73,875 research outputs found
Intelligent support for group work in collaborative learning environments
No full textThe delivery of intelligent support for group work is a complex issue in
collaborative learning environments. This particularly pertains to the construction
of effective groups and assessment of collaboration problems. This is because the
composition of groups can be affected by several variables, and various methods
are desirable for ascertaining the existence of different collaboration problems.
Literature has shown that current collaborative learning environments provide
limited or no support for teachers to cope with these tasks. Considering this and the
increasing use of online collaboration, this research aims to explore solutions for
improving the delivery of support for group work in collaborative learning
environments, and thus to simplify how teachers manage collaborative group work.
In this thesis, three aspects were investigated to achieve this goal. The first
aspect emphasises on proposing a novel approach for group formation based on
students‘ learning styles. The novelty and importance of this approach is the
provision of an automatic grouping method that can tailor to individual students‘
characteristics and fit well into the existing collaborative learning environments.
The evaluation activities comprise the development of an add-on tool and an
undergraduate student experiment, which indicate the feasibility and strength of the
proposed approach — being capable of forming diverse groups that tend to perform
more effectively and efficiently than similar groups for conducting group
discussion tasks.
The second focus of this research relates to the identification of major
group collaboration problems and their causes. A nationwide survey was conducted
that reveals a student perspective on the issue, which current literature fails to
adequately address. Based on the findings from the survey, an XML-based
representation was created that provides a unique perspective on the linkages
between the problems and causes identified.
Finally, the focus was then shifted to the proposal of a novel approach for
diagnosing the major collaboration problems identified. The originality and
significance of this approach lies in the provision of various methods for ascertaining the existence of different collaboration problems identified, based on
student interaction data that result from the group work examined. The evaluation
procedure focused on the development of a supporting tool and several
experiments with a test dataset. The results of the evaluation show that the
feasibility and effectiveness are sustained, to a great extent, for the diagnostic
methods addressed.
Besides these main proposals, this research has explored a multi-agent
architecture to unify all the components derived for intelligently managing online
collaborative learning, which suggests an overarching framework providing
context for other parts of this thesis
A Framework for collaborative writing with recording and post-meeting retrieval capabilities
No full textFrom a HCI perspective, elucidating and supporting the context in which collaboration takes place is key to implementing successful collaborative systems. Synchronous collaborative writing usually takes place in contexts involving a “meeting” of some sort. Collaborative writing meetings can be face-to-face or, increasingly, remote Internet-based meetings. The latter presents software developers with the possibility of incorporating multimedia recording and information retrieval capabilities into the collaborative environment. The collaborative writing that ensues can be seen as an activity encompassing asynchronous as well as synchronous aspects. In order for revisions, information retrieval and other forms of post-meeting, asynchronous work to be effectively supported, the synchronous collaborative editor must be able to appropriately detect and record meeting metadata. This paper presents a collaborative editor that supports recording of user actions and explicit metadata production. Design and technical implications of introducing such capabilities are discussed with respect to document segmentation, consistency control, and awareness mechanisms
Assessment of (computer-supported) collaborative learning
No full textWithin the Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CS)CL research community there has been an extensive dialogue on theories and perspectives on learning from collaboration, approaches to scaffold (script) the collaborative process, and most recently research methodology. In contrast, the issue of assessment of collaborative learning has received much less attention. This article discusses how assessment of collaborative learning has been addressed, provides a perspective on what could be assessed, and highlights limitations of current approaches. Since assessment of collaborative learning is a demanding experience for teachers and students alike, they require adequate computer-supported and intelligent tools for monitoring and assessment. A roadmap for the role and application of intelligent tools for assessment of (CS)CL is presented
Methodological challenges for collaborative learning research
No full textResearch on collaborative learning, both face-to-face and computer-supported, has thrived in the past 10 years. The studies range from outcome-oriented (individual and group learning) to process-oriented (impact of interaction on learning processes, motivation and organisation of collaboration) to mixed studies. Collaborative learning research is multi-disciplinary. This introduces a multitude of theoretical accounts for collaborative learning, accompanied by a broad spectrum of methods to study processes and outcomes of collaboration. This special issue will provide an overview of methods that are at the core of current research effort, but also identifies opportunities and problems to sensibly combine methods into mixed method approaches
Exploratory talk within collaborative small groups in mathematics
No full textThis report describes one aspect of a wider research study on exploratory talk within collaborative small groups in secondary mathematics lessons. It outlines students’ views of using collaborative activity to learn mathematics. The fuller research study explores the extent to which exploratory talk occurs in collaborative peer groups in secondary mathematics classrooms
SARS-CoV-2 infection and venous thromboembolism after surgery: an international prospective cohort study
No full textSARS-CoV-2 has been associated with an increased rate of venous thromboembolism in critically ill patients. Since surgical patients are already at higher risk of venous thromboembolism than general populations, this study aimed to determine if patients with peri-operative or prior SARS-CoV-2 were at further increased risk of venous thromboembolism. We conducted a planned sub-study and analysis from an international, multicentre, prospective cohort study of elective and emergency patients undergoing surgery during October 2020. Patients from all surgical specialties were included. The primary outcome measure was venous thromboembolism (pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis) within 30 days of surgery. SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis was defined as peri-operative (7 days before to 30 days after surgery); recent (1-6 weeks before surgery); previous (>= 7 weeks before surgery); or none. Information on prophylaxis regimens or pre-operative anti-coagulation for baseline comorbidities was not available. Postoperative venous thromboembolism rate was 0.5% (666/123,591) in patients without SARS-CoV-2; 2.2% (50/2317) in patients with peri-operative SARS-CoV-2; 1.6% (15/953) in patients with recent SARS-CoV-2; and 1.0% (11/1148) in patients with previous SARS-CoV-2. After adjustment for confounding factors, patients with peri-operative (adjusted odds ratio 1.5 (95%CI 1.1-2.0)) and recent SARS-CoV-2 (1.9 (95%CI 1.2-3.3)) remained at higher risk of venous thromboembolism, with a borderline finding in previous SARS-CoV-2 (1.7 (95%CI 0.9-3.0)). Overall, venous thromboembolism was independently associated with 30-day mortality (5.4 (95%CI 4.3-6.7)). In patients with SARS-CoV-2, mortality without venous thromboembolism was 7.4% (319/4342) and with venous thromboembolism was 40.8% (31/76). Patients undergoing surgery with peri-operative or recent SARS-CoV-2 appear to be at increased risk of postoperative venous thromboembolism compared with patients with no history of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Optimal venous thromboembolism prophylaxis and treatment are unknown in this cohort of patients, and these data should be interpreted accordingly
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Online Profiles and Unique Author Identifiers
No full textPresentation for the Cross Timbers Library Collaborative (CTLC) Scholarly Communications and Digital Curation (SCDC) Affinity Group 2013 Winter Meeting. This presentation discusses online profiles and unique author identifiers, their importance, features, and strategies for successfully using them
An Exploration of Communication Strategies for Effectively Organizing and Managing Collaborative Grant Writing Groups
No full textThe present research explored approaches to collaborative grant writing, as little is known about the details or range of variation in the processes that are currently deployed by professionals working within this context. Findings were used to build a typology of the roles specific to collaborative grant writing groups, provide a discussion of ideal group composition and leadership, and to identify and suggest ten best practice strategies for organizing and managing group dynamics and tasks during the phases of the collaborative writing process
The Essential Nature of a Collaborative Practice Group for Successful Collaborative Lawyers
No full textThe important need for a strong collaborative practice group in order for collaborative practitioners to operate successfully is often not fully acknowledged. A research project undertaken to examine the delivery of Collaborative Practice (CP) services in family law by the authors identified the various roles for collaborative practice groups and the support they offer practitioners. The research took an exploratory approach, investigating the experiences of private CP service providers in a major regional city in South West Queensland and in metropolitan Sydney NSW. The research found that the role of the practice group was an essential aspect for maintaining and developing the professional learning community that is integral to a thriving community of Collaborative practitioners
The effect of functional roles on perceived group efficiency during computer-supported collaborative learning
No full textIn this article, the effect of functional roles on group performance and collaboration during computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) is investigated. Especially the need for triangulating multiple methods is emphasised: Likert-scale evaluation questions, quantitative content analysis of e-mail communication and qualitative analysis of open-ended questions were used. A comparison of fourty-one questionnaire observations, distributed over thirteen groups in two research conditions – groups with prescribed functional roles (n = 7, N = 18) and nonrole groups (n = 6, N = 23) – revealed no main effect for performance (grade). Principal axis factoring of the Likert-scales revealed a latent variable that was interpreted as perceived group efficiency (PGE). Multilevel modelling (MLM) yielded a positive marginal effect of PGE. Most groups in the role condition report a higher degree of PGE than nonrole groups. Content analysis of e-mail communication of all groups in both conditions (role n = 7, N = 25; nonrole n = 6, N = 26) revealed that students in role groups contribute more ‘coordination’ focussed statements. Finally, results from cross case matrices of student responses to open-ended questions support the observed marginal effect that most role groups report a higher degree of perceived group efficiency than nonrole groups
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