Collaborative Problem-solving Task Research Articles

Assessing Online Collaborative Problem Solving Among School Children in Finland: A Case Study Using ATC21S TM in a National Context

Online collaborative problem-solving tasks were piloted in five Finnish schools participating in the Assessment and Teaching of Twenty-first Century Skills (ATC21S TM ) project. Process stream data from online tasks were captured from 480 Finnish students who explored dyad problem spaces. The log file data were explored to identify indicative behaviours of collaborative problem solving (CPS), which were coded into a series of dichotomous indicators. The Rasch simple logistic model was used to analyse student performance across the social and cognitive dimensions of CPS. Analysis of the Finnish data indicated that the construct can be interpreted using a two-dimensional model, matching the findings of the total cohort of 4,078 students. Further analysis of the data provided evidence that gender has no statistical impact on Finnish students’ CPS abilities in the social or cognitive dimensions. Analysis of the differences in student abilities across grades within and between schools suggested that upper-year students had stronger CPS skills.

Revealing the processes of students' interaction with a novel collaborative problem solving task: An in-depth analysis of think-aloud protocols

Collaborative problem solving (ColPS) skills are considered crucial to succeed in work, education, and life in a knowledge-rich society. Nevertheless, research on the assessment of ColPS is at its initial stage; specifically, assessments of synchronous student-student ColPS in digital environments have been scarcely investigated, and there is an ample need for valid and reliable assessments to measure ColPS. The present study attempts to fill this gap by proposing a novel ColPS task and investigating students' ColPS skills with the help of think-aloud protocols while they were taking an online performance-based test. The task was developed on the basis of a ColPS framework, and principles emphasized in the research literature on students’ interaction, collaboration, and problem solving were implemented. A real-world problem mimicking a common teaching and learning situation formed the context of this task. The empirical evidence obtained from the think-aloud protocols of eleven Norwegian students displayed the strengths and weaknesses of the task, and strengthened the feasibility to assess ColPS. Implications for the future design of ColPS tasks are discussed.

Visualising and examining sequential actions as behavioural paths that can be interpreted as markers of complex behaviours

Visualisation of pathways taken by students through problem solving environments provides the potential to identify patterns of exploratory behaviour that may relate to different levels of proficiency or different cognitive approaches. This is particularly the case when problems are situated in complex online environments and are programmed to generate large scale data for analysis.Using process data from an online collaborative problem solving task, we visualised behavioural paths of 607 pairs of students as directed graphs. The empirical paths were then examined using exploratory network analysis based on four main aspects of exploration (prominence, branches, clusters, and shortest paths).The primary purpose of such analysis is to detect sequences that are potentially relevant for establishing particular paths as meaningful markers of complex behaviours. This visualisation approach enabled us to capture all actual (as opposed to possible) pathways from the data. Although there may be an optimal pathway through a complex task according to criteria such as efficiency or correct solution, the added human factors bring a dynamic to the activity that provides a richer environment for understanding students’ collaborative processes, both cognitive and social. The method adopted in this study provides a prototype for exploration of other complex skillsets.

Coordination Matters: Interpersonal Synchrony Influences Collaborative Problem-Solving

Moving in time with others is a central characteristic of social life and has been shown to promote a host of social-cognitive attunements (e.g., person memory, affiliation, prosociality) for those involved. Less attention has been paid, however, to how the effects of coordination can serve higher-order goal-directed social behaviour. Here we explored whether interpersonal synchrony impacts performance on a collaborative problem-solving task. One hundred and ninety two participants completed a short movement exercise in pairs whereby coordination mode was manipulated (in-phase synchrony, asynchrony, control). Each pair then jointly discussed a problem-solving exercise while the degree to which coordination spontaneously emerged was assessed. The results revealed that collaboration was more effective following in-phase coordination. Of theoretical significance, both instructed and spontaneous synchrony were associated with better performance, with the short-term history of each dyad shaping precisely when coordination was functional. Overall, the synchronization of body movements appears to support effective collaboration.

