This degree project investigates the qualitative function of technology in a language learning environment in the south-eastern Skåne region of Sweden. This is done by comparing individual teacher experiences to CSCL theory. The data in the paper is collected through qualitative interviews representing six separate upper-secondary schools in the region. From the results of the paper the conclusion is drawn that the computer-supported classroom environment represents a new and radically different infrastructure and that there seems to be a lack of communication concerning how to best use computer-technology as a productive language-learning tool in the classroom.

This thesis explored the application of Media Synchronicity Theory and its potential for translating Critical Pedagogy (specifically Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed) into a computersupported collaborative work (CSCW) environment. It introduces the Maquina dos Oprimidos (Mados) prototype, a CSCW supplement to traditional asynchronous learning networks. Mados operates as a role-playing debate game, in which students debate a pre-selected prompt while performing assigned character roles. The study explores the prototype's potential to affect student's identification with their assigned character and personal attitude toward the prompt, as well as examining the effect of presence on students' performances. The study was performed with 38 8th grade students. Subjects debated a prompt which proposed a banning cell phones from classrooms. Results show that subjects collaboratively constructed solutions that compromised between both positions, while slightly favoring the antiban position. Results also show that subjects experienced gains in character identification after participating in the task regardless of assigned character, hinting at a separation between perceived similarity to characters and affinity for characters' position. The ability of subjects to defend their assigned character's position while inhabiting their own perspective, that of an 8th grade student, also hints at this separation. Additionally, results indicated correlations between subjects' control factors, a subset measure for presence, and total change in prompt agreement. Other positive correlation exist between subject's reprocessing attempts and task performance, as well as total presence and task performance

This study examined factors that might impact student knowledge sharing within virtual teams through online discussion boards. These factors included: trust, mutual influence, conflict, leadership, and cohesion. A path model was developed to determine whether relationships exist among knowledge sharing from asynchronous group discussion and the above five factors. In addition, this study examined if there are any relationships between quality and quantity of knowledge sharing and students' grades. A correlation design was conducted to discover if there are any relationships among these five factors and knowledge sharing within virtual teams. Participants in this study were 148 undergraduate students from two classes in the Health Services Administration program in the College of Health and Public Affairs. The two classes were asynchronous online courses and both instructors used virtual teaming in their online courses. Online interaction occurred via online discussion boards, email, and online chat rooms. The results indicate that mutual influence and team cohesion are two major factors that directly affect knowledge sharing within virtual teams. Conflict mediates the relationship between trust and knowledge sharing. Leadership was also found to have a strong relationship with team cohesion, which then had a relationship with knowledge sharing. As far as the relationship between quality and quantity of knowledge sharing and the student's grade, it was found that there is relationship between the quantity of knowledge sharing and students' grades, however, no significant relationship exists between quality of knowledge sharing and students' grades. The implications of this research for use of virtual teams in online distance education are also discussed.

According to Sundstrom (1999), performing teams conduct “complex, time-limited engagements with audiences in performance events for which teams maintain specialized, collective skill” (p. 20). Musical ensembles have been included in team research on orchestral leadership, yet as a performing team, the internal connections between musicians have not been studied. The handbell ensemble operates as a performing team while sustaining a prominent degree of interdependence. It is generally unknown how musical performing teams such as the handbell ensemble function and learn interdependently. Using Salas et al.’s (2005) Big Five theory of teamwork as a theoretical lens, I conducted a case study of a community handbell ensemble to understand: (a) how interdependent team interactions of team leadership, mutual performance monitoring, backup behavior, adaptability, and/or team orientation contribute to the function of and learning within this handbell ensemble and (b) how interdependent team interactions of shared mental models, closed-loop communication, and/or mutual trust contribute to the function of and learning within this handbell ensemble. The case was limited to one handbell ensemble known as the Campana Ringers, a group who performed for a community church. Members included their director and 13 ringers, one of whom was myself. In individual and group sessions, I interviewed the ensemble director and all team members. Observational and rehearsal notes were coded and primary themes were presented through the core components and coordinating mechanisms of the Big Five theory of teamwork (Salas et al., 2005). Secondary themes emerged connected to the uniqueness of handbell playing and co-mentoring occurring in the ensemble. In data from my findings, I recognized all elements of the Big Five theory were present in interactions between handbell ensemble members. Implications from this case study are connected to co-mentoring, a type of collaborative learning utilizing reciprocal teaching and learning (Mullen, 2005). Findings from this study may inform music educators in community and school settings who wish to develop or incorporate components of teamwork and co-mentoring practices into their ensembles.

Thesis advisor: Ana M. Martínez Alemán / This qualitative research study examined the design of collaborative learning experiences in an online graduate course in educational leadership. Based on principles of design-based research, this single case study analyzed the design process among the faculty member and learning design team who created the course. Data were also gathered from the first time the course was completed by students. Content analysis was the primary method to analyze data sources that included design documentation, interviews with faculty and the learning design team, images of course modules in the university Learning Management System, transcripts of synchronous learning exchanges among students and the faculty, team-based assignment submissions, and a survey of students. Findings revealed that the design of collaborative learning experiences was dependent on the nature of the learning goals. The instructor oriented students toward the collaborative culture of the online course and employed numerous learning supports and facilitation strategies to aid them. Collaborative learning design was rooted in the learning sciences, social interdependence theory, and the conceptualization of the virtual classroom as a space for play and creativity. Student collaboration involved synthesis of readings, team-based design exercises, and supporting each other in making progress towards program-level goals. Students regularly engaged in metacognitive activity to reflect on their learning individually and as a collective. Students found the learning supports valuable and collaborative learning experiences challenging but affirming of their identities as graduate students. This study contributes to theory about designing and facilitating online collaborative learning in graduate programs and offers design considerations to guide future efforts in learning design. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2023. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

