Collaborative Learning Course Research Articles

Male Students in Female-Dominated Study Programs: Perceived Diversity Climate in Gender-Mixed Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning

Background: Male students’ achievements in female-dominated study programs have garnered limited research attention. This study investigates the relationship between psychology students’ perceived diversity climate and their learning outcomes in a gender-mixed computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) course in introductory psychology. Our main hypotheses were that the diversity climate—learning outcome relationships would be stronger for male (gender minority) than for female students (gender majority). Methods: This study used data from a large sample of university first-year students at a blended learning university ( n = 1,172, 75% female) with three points of measurement in a 9-week CSCL assignment. Findings: Moderated-mediation regression analyses confirmed that students’ perceptions of the diversity climate in their CSCL group were significantly related to gains in online learning self-efficacy among male, but not female students. Furthermore, by increasing gains in self-efficacy, climate perceptions also translated into better quiz performance among male students. Contributions: This study shows that for men perceived diversity climate is a significant determinant of their individual learning outcomes. This calls for paying more attention to the minority perspectives of males in female-dominated psychological programs to better understand why this is the case.

Exploring Online Collaborative Learners’ Socially Shared Regulation of Learning Behavior Patterns in Different Engagement Groups

Online collaborative learning has become an important way of learning, and focusing on the socially shared regulation of learning behaviors is important for improving learning performance. Based on an online collaborative learning course, this study collected discussion data from 18 collaborative learning groups over 6 sessions. Behavioral patterns of socially shared regulation of learning were explored through frequency statistics and lagged sequence analysis. Learning engagement variables were also introduced to compare the differences in significant behavioral sequence patterns between high- and low-engagement groups. It was found that (a) most of the regulation behaviors in the early stage were focused on the task itself and the work of the members, while the regulation behaviors in the later stage were more concerned with the progress and results of the group. (b) The high-learning engagement groups had a higher frequency of socially shared regulation of learning behaviors and more appropriate temporal characteristics. The study shows that appropriate regulation behaviors guarantee the smooth progress of collaborative learning activities and the stability of the group in learning engagement. Finally, the study suggests recommendations for improving online collaborative learning performance.

Building Global Relationships: Open Educational Resources and Collaborative Online International Learning Courses

Using open educational resources (OERs) in collaborative online international learning (COIL) courses provides students and faculty the opportunity to share content, enhance knowledge, and develop intercultural competence across geopolitical and other boundaries. Faculty perceptions at the research site regarding benefits and challenges of using OER are consistent with positive findings of other OER research that validate its potential. This case study describes experiences of two college courses taught with different international partners. It shares the journey of co-planning, implementing, and revising assignments highlighting OER instructional materials. Technology and accessibility considerations influence the curricular decisions for each course. They demonstrate how the timely availability of relevant OER content can be particularly impactful for international learning environments like COIL. The article underscores the faculty-librarian-instructional designer collaboration throughout the project and offers suggestions for future study.

Comparing Student Performance in Emergency Remote and Face-to-Face Collaborative Learning Courses.

The start of the COVID-19 pandemic forced an unprecedented shift from face-to-face (F2F) instruction to emergency remote teaching (ERT) for over one billion learners worldwide. Studies from K-12 and higher education have begun to address the impact of ERT on student learning and well-being. The lessons learned from ERT will likely shape the response to future public health emergencies and inform the design and implementation of remote courses. As such, it will be important to identify teaching practices in ERT that promoted student engagement and learning. Here, we address whether undergraduate collaborative learning courses were able to support student content knowledge outcomes at similar levels in ERT as compared to F2F classroom environments. Specifically, we tracked student performance in three different team-based undergraduate neuroscience courses. These courses were all taught by the same instructor during the academic years 2020-2021 and 2021-2022. Importantly, we found that student scores on individual and team assessments as well as measures of course satisfaction were similar between ERT and F2F. Taken together, our data suggest that the virtual collaborative learning environment in these courses was not associated with a decrease in student or team performance when compared to a traditional F2F classroom.