The Effect of Mixed and Matched Level Dyadic Interaction on Iranian EFL Learners’ Comprehension and Production of Requests and Apologies

Drawing upon sociocultural theory of Vygotsky, the current study aims to investigate the effect of dyadic interaction in mixed and matched level proficiency pairings on comprehension and production of request and apology speech acts. The participants were 125 EFL learners who were randomly assigned to control and experimental (interaction) groups. Based on their scores in the pretest including a pragmatic listening test and an Oral Discourse Completion Test (ODCT), those in the experimental groups were assigned to the mixed (H-L) and matched level (H-H and L-L) dyads. Both the control and experimental groups received metapragmatic instruction on speech acts; however, the experimental groups were engaged in collaborative problem-solving tasks on speech acts for nine sessions. Following the treatment, the posttest was administered, the results of which revealed the outperformance of the interaction groups compared with the control group. Moreover, mixed level dyads were found to outperform their matched level counterparts in both measures of comprehension and production of speech acts. The findings have pedagogical implications for L2 teachers and practitioners on how to best pair learners in collaborative activities.

Do interpersonal skills and interpersonal perceptions predict student learning in CSCL-environments?

Although Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) is regarded as an effective pedagogical approach, this heavily depends on whether its members function effectively as a group. This study examines whether students' interpersonal skills and students' perceptions of those skills predict individual achievement and group performance in CSCL-environments. In total, 87 secondary education students working in 29 triads collaborated on a collaborative problem-solving task. Students' interpersonal skills and the perception of students' interpersonal skills were conceptualized as agency (displaying dominant behavior, e.g., leadership) and communion (displaying empathic behavior, e.g., being helpful). Students' interpersonal skills were measured by coding the chat-utterances of the group discussions. Perceptions of interpersonal skills were measured by administering a questionnaire after the group task. Individual achievement was measured by a pre-test and a post-test. Group performance was measured by coding the quality of the problem-solution. Multi-level analysis revealed that, when corrected for pre-test scores, students' agency and communion skill positively predict their individual achievement. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the group level scores for collaborative behavior, interpersonal skill perception, and pre-test scores did not significantly predict group performance. The results suggest that students’ interpersonal skills significantly predict the degree to which CSCL has an impact student individual achievement.

The Development of a Self-regulation in a Collaborative Context Scale

Self-regulation has been shown as a critical factor in learning in a regular classroom environment (e.g. Wolters and Pintrich in Instr Sci 26(1):27–47, 1998. doi: 10.1023/A:1003035929216 ). However, little research has been conducted to understand self-regulation in the context of collaboration (Dinsmore et al. in Educ Psychol Rev 20(4):391–409, 2008. doi: 10.1007/s10648-008-9083-6 ). Recently, researchers have been exploring how learners regulate themselves in collaborative problem-solving environments using qualitative methods (e.g. Chan in Metacogn Learn 7(1):63–73, 2012. doi: 10.1007/s11409-012-9086-z ; Lajoie and Lu in Metacogn Learn, 2011. doi: 10.1007/s11409-011-9077-5 ). However, there is a lack of instruments to measure self-regulation in a collaborative context (SRCC). Therefore, the current study was intended to propose a new instrument to measure SRCC. One hundred and thirty-one college students from a Midwestern university completed a survey for SRCC after participating in a collaborative problem-solving task. The exploratory factor analysis yielded four factors: clarification and resolution, elaboration, refuting, and summarization. Three of the four factors were moderately correlated. The results contribute to our understanding of self-regulation in a collaborative context, which allows researchers to study this phenomenon quantitatively.

The role of context in a collaborative problem-solving task during professional development

This article analyses how a group of teachers managed the resources available while performing computer-supported collaborative problem-solving tasks in the context of professional development. The authors video-recorded and analysed collaborative sessions during which the group of teachers used a digital environment to prepare a pedagogical scenario for subsequent implementation in their schools. The findings provide evidence that some aspects of context management can be explained in terms of explorative (opening problem space) and focused (closing problem space) actions. The results indicate that (a) the focused problem-solving took place when the problem space reached a provisional stability and problem-solvers developed a plan for proceeding with the task, (b) the individual exploration of the context was associated with the process of appropriation of a digital educational environment, and (c) the collective exploration of the context fostered the advancement of collaborative problem-solving and the introduction of new elements in the joint problem space.

Investigating preschoolers' problem solving strategies in computer-mediated collaborative environments

This study aims at investigating gender's influence on the collaborative behaviours among preschoolers in the context of a collaborative problem-solving task with computers. The collaborative task was mediated using the puzzle-solving game Incredible Machine. Their approaches towards the problem-solving task were examined while they worked in one of three gender groups (girls, boys, mixed). In order to classify the verbal interactions during their collaboration, Mercer's and Yelland's model was adopted as a means to understand the cognitive dimension of children's talk around computers. In addition, Inkpen's taxonomy of mouse usage across the group members' was adopted in order to deeply understand their expressed low level interaction styles. Analysis of results demonstrated significant deviations for all gender pairs, which are presented and discussed in detail.

