Different Perspectives of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning: The Case of the Software Design Project

Zusammenfassung

According to Koschmann (1996), the term of computer-supported collaborative learning came into existence about a decade ago reflecting theoretical changes in the field of educational technology. A central factor that triggered the emergence of CSCL was a different view of learning and instruction that put social issues in the center of study. Theoretical approaches such as social constructivism, sociocultural psychology or situated cognition use different metaphors for the social process but they represent the common ground for the design and study of CSCL Researchers and practitioners interested in these approaches started the CSCL conference in 1995. In 1999, the third CSCL meeting was held at Stanford University in Palo Alto and brought together educators, psychologists, anthropologists, computer scientists, and practitioners engaged in the development and study of computer-supported collaborative learning environments. While these different communities share a common theme, each of them approaches CSCL from a different perspective: some researchers presented developments of interface features and tools, other focused on classroom implementations and their challenges, and then others again examined patterns of interactions. We can learn from all of these perspectives because they tell an important piece of the CSCL story but it makes for a complex narrative because so many different aspects are under consideration and in need to be integrated—a common issue of any educational situation under investigation.