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Technology, Knowledge and Learning

, Volume 19, Issue 3, pp 337–358 | Cite as

The Effects of Case Libraries in Supporting Collaborative Problem-Solving in an Online Learning Environment

  • Andrew A. Tawfik
  • Lenny Sánchez
  • Dinara Saparova
Work-in-Progress
First Online:

Abstract

Various domains require practitioners to encounter and resolve ill-structured problems using collaborative problem-solving. As such, problem-solving is an essential skill that educators must emphasize to prepare learners for practice. One potential way to support problem-solving is through further investigation of instructional design methods that employ case-based reasoning. These learning environments consist of narratives of practitioners as they reason through related ill-structured problems. However, very little research exists about how case libraries impact learning, especially collaborative learning. For this study, 22 participants enrolled in a teacher education program were randomly assigned to two groups as they resolved an ill-structured problem. The results demonstrated that both groups had similar patterns of discussion, but the case library condition collaborated at a higher rate for each of the categories of the content analysis.

Keywords

Case libraries Collaborative problem solving Online learning Case-based reasoning 
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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  • Andrew A. Tawfik
    • 1
  • Lenny Sánchez
    • 2
  • Dinara Saparova
    • 3
  1. 1.Christopher Center (Office – CC 248C)Concordia University ChicagoRiver ForestUSA
  2. 2.University of MissouriColumbiaUSA
  3. 3.University of MissouriColumbiaUSA

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