Young children's planning in a collaborative problem-solving task

One important component of collaborative problem solving is the ability to plan one's own action in relation to that of a partner. We presented 3- and 5-year-old peer pairs with two different tool choice situations in which they had to choose complementary tools with which to subsequently work on a collaborative problem-solving apparatus. In the bidirectional condition, exemplars of the two necessary tools appeared in front of each child. In the unidirectional condition, one child had to choose between two different tools first, while the other child had only one tool available. Thus, both conditions required close attention to the actions of the partner, but the unidirectional condition additionally required the anticipation of the partner's constrained tool choice. Five-year-olds were proficient planners in both conditions, whereas 3-year-olds did not consistently make the correct choice. However, 3-year-olds who had first experienced the unidirectional condition chose the correct tool at an above-chance level. Moreover, communication during the tool choice led to greater success among 3-year-olds, but not among 5-year-olds. These results provide the first experimental evidence that between 3 and 5 years of age children develop the ability to plan the division of labor in a collaborative task. We discuss our findings regarding planning for a collaborative task in relation to prior research on planning abilities for individual problem-solving that appear to undergo developmental change between 3 and 5 years of age.

COLLABORATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING AND THE ASSESSMENT OF COGNITIVE SKILLS: PSYCHOMETRIC CONSIDERATIONS

ABSTRACTCollaboration is generally recognized as a core competency of today's knowledge economy and has taken a central role in recent theoretical and technological developments in education research. Yet, the methodology for assessing the learning benefits of collaboration continues to rely on educational tests designed for isolated individuals. Thus, what counts as evidence of learning does not correspond to current best practices for teaching, and it does not reflect what students are ultimately expected to be able to do with their knowledge. The goals of this paper are to give an overview of the research conducted in several fields of work related to collaboration, propose a framework for the assessment of cognitive skills (such as science or math) through collaborative problem‐solving tasks, and propose several statistical approaches to model the data collected from collaborative interactions. This research contributes to the knowledge needed to support a new generation of assessments based on collaboration.

Collaborative Problem Solving in Young Typical Development and HFASD

Collaborative problem solving (CPS) requires sharing goals/attention and coordinating actions-all deficient in HFASD. Group differences were examined in CPS (HFASD/typical), with a friend versus with a non-friend. Participants included 28 HFASD and 30 typical children aged 3-6years and their 58 friends and 58 non-friends. Groups were matched on CA, MA, IQ, and maternal education. The CPS task was placing pairs of blocks to balance scales. HFASD preschoolers solved the problem slower, showed more irrelevant behaviors, shared less, and used fewer coordinative gestures than TYP. But they were more responsive and had more fun with friends versus non-friends. In addition, they solved the problem more efficiently during their second attempt. Implications are discussed, regarding the social deficit of HFASD.

A collaborative medical case authoring environment based on the UMLS

In this paper, we present a novel collaborative authoring tool that was designed to allow medical teachers to formalize and visualize their knowledge for medical intelligent tutoring systems. Our goal is to increase the efficiency and effectiveness in creating the domain model representing the problem solution—often referred to as the bottleneck in developing intelligent tutoring systems. We incorporate the Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) knowledge base to assist the authors in creating the problem solution collaboratively via a videoconferencing platform. The system consists of a shared workspace gathering information visualization and tools necessary for collaborative problem-solving tasks. We found that the authoring tool can be used to effectively elicit the knowledge structure of the domain model. This was achieved in hours compared to months for the conventional paper-based approach.

Introducing objects in spoken dialogue: The influence of conversational setting and cognitive load on the articulation and use of referring expressions

In this paper we report the results of a study to investigate the influence of conversational setting and cognitive load (as implemented by time pressure) on the introduction of new information in two-party spontaneous dialogues. We show that for a collaborative problem-solving task, The Map Task, cognitive load and conversational setting influenced the way interlocutors collaborated with one another when introducing objects into a discourse. Interlocutors used fewer question-form introductions followed by an informative response in a video-mediated conversational setting (compared with a face-to-face setting), and under time pressure (compared with no pressure of time). In contrast, speakers tended to articulate words referring to the same object more quickly on repetition irrespective of the conversational setting or the cognitive load associated with the task. The findings of this study are interpreted in terms of a dual-process account of speech production (Bard et al., 2000).

