This study aims to investigate to what extent the implementation of concept cards in Religious and Geography education promotes a conversation that contributes to the understanding of subject-specific concepts.  The aim theory is the socio-cultural perspective and the theoretical concepts are: collaborative learning and collaborative support. It is a qualitative method that has been implemented that consists of interviews, observations, and tests. Two different schools are involved in this study and six lessons are observed. There are also a total of 8 pupils who are interviewed twice, which corresponds to a total of 16 interviews in both schools. To investigate the purpose of the study there will be a couple of questions that must be answered before answering the main question: ‘’How do pupils expiernce working with subject-specific concepts in Religious and Geography education?’’, ‘’How do pupils experience working with concept cards in Religious and Geography education?’’, ‘’How do the conversations with concept cards work based on the observations in Religious and Geography education?’’ and ‘’How is the pupils’ understanding of concepts change through the course of the intervention in Religious and Geography education?’’.  After these questions have been answered, it will be possible to also answer the main question of the study: ‘’To what extent do concept card discussions in Religious and Geography education promote pupils' understanding of subject-specific concepts?’’   The results of this study show that all pupils describe a similar experience of the teaching, that developing conceptual understanding does not permeate the teaching. Pupils learn concepts by reading concept definitions in the textbooks or listening to classmates' or teachers' definitions. In this way, the pupils may not get the opportunity to develop their understanding of concepts, which is also made visible in the pre-tests. The results of the study point to, with the help of the pupils' interviews, the test results, and what has been noticed during the observations, that the majority of the pupils are given the opportunity to be able to develop their understanding of concepts to a great extent by conversing in groups. The results of the study indicate that concept card discussions promote that many pupils’ develop a developed understanding of subject-specific concepts in Religious and Geography education.

Studien belyser gymnasieelevers upplevelser och erfarenheter av grupparbete och beskriver ur ett fenomenologiskt perspektiv hur gymnasieelever ser möjligheter och utmaningar med grupparbete som undervisningsmetod samt hur deras erfarenheter av grupparbete kan bidra till lärares planering och genomförande av grupparbeten i undervisningen. Grupparbete är ett rikt beforskat område och som ofta får ett didaktiskt fokus. Denna studie vill ge utrymme för gymnasieelevers tankar om grupparbete då deras röst är underrepresenterad i tidigare forskning om grupparbete. I kvalitativa intervjuer berättar sjutton elever från gymnasiets teoretiska program om hur de uppfattar grupparbete. I en tolkande, induktiv och tematisk analys framträder gymnasieelevers syn på gruppindelning, gruppsammansättning samt gruppens arbetsfördelning och arbetssätt. Studien söker teoretiskt stöd i kooperativa och kollaborativa lärteorier samt Lewins fältteori om grupper. Resultaten visar att aktiva och ansvarstagande gruppmedlemmar ger ett positiv ömsesidigt beroende medan en ojämn arbetsfördelning och olika ambitionsnivåer ger ett negativt ömsesidigt beroende i grupparbeten. Vidare bör gruppindelningen vara genomtänkt för att gruppsammansättningen ska accepteras av eleverna. Resultaten synliggör att gruppstyrning och ansvar för att motivera andra gruppkamrater ofta faller på eleverna utan att föregås av träning i gruppdynamik eller organisering. Förvånansvärt ofta framträder en bild av grupparbete som en samling uppdelade individuella uppgifter, vilket eleverna inte anser vara grupparbete. Eleverna berättar att grupparbete bidragit positivt till personlig utveckling och att lärdomarna kan användas både i och utanför skolan samt i kommande arbetsliv och studier. Eleverna uttrycker en önskan om mer återkoppling på och reflektion över gruppdynamiken i grupparbetet. För framtida forskning kan det vara intressant att kartlägga hur lärare arbetar systematiskt med utvärdering av samarbete i grupparbeten samt undersöka effekter av proaktiv samarbetsträning i samband med grupparbete. / The study sheds light on upper secondary school students' experiences of group work and describes from a phenomenological perspective how they perceive opportunities and challenges with group work as a teaching method and how their experiences of group work can contribute to teachers' planning and use of group work. Group work is a richly researched area, largely focused on the didactic aspect. This study wants to provide space for upper secondary school students' thoughts about group work in school as their voices are underrepresented in previous research on group work. In qualitative interviews, seventeen students from the upper secondary school's theoretical program talk about how they perceive group work. In an interpretive, inductive and thematic analysis, the students' views on group division, group composition and the group's division of work and working methods emerge. The theoretical framework consists of cooperative and collaborative learning theories as well as Lewin's field theory. The results show that active and responsible group members work in positive interdependence, while uneven division of labour and different levels of ambition lead to negative interdependence in group work. Furthermore, the group composition should be well thought out in order to gain acceptance by the students. Group management and responsibility for motivating other group peers often fall on the students without being preceded by training in group dynamics or organization. Surprisingly often, group work is designed as a collection of divided individual tasks, which the students do not consider to be group work. The students believe that group work contributes positively to personal development and that the acquired group work skills can be used both inside and outside the school as well as in future working life and studies. The students ask for more feedback and reflection on the group dynamics in the group work. For future research, it may be interesting to map how teachers work systematically with evaluation of collaboration in group work and to investigate the effects of proactive collaborative training in connection with group work.