CSCL_SLA_Mag

Computer SupportedCollaborative Learningand Second LanguageAcquisition Carmen Collado Ortega Veronica Gianetti David Cowell

What is Computer Supported Collaborative Learning(CSCL)?Although a distinction can be made between co-operativeand collaborative learning (Stahl, 2006), the two termsare often treated as meaning the same and they areregarded as synonymous in the presentation.Although CSCL is a relatively recent educational trend,teachers familiar with pair work, group work, or role-playing activities will recognise that Co-operative learningin one form or another has taken place in classrooms forover thirty years.Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) also madeits debut around about the same time. However, earlyCALL practices were built upon strong behaviourist andcognitivist principles and were centred around learnersworking in isolation, making progress through individualinteraction with a computer.More recently, when digital technologies were added toco-operative activities and co-operative activities wereadded to the use of digital technology in the classroom,CSCL was born.

What learning theory underlies CSCL?The main learning theory which underlies CSCL is socialconstructivism derived from Vygotsky's ZPD (1978) whichsees social interaction as a key to successful learning. Italso involves problem-based learning and collaborationstheories.Basic Principles of Cooperative LearningThe eight basic principles of collaborative learning in theclassroom (Jacobs, Power, & Loh, 2002, cited in Apple,2006) are: 1 Cooperation as a value; 2 Heterogeneousgrouping; 3 Positive interdependence; 4 Individualaccountability; 5 Simultaneous interaction; 6 Equalparticipation; 7 Collaborative skills; 8 Group autonomyAccording to Apple (2006), following eight CL principleswill promote learners' autonomy and encourage them totake responsibility for their learning. Cooperation,because of its high community and workplace value is thefirst of these principles. Heterogeneous Groupingprovides situations which afford more learningopportunities because of different skill levels, interestsmotivation, experience, and social backgrounds amongstgroup members. Positive Interdependence and IndividualAccountability encourage a sense of 'all for one, one forall.' Likewise, Simultaneous Interaction and EqualParticipation are fundamental to successful collaboration.Finally, a certain degree of Group Autonomy transfersresponsibility onto learners for, and allows them to make,real choices and decisions.

Collaborative Development of an Artifact or Problem-solving and the Effects on Learning . (Based on Apple, 2006) Group GoalsMotivation to learn Motivation to encourage Motivation to help groupmates to learn groupmates to learnElaborated explanations (peer teaching) Peer modelling Cognitive elaboration Peer assessment and correction Enhanced learningThe outcome of most CSCL activities is the \"developmentof shared knowledge artifacts\" , like a power-point orvideo presentation, or a report, based upon \"knowledgenegotiation and iterative group design, [and] discussion\"(Roggenkamp, 2009).Problem solving, or as often the case in CSCL projects, atangible goal such as the development of an artifact, canlead to enhanced learning . It increases learners' self-motivation, and the motivation to help and encouragegroup members. In turns, this can lead to greatercognitive elaboration and more peer teaching, modelling,assessment, and correction.

What do you remember?1. What main learning theoryunderlies CSCL?a. Behaviourismb. Cognitivismc. Social constructivism

YesThe main learning theorywhich underlies CSCL isSocial Constructivism

What do you remember?2. Which of these is not one ofthe 8 basic principles ofcollaborative learning?a. Heterogeneous groupingb. Positive interdependencec. Individual skills

YesIndividual skills are not one of the8 basic principles of CSCL

What do you remember? 3. What does a greater use of CSCL in the classroom imply? a. More student interaction and a shift away from teacher-centred learning. b. Students listen to the teacher more c. Less motivation on the student side.

YesMore CSCL means more student -studentinteraction

What do you remember? 4. Which of these does not belong to the group goals in CSCL projects? a. Motivation to learn. b. Motivation to encourage and help groupmates to learn. c. Motivation to solve problems individually.

YesStudents are motivated to learn together

What kind of tools and activities can we use for CSCL inSLA contexts?There are many different tools that can be used in SLAteaching contexts, in the classroom or online. Forcollaboration, they include free LMS platforms such asEdmodo ; Moodle; Wikispaces; and Haiku Learning.There are free online environments for synchronous andasynchronous communication and collaboration withfellow learners or foreign language speakers, throughforums, chat and social media - such as Google Hangoutsand groups in Facebook.Free tools like Idroo offer a synchronous whiteboard,Skype offers voice and video-conferencing; and Wiggiocan be used for synchronous/asynchronous onlinecollaboration, and video conferencing.Games are popular in many classroom and online gamescan form part of a CSCL activity. However the usual goalof a CSCL project is to produce an artifact of some kind.This could be a game – see Unreal Engine – but computersupported, collaborative artifacts produced by learnersmore usually include things like video clips, web-quests;pod casts, posters, and presentations. Websites likeProject Based Learning may provide you with more ideas.

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What do you remember? 5. An example of the kinds of artifact the students will produce in CSCL collaboration is: a. A reading- comprehension activity. b. A test. c. A presentation.