Does social sensitivity influence collaborative problem solving in children? A preliminary investigation

AbstractThis study explores whether social sensitivity influences children’s problem solving skills or learning after collaboration with a peer. Most research into the impact of collaborative problem solving on individual skills demonstrates that the problem solving skills an individual brings to the collaborative process are a key factor in predicting the presencelabsence of cognitive change. Only recently have other attributes and/or skills, such as social or interpersonal sensitivity, been considered within this framework. This study investigates whether interpersonal sensitivity contributes to differential outcomes in learning after collaborative problem solving. One hundred 8-year-old children participated in a pre-test/collaboration/post-test design study where four groups based on pre-test problem solving ability (high/low) and pre-test social sensitivity scores (high/low) were constructed for the collaborative problem solving task. Low ability/high sensitivity children showed pre- to post-test improvement in their problem solving when paired with high ability children. Social sensitivity only predicted final problem solving in high sensitivity children. Pre-test and collaborative problem solving levels predicted post-test problem solving for children classified as high problem solving/high sensitivity. Results are discussed in relation to how social sensitivity may differentially affect the problem solving skills of children with different patterns of ability.

Interactions between children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and their mothers.

To determine the degree to which mothers of children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) show an overprotective or highly controlling interaction style. We videotaped 84 mother-child pairs (42 JRA and 42 healthy, ages 6 to 13) while working on a collaborative problem-solving task. Based on physical therapy evaluations, children in the JRA group were assigned to "more severe" (n = 19) and "milder" (n = 22) arthritis subgroups. Results showed numerous differences between mothers of children with more severe arthritis and the other mothers (no differences between the milder arthritis and healthy comparison groups were found). Compared to mothers in the other two groups, mothers of children with more severe arthritis were more directive of their children's behavior during the task, showing higher rates of structure and rule setting, general clues, and prompting the child for an answer. Sequential analyses showed that mothers in the more severe group appeared to treat the task in a more evaluative manner, being more likely than other mothers to respond to correct answers with positive feedback and to incorrect answers with structure and rule setting. Mothers in the other groups were more likely to respond to both correct and incorrect answers with specific clues. We discuss how these differences in interactional style might impact the social development of children with JRA.

Adapting communicative strategies to computer‐mediated communication: an analysis of task performance and dialogue structure

AbstractThis study investigates how people adapt to text‐based computer‐mediated communication (CMC), specifically focusing on how novice users change their communicative strategies over time to achieve effective communication. Twenty pairs of university students completed three collaborative problem‐solving tasks (The Map Task; Brown et al., 1984), over a series of days. Their performance was compared with the results from spoken interactions, taken from the Human Communications Research Centre corpus of Map Task dialogues. Task performance by CMC participants was initially poorer when compared to the performance of spoken interlocutors, but improved as they gained experience of the CMC context. Detailed analysis of the process of communication, using dialogue measures and Conversational Games Analysis (Kowtko et al., 1992), shows that effective communication and collaboration was achieved by users of the CMC system after a relatively moderate amount of experience. Participants in the CMC context changed the way in which they gave instructions and interacted over time. They adopted a precise, highly specified style of giving directions which required little interpretation by addressees. This concise style of communication is rarely found in face‐to‐face or spoken interactions. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Types of feedback in a computer-based collaborative problem-solving group task

This study measured collaborative problem-solving processes and outcomes in a computer-based knowledge mapping environment. One hundred and twenty Asian American high school students were randomly assigned to be either a group leader, whose responsibility was to construct the map, or a group searcher, whose responsibility was to seek information and access feedback from a Web environment. Each group was randomly assigned to a feedback condition (knowledge of response feedback or adapted knowledge of response feedback). Results showed that adapted knowledge of response feedback was significantly more beneficial than knowledge of response feedback. Further, most of the study hypotheses were supported regarding the relationship between problem-solving processes and outcomes.

Face-to-face and video-mediated communication: A comparison of dialogue structure and task performance.

This article examined communication and task performance in face-to-face, copresent, and video-mediated communication (VMC). Study 1 showed that when participants in a collaborative problem-solving task could both see and hear each other, the structure of their dialogues differed compared with dialogues obtained when they only heard each other. The audio-only conversations had more words, and these extra utterances often provided and elicited verbal feedback functions, which visual signals can deliver when available. Study 2, however, showed that high-quality VMC did not appear to deliver the same benefits as face-to-face, copresent interaction. It appears that novelty, attenuation, and remoteness all may have contributed to the effects found factors that should be considered by designers of remote video-conferencing systems.