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Curriculum Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020 / Group Work Learning (GWL) has, over the past thirty years, grown in popularity as a pedagogy in Higher Education across the world, and has widely been documented as a more effective pedagogy in comparison to individualistic learning. However, research studies also warn against the uninformed use of GWL and the negative results thereof. Within popular modes of GWL such as cooperative learning, team because their use has proven to yield success and positive results. It is within this context that the study sought to reflect on the practices of GWL at the University of Limpopo with the view to arrive at refined contextual approaches- approaches that would be reflective and context driven. The study adopted a qualitative research approach, which is anchored in the interpretive research paradigm, and employed a descriptive and exploratory case study design to address the existing knowledge gaps. Semi-structured interviews with eight lecturers from the four faculties at University of Limpopo, observations with eight student groups and informal conversations with the eight student groups were used to collect data for the study. The key findings of the study were as follows: 1) Practitioners in the study did not employ any particular elements, guidelines, principles, models or theories to underpin their use of GWL as a teaching and learning strategy and 2) Individual and group accountability, poor participation and group dynamics remained a challenge in the use of GWL. The additional sub-findings were: 1) The intended or required learning was clearly articulated but focused mainly on learning content and minimally on skills development, values and attitudes, 2) Group formation and group size varied from group to group depending on class size and did not consider context. 3) Practitioners thought there was a need for the improvement of GWL, 4) The study identified challenges and possibilities for improvement. Based on these findings, I propose a guided, reflective and contextual approach to GWL that is cyclic in character, places the reflectiveness and context of the practices at the center of the process and in which the approach further connects the practices to all the other components that are key to GWL, namely: clear intended learning outcomes that are inclusive of skills, values and attitudes; clear task instruction; elements or guidelines underpinned by relevant group learning theories or models; as well as clear measures to xiii foster accountability. Group formation and group size based on a clear rationale, as well as continuous reflection on the process with a view to improving and refining the practices. Such an approach is likely to provide the student groups with some framework on how to learn together and complete their tasks/assignments and projects in a manner which is accountable.

Syftet med studien är att identifiera hur såväl framgångsrika förutsättningar som praktiska tillämpningarskapas av lärarutbildare när det gäller lärarstudenters digitala kollaborativa lärande i matematikundervisningpå distans. Studien genomfördes med utgångspunkt i ett aktionsforskningsarbete, därempirin inhämtades genom skriftliga reflektioner samt enkätfrågor av sluten och öppen karaktär. Iaktionsforskningsarbetet kombinerades ett konferensverktyg och en yta för samarbete online för attskapa en lärande gemenskap i matematikdidaktik inom högre utbildning. Med hjälp av ramverketcommunity of inquiry undersöktes studenters och lärarutbildares presence, närvaro, som uppstår iläromiljön online. När det gäller utvecklingen av kursdesign och innehåll går det att dra slutsatsen attcommunity of inquiry främst uppfyller cognitive presence medan teaching presence behöver förstärkas.När det gäller de känslor som lärarutbildare och studenter förnimmer vid kollaborativa kursmomenti matematikdidaktisk undervisning online går det att dra slutsatsen att både positiva och negativakänslor kan gynna lärandet. Det behövs insatser för att bemöta frustration i olika former hosbåde studenter och lärarutbildare. / The purpose of the study is to explore how helpful conditions such as practical applications are createdby teacher educators regarding student teachers' digital collaborative learning in online mathematicseducation. The study was carried out based on an action research project, where the empiricalevidence was obtained through written reflections and survey questions of a closed and open nature.In the action research a conference tool and an online collaboration surface were combined to createa learning community in mathematics didactics online in higher education. Using the community ofinquiry framework, the presence of students and teacher educators in the online learning environmentwas investigated. When it comes to the development of course design and content, it can beconcluded that the community of inquiry primarily fulfils cognitive presence while teaching presenceneeds to be strengthened. When it comes to the emotions that teacher educators and students feelduring collaborative course elements in online mathematics didactic teaching, it can be concludedthat both positive and negative emotions can benefit learning. Efforts are needed to respond to frustrationin various forms among both students and teacher educators.

