Regulation of collaboration in project-based learning mediated by CSCL scripting reflection

Abstract

Many studies attempt to effectively support student regulation of collaboration using CSCL tools to enrich learning outcomes. However, few studies are aimed at facilitating development of students' internal scripts for regulation of collaboration. This study focuses on developing and evaluating a computer-mediated learning environment for project-based learning to facilitate student internal scripts for regulation by designing external scripts for effective reflection. Forty-eight first-year university students participated in this study as part of their curriculum. Our analyses of their internal scripts before and after PBL participation revealed that significantly more students who encountered an unfamiliar situation during collaboration constructed new regulation scripts. Moreover, in case studies, we found that students augmented their scripts for socially shared regulation when recognizing socio-cognitive challenges, whereas they augmented co-regulation and self-regulation scripts when recognizing socio-emotional challenges.