Abstract
A significant part of work in industry is carried out in co-located or virtual teams. Therefore, training information systems (IS) students to collaborate both face-to-face and online is necessary. Findings from computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) research suggest that students need additional support to learn to collaborate effectively. Such support can be provided through collaboration scripting. In this paper, we discuss the effects of a collaboration script on the learning process in the context of an online synchronous collaborative writing task. The study employs an experimental design. The results demonstrate that scripted groups spent most effort on coordination and planning, while unscripted groups used most effort on contributing to the case solution. Closely following the collaboration script improved the quality of learners’ discussions. However, the groups who chose to only partly follow the script primarily settled with quick consensus-building during the discussion phase, much the same way as unscripted groups.
Paper Type
Event
Facilitating Synchronous Collaborative Writing with a Collaboration Script
A significant part of work in industry is carried out in co-located or virtual teams. Therefore, training information systems (IS) students to collaborate both face-to-face and online is necessary. Findings from computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) research suggest that students need additional support to learn to collaborate effectively. Such support can be provided through collaboration scripting. In this paper, we discuss the effects of a collaboration script on the learning process in the context of an online synchronous collaborative writing task. The study employs an experimental design. The results demonstrate that scripted groups spent most effort on coordination and planning, while unscripted groups used most effort on contributing to the case solution. Closely following the collaboration script improved the quality of learners’ discussions. However, the groups who chose to only partly follow the script primarily settled with quick consensus-building during the discussion phase, much the same way as unscripted groups.
Recommended Citation
Lazareva, A. (2017). Facilitating Synchronous Collaborative Writing with a Collaboration Script. In Paspallis, N., Raspopoulos, M. Barry, M. Lang, H. Linger, & C. Schneider (Eds.), Information Systems Development: Advances in Methods, Tools and Management (ISD2017 Proceedings). Larnaca, Cyprus: University of Central Lancashire Cyprus. ISBN: 978-9963-2288-3-6. http://aisel.aisnet.org/isd2014/proceedings2017/Education/3.