Cost and reward as motivating factors in distributed collaborative learning assignments : a grounded theory analasis

Abstract

The objective of this research study was to obtain a better understanding of the factors that affect lecturer and student participation in distributed collaborative learning assignments (DCLAs). A substantial number of courses worldwide have included DCLAs in their curricula in an attempt to teach students virtual communication and teaming skills, and to allow distributed students to learn course content collaboratively in a virtual environment. The execution and management of these assignments have proven to be more challenging that expected. Several attempts reported on in the literature had to be abandoned when cost exceeded the rewards for both lecturers and students. In a fouryear cyclical action research project carried out at the PETech (Port Elizabeth Technikon, currently part of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa), ICT students at several of the PETech campuses were required to complete a DCLA in virtual teams. This project also had to be terminated when it was realised that virtual team learning was minimal and the time investment unacceptably high. For the research study reported on in this thesis the data collected during the four “preresearch” cycles and the experiences reported in the literature were analysed. The lessons learnt were applied to a new additional DCLA cycle which formed part of an ICT course, although this execution still showed room for improvement. A second additional cycle was then executed which had a high participation rate and was overwhelmingly labelled by the participating students as a valuable and enjoyable learning experience. Analysis of the factors affecting participation in DCLAs shows that they are numerous and tightly interlinked, and that each factor is able to take on a wide range of values. This complicates descriptive reporting as each of the DCLAs was unique with unique outcomes and would have to be reported as such in order to iii ABSTRACT iv gain an understanding of the factors. Hence, a level of abstraction was needed, which was accomplished by applying the traditional Glaserian grounded theory method to the data collected during the four “preresearch” and the two additional cycles, and from the literature on the topic. The outcome is a perceived costs and rewards (PCR) theory for participation in DCLAs. As participation is crucial for the learning experience of each student as well as his/her team members in an action learning environment, deciding on participation by continually calculating the costs versus rewards became the focal point of the theory. To the best of the author’s knowledge this research study makes a theoretical contribution to the existing body of ICT educational knowledge in the form of a perceived costs and rewards theory for DCLA participation and a practical contribution in that it provides a theory that can be used to explain, understand, interpret and predict participation in DCLAs. This research study provides guidance for future research in both of these areas