Facilitated COIL conversational model: a virtual exchange between a private university in the US and a teacher college in South Sudan

This practice report explores a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) course focused on awareness and esteem development for women teachers in South Sudan and volunteers associated with a US-based university. Pedagogy of hope was utilized as an educational tool for implementation and evaluation. Assessments of this COIL course focused on data from exit tickets and a final writing assignment. Self-perceptions of the participating teachers were analyzed based on their sense of preparedness, confidence, comfort levels with the class, and any impact the course had on teachers’ sense of teaching as a personal calling. Practitioners and teaching professionals interested in international virtual exchange will find key takeaways related to building partnerships starting with low-stakes initiatives and using COIL to help ignite advances in digital maturity in South Sudan.

The effects of web-based inquiry learning mode with the support of collaborative digital reading annotation system on information literacy instruction

Past studies have indicated that primary schools' students have difficulty in filtering out incorrect or unreliable information from the Internet when facing a large amount of information due to the lack of basic digital literacy and sensitivity. Therefore, the establishment of a mechanism for information judgment and evaluation to promote primary schools' students digital reading skills and information literacy has become a more and more important research issue in recent years. This study thus developed a web-based inquiry learning mode with collaborative digital reading annotation system support (WILM-CDRASS) aiming to provide innovative teaching mode of effectively enhancing information evaluation abilities of primary schools' students. A quasi-experimental design was conducted in this study to examine the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance of using WILM-CDRASS to enhance information evaluation abilities of primary schools' students compared to a web-based inquiry learning mode with general discussion board support (WILM-GDBS). A total of 50 Grade 5 students from two classes of an elementary school in New Taipei City of Taiwan participated in a collaborative inquiry-based learning course, “Internet information judgment and evaluation,” in this study. A total of 25 students from a class was assigned as the experimental group using WILM-CDRASS to enhance their information evaluation abilities, and a total of 25 students from the remaining class was assigned as the control group using WILM-GDBS. The learning outcomes of WILM-CDRASS and WILM-GDBS in the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance were also compared between students with different prior knowledge levels and cognitive styles from both groups. The analytical results revealed that the learning effectiveness and technology acceptance of learners in the experimental group using WILM-CDRASS for an information literacy course are significantly superior to those of learners in the control group using WILM-GDBS. The research findings also showed that the use of WILM-CDRASS was more beneficial to the students with low prior knowledge and field-independent cognitive style than those of using WILM-GDBS. As for technology acceptance, students with low prior knowledge perceived the use of WILM-CDRASS more helpful than WILM-GDBS for their learning. Based on the research results, several suggestions for the implementation of WILM-CDRASS to support information literacy courses were proposed. Besides, it is suggested to investigate students' effective learning behaviors and the relationship between the learning behaviors and learning performance in inquiry-based information literacy courses with WILM-CDRASS support in future study.

A Study of an Online Collaborative Learning Course to Correct Colloquial Writing in Students’ Essays

A Study of an Online Collaborative Learning Course to Correct Colloquial Writing in Students’ Essays

The effects of grouping types on promoting critical thinking in EFL collaborative writing

Nurturing critical thinking (CT) has been acknowledged as a core objective of tertiary education, and drawn attention from academia of teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL), particularly in EFL argumentative writing. It has been claimed that collaborative learning which stimulates the active exchange of ideas within small groups not only increases interest among the participants but also promotes critical thinking. One of the important aspects of learning and teaching through collaboration is the group composition or grouping “who with whom”. The present study was an attempt to investigate the impact of homogeneous and heterogeneous groupings on critical thinking in collaborative writing. Having been required to write an argumentative essay as a pre-test, 75 participants, who were categorized by their prior critical thinking levels, were assigned into three group types: heterogeneous, homogeneous high and homogeneous low groups. As a consequence, four types of students were considered their improvement before and after the experiment: high-level students in heterogeneous groups, lowlevel students in heterogeneous groups, high-level students in homogeneous groups, low-level students in homogeneous groups. The results demonstrated that learners improved their critical thinking level through collaborative writing, whether working with stronger or weaker peers. However, heterogeneous grouping showed superiority over homogeneous grouping at the low level. The results revealed that cooperative learning could be especially beneficial for low students. It is hoped that the findings of the present study will give teachers deep insights into group compositions in collaborative learning courses, and will help them make better group experiences for students.

