Effectiveness and Weakness of School Bullying Problem Solving Activities in a 3D Virtual World : Application of Activity Theory

Abstract

Although teachers play an important role in preventing school bullying, there is a lack of educational programs to enhance the competencies of pre-service teachers regarding how to prevent and address school bullying. To improve the knowledge and self-efficacy of pre-service teachers about school-bullying challenges, this study developed an authentic problem solving activity in a 3D virtual world on the basis of activity theory. In this study, for four weeks, 36 pre-service teachers collaboratively solved school-bullying problems, conducted role-plays in a virtual world, and reflected on their activities. As a result, the participants significantly improved their knowledge (restorative justice) and self-efficacy to handle school bullying. This study also investigated the pre-service teachers’ perceptions of the strengths and weaknesses of the activity through analyzing quantitative and qualitative data with an activity system framework. The findings were discussed to improve the design of the problem-solving activity in the context of Korean pre-service teacher education.