The Community of Inquiry (CoI) framework has been widely used in blended and online educational research, more recently being applied also to social media settings. This paper explores the learning community created in such a social media-based educational environment, using an extended version of CoI, which includes four components: cognitive…

The Computer Information Systems Learning and Technology Sandbox (CIS Sandbox) opened as a collaborative learning lab during the fall 2011 semester at a New England business university. The facility employs 24 student workers, who, in addition to providing core tutoring services, are encouraged to explore new technologies and take on special…

Information and communications technology (ICT) is affecting every part of our society. Education is no exception, but here the impact of ICT is fragmented at best. The purpose of this article is to conceptualize and develop the idea of the smart classroom that integrates emerging information technologies with advanced pedagogies. System…

Interactive tabletops are gaining increased attention from CSCL researchers. This paper analyses the relation between this technology and teaching and learning processes. At a global level, one could argue that tabletops convey a socio-constructivist flavor: they support small teams that solve problems by exploring multiple solutions. The…

The paper traces a research process in the design and development of a science learning environment called WiMVT (web-based inquirer with modeling and visualization technology). The WiMVT system is designed to help secondary school students build a sophisticated understanding of scientific conceptions, and the science inquiry process, as well as…

This article reviews the research and evidence about multi-touch tables to provide an analysis of their key design features and capabilities and how these might relate to their use in educational settings to support collaborative learning. A typology of design features is proposed as a synthesis of the hardware and physical characteristics of the…

The majority of an engineer's time in the software industry is spent working with other programmers. Agile methods of software development like eXtreme Programming strongly rely upon practices like daily meetings and pair programming. Hence, the need to learn the skill of working collaboratively is of primary importance for software developers.…

In this study, a Surface Computer Supported Cooperative Work paradigm is proposed. Recently, multitouch technology has become widely available for human-computer interaction. We found it has great potential to facilitate more awareness of human-to-human interaction than personal computers (PCs) in colocated collaborative work. However, other…

Today, the Internet plays a major role in distributing learning material within third level education. Multiple online facilities provide access to educational resources. While early systems relied on webpages, which acted as repositories for learning material, nowadays sophisticated online applications manage and deliver learning resources.…

Several researchers have studied the impact of collaboration between the learners on their cognitive levels, but few studies have been carried out on the impact of collaboration between the teachers. The aim of our research is to study the effects on the knowledge levels of learners of collaborative construction of learning objects created by the…

This study critically reviews the recently published scientific literature on the design and impact of adaptive and intelligent systems for collaborative learning support (AICLS) systems. The focus is threefold: 1) analyze critical design issues of AICLS systems and organize them under a unifying classification scheme, 2) present research evidence…

This paper explores the potential of Semantic Web technologies to support teaching and learning in a variety of higher education settings in which some form of case-based learning is the pedagogy of choice. It draws on the empirical work of a major three year research and development project in the United Kingdom: "Ensemble: Semantic…

Within the field of Mobile Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (mCSCL), we are interested in exploring the space of collaborative activities that enable students to practice communication, negotiation and decision-making skills. Collaboration is via learning activities that circumvent the constraints of fixed seating or locations of…

Argumentation is an important skill to learn. It is valuable not only in many professional contexts, such as the law, science, politics, and business, but also in everyday life. However, not many people are good arguers. In response to this, researchers and practitioners over the past 15-20 years have developed software tools both to support and…

This paper presents a methodology of discovering social action patterns in collaborative learning activities for use in improving activity design, and in particular for restructuring existing designs involving face-to-face social actions to enhance their social dynamics and thus better ensure the achievement of a specified aim. An activity in this…