Students’ Grit Level as a Predictor of Their Academic Achievement in Engineering Design Courses

The primary purpose of this study is to explore the relationship between engineering students’ year of study, gender and grit level. This study also aims to assess whether there is any relationship between students’ peer assessment scores in a collaborative project-based learning course and their goal orientation — either towards performance goals or learning goals — and their grit level. The study design is a quasi-experimental design, and the methods used in this study are quantitative. Student grit level was measured using a 12-item scale. The questionnaire was administered in three engineering design courses at different levels of study. The first course is an introduction to engineering design course for firstyear engineering and computer sciences students; the second is an introduction to engineering design course for second-year engineering and computer science students; and the third is a computer-aided design/computer-aidedmanufacturing (CAD/CAM) engineering design capstone course for fourth-year mechanical engineering students. Data collection occurred during the fall semester of 2018- 2019 academic year. Students’ grit level was not found to be a predictor of students’ peer assessment scores, although their goal orientation predicted their level of contribution to their team project.

Expanding Access to International Education through Technology Enhanced Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) Courses

In today’s global society, higher education institutions are charged with preparing students to be world citizens who possess holistic perspectives on diverse international cultures. Many colleges and universities in the United States of America actively seek international partners to offer technology enhanced collaborative online international learning (COIL) courses. All members, including faculty, instructional designers, information technology support staff, and administrators in the partner institutions play essential roles in developing and delivering internationally networked courses. In this paper, the researchers share the journey, offer a course development model and lessons learned as they sought international partners, collaborated globally, developed international curricula, and team taught with colleagues from diverse culture and linguistic backgrounds. The purpose of this paper is to introduce practices that can be implemented in technology integrated international networked teaching to help college students increase intercultural and diversity awareness, explore and develop cultural competencies, and gain experience in communication and civil engagement in a global context using a cost-effective pathway.

Using trustworthy web services for secure e-assessment in collaborative learning grids

The paper presents innovative trustworthy services to support secure e-assessment in web-based collaborative learning grids. Although e-Learning has been widely adopted, there exist still drawbacks which limit their potential. Among these limitations, we investigate information security requirements in on-line assessment learning activities, (e-assessment). In previous research, we proposed a trustworthiness model to support secure e-assessment requirements for e-Learning. In this paper, we present effective applications of our approach by integrating flexible and interoperable Web based secure e-learning services based on our trustworthiness model into e-assessment activities in on-line collaborative learning courses. Moreover, we leverage Grid technology to meet further demanding requirements of collaborative learning applications in terms of computation performance and management of large data sets, in order for the trustworthy collaborative learning services to be continuously adapted, adjusted, and personalised to each specific target learning group. Evaluation in a real context is provided while implications of this study are eventually remarked and discussed.

Student experiences of participating in five collaborative blended learning courses in Africa and Asia: a survey

BackgroundAs blended learning (BL; a combination of face-to-face and e-learning methods) becomes more commonplace, it is important to assess whether students find it useful for their studies. ARCADE HSSR and ARCADE RSDH (African Regional Capacity Development for Health Systems and Services Research; Asian Regional Capacity Development for Research on Social Determinants of Health) were unique capacity-building projects, focusing on developing BL in Africa and Asia on issues related to global health.ObjectiveWe aimed to evaluate the student experience of participating in any of five ARCADE BL courses implemented collaboratively at institutions from Africa, Asia, and Europe.DesignA post-course student survey with 118 students was conducted. The data were collected using email or through an e-learning platform. Data were analysed with SAS, using bivariate and multiple logistic regression. We focused on the associations between various demographic and experience variables and student-reported overall perceptions of the courses.ResultsIn total, 82 students responded to the survey. In bivariate logistic regression, the course a student took [p=0.0067, odds ratio (OR)=0.192; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.058–0.633], male gender of student (p=0.0474, OR=0.255; 95% CI: 0.066–0.985), not experiencing technical problems (p<0.001, OR=17.286; 95% CI: 4.629–64.554), and reporting the discussion forum as adequate for student needs (p=0.0036, OR=0.165; 95% CI: 0.049–0.555) were found to be associated with a more positive perception of BL, as measured by student rating of the overall helpfulness of the e-learning component to their studies. In contrast, perceiving the assessment as adequate was associated with a worse perception of overall usefulness. In a multiple regression, the course, experiencing no technical problems, and perceiving the discussion as adequate remained significantly associated with a more positively rated perception of the usefulness of the online component of the blended courses.DiscussionThe results suggest that lack of technical problems and functioning discussion forums are of importance during BL courses focusing on global health-related topics. Through paying attention to these aspects, global health education could be provided using BL approaches to student satisfaction.

Bridging the Gap between LMS and Social Network Learning Analytics in Online Learning

Despite the great potential of social network analysis (SNA) methods and visualizations for learning analytics in computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL), these approaches have not been fully explored due to two important barriers: the scarcity and limited functionality of built-in tools in Learning Management Systems (LMS), and the difficulty to import educational data from formal virtual learning environments into social network analysis programs. This study aims to cover that gap by introducing GraphFES, an application and web service for extraction of interaction data from Moodle message boards and generation of the corresponding social graphs for later analysis using Gephi, a general purpose SNA software. In addition, this paper briefly illustrates the potential of the combination of the three systems (Moodle, GraphFES and Gephi) for social learning analytics using real data from a computer-supported collaborative learning course with strong focus on teamwork and intensive use of forums.

Designing and Implementing a CSCL-based Course on the Data Security of a Wireless Learning Environment

This article reports on a design-based research (DBR) process for designing and implementing a computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) course on the data security of wireless learning environments. The study focuses on examining how university students practice data security when learning on a wireless campus, how data security aspects appear in this study and how students perceive the role of data security in CSCL. The research subjects included six pilot students and eight students enrolled in the course. To promote the reliability of the findings, various kinds of data were used. The data was analysed following the grounded theory approach. The results suggest that data security should be considered an integral part of CSCL-based courses and that students need to be taught the basics of managing the data security of their information and communication technology (ICT) enhanced learning environment regardless of the main subject of their studies.

Developing an online learning community for mental health professionals and service users: a discursive analysis

BackgroundThere is increasing interest in online collaborative learning tools in health education, to reduce costs, and to offer alternative communication opportunities. Patients and students often have extensive experience of using the Internet for health information and support, and many health organisations are increasingly trying out online tools, while many healthcare professionals are unused to, and have reservations about, online interaction.MethodsWe ran three week-long collaborative learning courses, in which 19 mental health professionals (MHPs) and 12 mental health service users (MHSUs) participated. Data were analysed using a discursive approach to consider the ways in which participants interacted, and how this contributed to the goal of online learning about using Internet technologies for mental health practice.ResultsMHSUs and MHPs were able to discuss issues together, listening to the views of the other stakeholders. Discussions on synchronous format encouraged participation by service users while the MHPs showed a preference for an asynchronous format with longer, reasoned postings. Although participants regularly drew on their MHP or MHSU status in discussions, and participants typically drew on either a medical expert discourse or a "lived experience" discourse, there was a blurred boundary as participants shifted between these positions.ConclusionsThe anonymous format was successful in that it produced a "co-constructed asymmetry" which permitted the MHPs and MHSUs to discuss issues online, listening to the views of other stakeholders. Although anonymity was essential for this course to 'work' at all, the recourse to expert or lay discourses demonstrates that it did not eliminate the hierarchies between teacher and learner, or MHP and MHSU. The mix of synchronous and asynchronous formats helped MHSUs to contribute. Moderators might best facilitate service user experience by responding within an experiential discourse rather than an academic one.

