- Title
- A CSCL script-based technological environment to support in project-based learning
- Creator
- Alharbi, Nada Muhaya
- Relation
- University of Newcastle Research Higher Degree Thesis
- Resource Type
- thesis
- Date
- 2018
- Description
- Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
- Description
- Project-Based Learning (PBL) is an instructional teaching and learning approach that many higher education institutions have embedded into their programs of study. In a PBL environment, students work collaboratively in a group on a specific project for an extended period of time, facilitated by an instructor. Within this context, collaboration is an essential outcome in learning. Collaboration is also regarded as an essential 21st-century skill that students should learn to engage in, experience and practise. Previous studies have identified collaboration in group work as a key challenge in PBL. While PBL students face challenges in effective collaboration, PBL instructors also find themselves not equipped to facilitate and support collaboration effectively. There have been many technological innovations and related research to support and enhance collaboration. However, research has found that, within the PBL context, there are shortcomings in terms of technological solutions and related processes that are able to create an environment in which groups can engage in productive collaborative scenarios. In this study, the researcher takes inspiration from the field of Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) to address this issue. Specifically, an investigation is conducted into the possibility of incorporating CSCL scripts to build a technology-based environment that is able to support collaboration within the PBL environment. CSCL scripts assist groups in carrying out fruitful collaborative scenarios by offering tools and strategies to structure and coordinate collaborative activities within a computer-based learning environment. To conduct this investigation, Design-Based Research (DBR) is employed as the methodological framework for developing such a technological environment involving an iterative cycle of development, implementation, and empirical evaluation. This thesis presents the study as a DBR project in designing a technology-enhanced collaborative PBL environment that is developed in stages and evaluated empirically. A CSCL script-based PBL environment called the Project-Based Learning Activity Designer (PBL-AID) was designed and developed to evaluate the feasibility of utilising CSCL scripts. The environment was evaluated with instructors and students and within real-world classroom environments during the iterative cycles of development. In general, students and instructors, the two main stakeholder groups, have positive feedback and acceptance towards the CSCL-script based technological environment. The design of PBL scenarios based on a CSCL-script enables PBL instructors to reflect on PBL activities, provide clear expectations, and scaffold PBL phases for their project groups. In turn, PBL student groups are provided with clear guidance and scaffolded phases to support project work and encourage productive collaboration when completing their projects. This process was shown to encourage productive teamwork interaction and assist to keep the team on track with their tasks. Moreover, students’ perspectives were evaluated for technology acceptance and collaborative behaviour. While results on students’ technology acceptance were positive, results on collaborative behaviour were inconclusive. Some students considered that certain features of the environment, such as the progress monitoring and feedback process, were additional burdens. Such features need to be undertaken by all members in order to be considered useful. In future, further investigation is warranted on enhancing these features and evaluating the effectiveness of group collaboration in other PBL settings.
- Subject
- project based learning; technology enhanced learning; CSCL scripts; design based research; collaboration
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1389331
- Identifier
- uon:32875
- Rights
- Copyright 2018 Nada Muhaya Alharbi
- Language
- eng
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| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT01 | Thesis | 3 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download | ||
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT02 | Abstract | 287 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |