A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Interaction Promotes Collaboration and Learning: Video Analysis of Algorithm Visualization Use during Collaborative Learning
Authors: Laakso MJ, Myller N, Korhonen A
Publication year: 2010
Journal: Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing
Journal name in source: WEB INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGIES
Journal acronym: LECT NOTES BUS INF
Volume: 45
First page : 198
Last page: 211
Number of pages: 3
ISBN: 978-3-642-12435-8
ISSN: 1865-1348
We report a study on collaborative learning with Algorithm Visualizations (AV). We have previously confirmed the hypothesis that students' higher engagement has a positive effect on learning outcomes when they learn collaboratively. Thus, in this paper the analysis is targeted on students' collaborative learning process in order to find phenomena that explain the learning improvements. In the video and audio analysis of the learning sessions, we have identified that the amount of collaboration and discussion increase when the level of engagement increases. Furthermore, the groups that used visualizations on higher level of engagement, discussed the learned topic on different levels of abstraction whereas groups that used visualizations on lower levels of engagement tended to concentrate more on only one aspect of the topic. Therefore, one of our conclusions is that the level of engagement indicates, not only the learning performance, but also the amount of on-topic discussions in collaboration. Furthermore, based on previous literature, we claim that the amount and quality of discussions explain the learning performance differences when students use visualizations in collaboration on different levels of engagement.