. : il. col.In the educational field, the World Wide Web can be used as a medium of
communication, as an information delivery system as well as an interactive space to
provide novel opportunities for students' engagement in learning tasks. The present
study attempts to explore the latter through interpretive, qualitative research. It
examines how the use of blogging and the electronic forum contributes to the
development of collaborative tasks and the application of critical thinking skills in an
English Language II class at the Faculty of Languages of the National University of
Córdoba (UNC), which offers programmes in EFL Teacher Training, Translation and
Research. The teacher-researcher, two raters, one of whom was also the external
observer, and 24 Spanish-speaking undergraduate students participated in this study.
The data collection instruments included a pre-study and a post-study questionnaire, the
text generated in the students' group forums and blogs. The findings led to the
development of a taxonomy of online L2 collaborative contributions in the group debate
forums, and to a threefold classification of the patterns of application of critical thinking
skills and collaboration in the blog entries. Although the implications of this study relate
to a specific group of students in a particular educational setting, the results suggest that
the electronic forum and group blogging can facilitate collaboration and the application
of higher order thinking and that the students perceived these Web-based activities as
relevant to their L2 learning