This study explores the influence of collaborative learning on motivation and speaking anxiety in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom for young learners. The study highlights a crucial research aspect by examining the role of collaborative learning in addressing speaking anxiety. The research question is explored by multiple investigators, and Lundahl's (2022) groundbreaking work particularly stands out, emphasising the vital role of collaborative learning in education. Building on this foundation, Fenyvesi's (2020) study on Danish learners aligns with these collaborative learning findings, emphasising the importance of fostering positive attitudes from the early stages of language acquisition. Kopinska and Azakari's (2020) study of collaborative reconstruction tasks provides a task-based perspective, illustrating the positive impact on motivation and a preference for collaboration. Nilsson's (2019) research reveals several triggers of speaking anxiety amongst Swedish learners, emphasising the role of classroom situations. Collaborative learning relieves speaking anxiety, as highlighted by Nilsson (2019) and supported by Bozkurt and Aydin's (2023) study involving 34 EFL students. Pladevall-Balusters (2019) study in Catalonia, Spain, compares motivation levels in traditional and Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) settings, acknowledging the potential and challenges of CLIL. The result of this study shows that collaborative learning has a positive impact on young EFL learners' motivation and speaking anxiety in English classes. It reduces anxiety, increases confidence, and fosters a supportive classroom atmosphere, ultimately contributing to improved motivation and vocabulary acquisition.

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De senaste årens tekniska utveckling på datorområdet har även gett återverkningar inom distansutbildningen. Den nya Informationstekniken (IT) har används mest för att utveckla kommunikationen mellan lärare och studenter på distansutbildningarna. I utgångsläget har tekniken alltså används för att underlätta arbetet inom kurserna, inte för att utveckla metoder för hur undervisning ska bedrivas. Elektroniskt lärande (e-learning) kan förklaras som ”Teknikbaserat lärande” (technology-based learning) och innefattar all form av undervisning som sker med hjälp av elektroniska media. Betoningen på lärande visar att tyngdpunkten förflyttats från hur utbildningen genomförs, till ett innehåll i utbildningen. Det finns behov av förbättringar för effektivare e-lärande inom distansutbildning. Samarbete och gemensam arbetsuppgift anses vara till hjälp vid lärande. I hög grad sker utbildning och dialog inom distansundervisning och e-lärande asynkront. Detta innebär att deltagarna inte samtidigt har direktkommunikation med varandra utan kommunikationen sker i med e-post.För att kunna möta möjligheterna till effektivare e-lärande borde en möjlighet till synkront kollaborativt arbete över gemensam arbetsyta vara av intresse.Syftet med projektet var att utveckla en synkron kollaborativ bild- och textbaserad applikation för e-lärande. Baserad på forskaren inom kognitionsvetenskap Maria Larssons rapport om fem faktorer för effektivare e-lärande samt utvärdera dessa genom en prototyp. Applikationen var tänkt att användas vid ett moment i ämnet "Organisationskommunikation" inom en distanskurs, där studenterna skulle bilda sig en uppfattning om en organisations kultur. Applikationen testades vid två tillfällen, först som ett koncepttest och därefter som en digitalt konstruerad prototyp. Tre personer deltog vid varje testtillfälle.Koncepttestet genomfördes med observation av deltagarna med dokumenterad ljudinspelning av dialogen samt efterföljande intervjufrågor. Prototyptestet utfördes med observation och med ”think-aloud” metoden samt intervjufrågor. Här skedde dokumentationen med hjälp av ljudinspelning samt skärmdumpar.Utvärderingen utgjordes av observation och intervjuer med testdeltagarna och visade att applikationen till stor del baserades på Maria Larssons fem faktorer. Min slutsats är att det varit möjligt att utveckla en applikation som till stor del baseras på de fem faktorerna och att konceptet samt prototypen kan vidareutvecklas. Värdet av ett par enstaka test kan vara begränsat då det enbart gällt sex personer. Utökade testsessioner med flera olika grupper hade kunnat ge mer tillförlitliga resultat. Jag finner att det är angeläget med fortsatt forskning angående inlärning via Internet. / The technological development during the recent past, i.e. information technology (IT), has presented new possibilities for distance learning. IT has, so far, mostly been used to enhance the communication between teachers and students. With e-learning or technology-based learning the emphasis is rather on content in education instead of how education is performed. There is a need of improvements for more efficient e-learning within distance learning. The objectives of this study were to develop synchronous collaborative software application, based on five factors for more efficient e-learning, that researcher in cognition science Maria Larsson presented 2001. The software application was evaluated through a case study in a distance course of Organisation communication. The task was how to identify the culture in a specific organisation.The application was tested on two occasions with three participants at each occasion. The first test was as low-tech concept test and the second test was made with the use of the digital prototype. On both occasions the participants reflections was recorded during the test sessions and after the tests interviews were performed with each participant. My conclusions following the evaluation of the observations and the responses to the interviews are that it is possible to develop an application based on the five factors (learning styles, narrative form, collaboration, interaction and feedback) for more efficient e-learning. However, more research and testing are needed.