Pattern of non-task interactions in asynchronous computer-supported collaborative learning courses

Despite the importance of the non-task interactions in computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environments as emphasized in the literature, few studies have investigated online behavior of people in the CSCL environments. This paper studies the pattern of non-task interactions among postgraduate students in an Australian university. The CSCL environment in this study includes separate online spaces called the Seminar Room and the Coffee Shop for pedagogical and non-pedagogical activities, respectively. The Transcript Analysis Tool (TAT) was used to code discussions in the above two rooms for three online courses. The findings indicate the presence of substantial number of non-task interactions among students in both the Seminar Rooms and the Coffee Shops. The results also indicate that a great portion of the non-task discussions fall into the categories of Reflections, Referential Statements, Horizontal Questions, and Salutations. Furthermore, the majority of students' non-task interactions occurred during the first few weeks of the semester and then decreased in the middle of the semester and slightly increased during the exam period. This indicates that facilitating students' non-task activities during the first few weeks of the semester is of prime importance. Based on the findings, this paper provides recommendations for enhancing future CSCL developments.

Bi-national and interdisciplinary course in enzyme engineering

Higher education institutions and scientific funding agencies are emphasizing international projects that involve the integration and synergy between research groups, particularly if different disciplines are involved. Students with an education that reflects these trends will have more tools to succeed in the future, but it is challenging to provide this type of learning experience. Here we present the organization of a bi-national course with the goals to teach students protein structure/function relationships, which give them actual research experience in both computational and experimental laboratories, and engage them in an international networking experience. Two collaborative learning courses were organized at Loyola University Chicago (USA) and Universidad Nacional del Litoral (Argentina) for graduate and advanced undergraduate students. Multiple instructors at different stages in their careers gave lectures during the course and were able to interact with students on a one-on-one basis. Nearly every student from both institutions thoroughly enjoyed this approach, and they learned more about protein structure and gained important tools for their own research. We believe that this type of course design is applicable and transferable to other institutions and areas of science. We found that the combination of international networking and incorporation of actual research projects ignited the enthusiasm of students and instructors. Due to the success of these courses, we planned to incorporate them as regular series in our curriculum.

Supporting online collaboration: Drawing guidelines from an empirical study on E-Tutors

In the last two decades, the epistemic-engagement view has become the dominant frame of reference in the field of e-learning. In this view, learning is assumed to emerge from social interaction (Larreamendy-Joerns & Leinhardt, 2006). Literature indicates a number of potential interventions in order to make interaction possible and more effective. But little is known about the e-tutors’ beliefs and practices, e.g. how they intervene on the design and management of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) courses in order to foster learners’ social interaction and knowledge construction. In the framework of a European project, the present study investigated how and when e-tutors intervene in respect to support online collaboration in CSCL. The project was meant at providing ICT-practitioners with guiding principles drawn from empirical research in social psychology of education concerning the complex relationships between social interaction and cognitive activities. Results show that the importance of some cognitive and social processes (e.g., social dynamics, collaboration feedback, etc.) still appears to be in part neglected by e-tutors.

Online Learning in Higher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa: Ghanaian University students' experiences and perceptions

This study adopted a qualitative case-study approach to examine the attitudes, experiences, and perceptions of undergraduate students who were enrolled in an online, collaborative learning course at a Ghanaian private university. Data sources included surveys, student and instructor journal entries, email records, individual interviews, and Web-server logs. The study found that the students did not respond favorably to online constructivist teaching approaches such as asynchronous discussions and ill-structured project-based learning activities, and perceived collaborative online learning within their context as a complex, more demanding and time-consuming experience.

Introducing Work-Family Scholarship to Social Work Students: The Development and Assessment of an Online Reading Seminar

ABSTRACT This three-part article first presents an overview of a Web-based reading-intensive course that introduces work-family scholarship to social work students so that they can integrate the historical, theoretical, and empirical perspectives of this rich body of knowledge into their practice. Second, the authors explore the compatibility of work-family scholarship, collaborative learning, and online course delivery. And third, a continual course assessment based on specific criteria associated with effective electronic discussion is used to illustrate how the teaching environment of this work-family online course is being modified and improved.