The purpose of this study was to measure the impact of caregiver-student collaborative learning classes on an urban community. The study examined whether the self-efficacy of the caregivers increased with helping their children with school work due to the caregiver-student classes. The study also examined whether providing access to a resource not normally provided within this particular community led to increased self-efficacy within caregivers. The research questions that guided the study were as follows: How do collaborative caregiver-student classes that focus on collaborative strategies impact the self-efficacy of the caregivers in helping their children with school work? How does increasing access to educational services impact the self-efficacy of the caregivers who participate in collaborative caregiver-student classes? The researcher collected data through classroom observations, reflections from participants, and an initial focus group and closing individual interview. Classes were taught by a co-teacher selected by the researcher with the input of the principal. Four total sessions were held, three of which included the teaching of collaborative learning strategies, and the last of which was an individual interview. Overall, data indicated increased self-efficacy within caregivers. The caregiver roles within the neighborhood proved not to always be between an adult and child, but rather cousins and siblings who may have been close in age. Families within the neighborhood exchanged care in different ways according to their culture, work demands, and family dynamic. This program led to strengthened relationships between home and school, as well as enhanced self-efficacy and stronger relationships between caregivers and students.

With the rapid development of the Internet, increasingly universities and colleges transfer some of their teaching assignments online. Online learning plays an important role in assisting or sometimes substituting for the traditional face-toace learning. An online message board is one of several online communication tools which are used to assist online learning. We have conducted a study on the role of the online message board in teaching one of these courses, an introductory course in calculus-based physics. The study analyzed students? use of the message board and investigated whether use is correlated with performance in the class. Results suggest that students have benefited from using the online message board. Both homework related message board activities and non-learning message boardn activities were found to be correlated significantly to the grades the students earned in the course.

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Skill sets such as understanding and applying computational concepts are essential prerequisites for success in the 21st century. One can learn computational concepts by taking a traditional course offered in a school or by self-guided learning through an online platform. Collaborative learning has emerged as an approach that researchers have found to be generally applicable and effective for teaching computational concepts. Rather than learning individually, collaboration can help reduce the anxiety level of learners, improve understanding and create a positive atmosphere to learning Computational Thinking (CT). There is, however, limited research focusing on how natural collaborative interactions among learners manifest during learning of computational concepts. Structured as a manuscript style dissertation, this doctoral study investigates three different but related aspects of novice learners collaboratively learning CT. The first manuscript (qualitative study) provides an overall understanding of the contextual factors and characterizes collaborative aspects of learning in a CT face-to-face classroom at a large Southeastern University. The second manuscript (qualitative study) investigates the social interaction occurring between group members of the same classroom. And the third manuscript (quantitative study) focuses on the relationship between different social interactions initiated by users and learning of CT in an online learning platform Scratch™. In the two diverse settings, Chi's (2009) Differentiated Overt Learning Activities (DOLA) has been used as a lens to better understand the significance of social interactions in terms of being active, constructive and interactive. Together, the findings of this dissertation study contribute to the limited body of CT research by providing insight on novice learner's attitude towards learning CT, collaborative moments of learning CT, and the differences in relationship between social interactions and learning CT. The identification of collaborative attributes of CT is expected to help educators in designing learning activities that facilitate such interactions within group of learners and look out for traits of such activities to assess CT in both classroom and online settings. / PHD / One of the overarching processes defining the future is the digital revolution, impinging on, reshaping, and transforming our personal and social lives. Computation is at the core of this change and is transforming how problems are defined, and solutions are found and implemented. Computer modeling, simulation and visualization software, Smart grid, and Software Defined Radio, are few examples where computation has allowed us to tackle problems from varied perspectives. Vast domains await discovery and mapping through creative processes of Computational Thinking (CT). CT is the thought process that enables us to effectively work in such a technology driven collaborative society. It provides us the ability to find the right technology for a problem and apply technology to resolve the problem. Skill sets such as understanding and applying computational concepts are essential prerequisites for success in the 21st century. One can learn CT by taking a traditional course offered in a school or by self-guided learning through an online platform. This doctoral study investigates three different but related aspects of how new learners are learning CT. The first qualitative study provides an overall understanding of circumstantial factors that influence the learning in a CT face-to-face classroom at a large Southeastern University. The second qualitative study investigates how students in groups (in the same classroom setting) can help each other to learn CT. And the third quantitative study focuses on users’ learning of CT in an online learning platform Scratch™. Together, the findings of this dissertation study contribute to the limited body of CT research by providing insight on new learner’s attitude towards learning CT, collaborative moments of learning CT, and the differences in the relationship between social interactions and learning CT. The identification of collaborative attributes of CT is expected to help educators in designing learning activities that facilitate such interactions within a group of learners and look out for traits of such activities to assess CT in both classroom and online settings.

Yes / Team-Based Learning (TBL) is a collaborative learning model that refocuses classroom time to solving relevant problems instead of dispensing information. This is accomplished by a pre-class readiness assurance process that promotes accountability to self-directed learning and teamwork. While research related to the student experience with TBL is present in the literature, there is a relative lack of research published on the experiences of academic staff with TBL. Using a qualitative approach and a semi-structured interview format, this study explored the experiences of 26 academic staff in the UK who implemented TBL using a semi-structured interview format. Thematic analysis of interview text yielded five themes related to curriculum design, student outcomes, and the professional development of academic staff. / Supported by a grant from the Regis University Research and Scholarship Council.