YesA presentation is a typical CSCL artifact

What do you remember? 6. An example of a platform and shared workplace for CSCL online is: a. A library b. Wikispaces c. A classroom

YesYou can use a platform like Wikispacesfor online CSCL

Some things to consider before you start a CSCL project.It is important to remember that CSCL does not mean justgiving your learners access to a computer and the internet.Although this gives them access to many resources, it doesnot give them a reason to select and interact with thoseresources as a group or community. Teachers must providesome guidance and stimulate motivation. Learners mayalso need some guidance and practice at collaborationbefore beginning a CSCL activity. It is also important toremember that CSCL can also involve some face to facecollaboration and does not have to take place solely online(Stahl et al, 2006).What will the CSCL collaboration produce?What kind of artifact will the students produce – forexample a video, a presentation, a written report?Give clear instructions. You can also say what kind ofassessment ,if any, you will use for the collaboration , whatyou will be assessing, and what the assessment criteria are- none; will it be assessed as a group effort, will individualcontributions be assessed, is assessment formative orsummative; what will you assess, how will you assess it.How will collaboration in producing this object helpachieve any particular learning goals?

How will you make it clear to the students what theexpected benefits are?Where and when will the CSCL collaboration take place?WhereWill it be in the classroom?Will it be outside of the class? If so, where?Will it be online?Will it be a mixture?If it is in the class, think about things like how you canarrange furniture and whether there are enoughcomputers.If it is outside of the class, think about the places thestudents can meet- like a library, a cafe, at home.If it is online, what platforms and shared workplace canthe students use? Will you use an LMS, like Canvas,Wikispaces? Make sure all of the students are able toaccess their virtual collaborative environment. How willthey access it (pc, mobile phone etc.) and from where (home, school)? Also consider whether the students arefamiliar with any environment you choose.WhenWill the collaboration be synchronous?Will the collaboration be asynchronous?Will it be a mixture of both?

What kind of tools will the students use?What kind of tools do the students need to use tocollaborate and produce the collaboration artifact?Are the students familiar with these tools?Do all of the students have access to the tools?Do the students prefer or like these tools?Forming groups - Who will collaborate with who?How many groups? How big will they be?Will the students themselves decide the composition ofthe groups?If you decide, how will you decide – for example: based onability (mixed may be best), time zone, cultural affinity ordifferences?What role, if any, will you take in the groups?How long will the CSCL take?How much time is available?How much time do the students have?How much time do you have to monitor, give feedback to,and provide technical support?Shall I set a deadline? - It is probably useful to set adeadline for completion of a collaborative project. It helpsmotivate the students and makes it easier to integrate thecollaboration into a larger program or curriculum.How much time should I allow? - Before setting anydeadline think about the points above and also considerthe amount of experience students have of collaboration,and any previous experience they may or may not have

using the collaborative environment and collaborativetools they will require.Asynchronous collaborations may require more timebecause the interval between interactions between groupmembers cannot easily be predicted and the rate ofinteraction, or amount of collaboration, will probably bemuch less concentrated than that of synchronous CSCLprojects.CSCL and SLAHow can you make sure the target language is used?How can you focus collaborations on specific targetlanguage?For example, if the project goal is a report on a field trip,What we did = narrative= simple past, past continuous;Or, Where have we been, where shall we go? = report on apossible field trip = present perfect, suggestions;Or, if the artifact is a video = video of mock job interview =functional language, real world rehearsal

What do you remember? True or False? CSCL is great because it means the teacher can relax, have a cup of coffee, and read a good magazine... True False

YesCSCL doesn’tmean thestudents doall of thework!

What do you remember? True or False? It’s a good idea to plan a CSCL project carefully before you start... True False

YesThe best CSCL activities arewell-planned and preparedbefore they start.

ActionClick here to watch a short video on CSCL

ReferencesApple, M. (2006).Language Learning Theories andCooperative Learning Techniques in the EFLClassroom.Doshisha Studies in Language and Culture, 9(2),277 – 301.Dornyei, Z. (1997). Psychological process in cooperativelanguage learning: Groupdynamics and motivation. The Modern Language Journal,81, iv, 482-493.Dornyei, Z., & Murphey, T. (2003). Group dynamics in thelanguage classroom.Cambridge: Cambridge University PressOtha, A. S. (1995). Applying sociocultural theory to ananalysis of learner discourse: Learner-learner collaborativeinteractionin the zone of proximal development. Issues in AppliedLinguistics 6(2): 93-121.Roggenkamp, D. (2009). Applying Computer SupportedCollaborative Learning Principles to Telecollaboration,Prepared for LLMC Conference, National Foreign LanguageResource Center, University of Hawaii at ManoaStahl, G., Koschmann, T., & Suthers, D. (2006). Computer-supported collaborative learning: An historical perspective.In R. K. Sawyer (Ed.), Cambridge handbook of the learningsciences (pp. 409-426). Cambridge, UK: CambridgeUniversity Press. Available athttp://GerryStahl.net/cscl/CSCL_English.pdf in EnglishVygotsky, L. (1978). Mind in society. Cambridge, MA:Harvard University Press

Q1 CSCL was inspired by VygotskyQ2Q3 Try againQ4Q5 Do we collaborate alone?Q6Q7 Try againQ8 Co-operation needs interaction Try again Collaboration means not working alone Try again CSCL produces an artifact Try again Online, we use virtual spaces Try again Really? Try again Think again! Try again