פרסומים נבחרים
Abstract Dashboards have been hypothesized to facilitate adaptive guidance in classrooms. Thus far, however, empirical studies in this domain are badly missing. We present a dashboard, which enables teachers to observe concurrent groups as they engage in mathematical tasks using Dynamic Geometry tools and to guide groups when their intervention is needed. We rely on a case study with this dashboard in which a single teacher could successfully orchestrate the progression of several groups working on difficult problems in geometry, when being sent realtime alerts about critical moments, moments whose occurrence may impinge on further co-construction of knowledge. In the present study, we chose six 20-min long demo videos of small groups in a variety of sessions of unguided group work, where each video describes the work of one of six small groups (dyads or triads) dealing simultaneously with identical set tasks. Two versions of this demo were prepared, one with alerts of critical moments generated according to predefined rules, and the other without alerts. The teachers observing concurrent groups and being updated about critical moments (N1 = 21) better understand progression in groups than teachers that are not informed about these critical moments (N2 = 18). In a second study we found that the dispatching of alerts impinges on the ways the teachers navigate across rooms. In particular, they pay attention to certain alerts and at the same time, focus on learning processes in mathematics. We conclude that such tools may help bringing collaborative settings more often in classrooms.
Abstract We present a critical perspective on the current state of research on educational dialogues, within and without Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning environments, in order to propose research perspectives in the intersection of these two domains. Our main proposal is that in order to integrate different types of human or machine analyzed data over different timescales, it is necessary to do so within a theorization of the object of study and its units of analysis. Standpoints on the nature of the object of study, conceived as the development of collective thinking in and by dialogue, on the importance of different timescales and broader units of analysis such as collaborative learning platforms, form the bases for these proposals. We also call for broadening and integrating theoretical perspectives on (educational) dialogue itself, beyond a purely logocentric vision.
Like education, democracy is a normative project in a constant state of refinement, or crisis,
depending on the observer’s point of view. Current objections focus on the following problems
(Papacharissi & Papacharissi, 2010; Hess & McAvoy, 2014; Wells, 2015; Fishkin & Mansbridge,
2017, Levitsky & Ziblatt, 2018):
1. Growing lack of trust towards elites, democratic institutions and processes, resulting in the
polarized effects of decline of participation in traditional, recognized, democratic practices
(voting, membership in political parties, petitions, advocating for social causes, community
volunteering and newspapers reading) on the one hand and in the rise of populism on the
other.
2. Inability of existing institutions to meet people’s demands, and more specifically, inad
equacy of the model of “representatives” in mass, consumption societies.
3. Narrowing of the pluralism of thought. Physically, heterogeneity declines, as the growing
economical gaps are leading to less diverse modes of living and as a result, to more “like
minded classrooms” (Hess & McAvoy, 2014). Communicatively, pluralism is hindered by
the effects of polls and the informational echo chamber of social networks (Sunstein, 2018),
which both contribute to confirmation bias (Sharot & Garret, 2016). Government-wise,
representatives’ pluralism of thought is hindered by the growing tendency to enforce coali
tion discipline.
Abstract This study set out to enhance our understanding of emotions and their regulation in educational dialogues. One hundred and ten undergraduate students participated in small-group computer-mediated contentious discussions and reported on emotional experiences during discussions in a reflection task. Sixteen discussions were analyzed using the Scheme for Educational Dialogue Analysis (Hennessy et al., 2016) to investigate the impact of emotional intensity on the quality of dialogue. Ninety-four reflections were analyzed qualitatively to investigate the reasons discussions were reported as emotionally significant, and the extent to which these emotions were shared by other group members. We found that strong emotions did not impair the quality of dialogue. The discussion topic and the participation at the individual and group levels were the key factors for identifying discussions as emotionally significant. Moreover, moments reported as emotionally significant were often shared, yet shared intensity was not always accompanied by shared emotional valence. We interpret this discrepancy considering participants' emotion regulation processes and the quality of the discussion. We conclude by stressing the importance of emotionally-loaded moments in contentious discussions as a context for practicing emotion regulation and the role of the moderator in cases where participation and emotional regulation are sub-optimal.
High-quality talk about issues that raise high-intensity emotions in the public sphere is timely needed. Still, researchers committed to the fostering of high-quality types of school talk generally disregard the role of emotions. We show that this disregard is not accidental and that it conveys a customary reluctance in schools to consider the handling of emotions as they pertain to cognition. We argue that helping students regulate emotions in social interactions and in discussions that raise high-intensity emotions is an important educational purpose, and we show that discussions about controversial issues provide a suitable context for this purpose. To support the emergence of high-quality talk that involves strong emotions, we adopted a design-based research approach and developed a new Computer-supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) tool, the Hot Discussions Platform (HDP). The functionalities of HDP are crucial for the emergence and guidance of high-quality talk that involves strong emotions, and they describe a novel professional development (PD) approach to the enhancement and moderation of this kind of talk. In the in-service PD course, teachers are prepared to design, moderate, and analyze discussions about controversial issues. Group assignments in the course and personal interviews revealed that the teachers that underwent this program reported on a very rich list of practices and beliefs about the emotional labor involved in designing and moderating discussions about controversial issues. The study provides an existence proof of a kind of talk that combines compliance with argumentative-critical standards and an eagerness to express and regulate strong emotions. We call this general kind of talk deliberative emotional talk. We conclude by reflecting on future research and technological developments to be invested into studying forms of deliberative emotional talk and support its emergence.
Abstract This paper examines the distribution of Modern Hebrew semantic drifts across four diatheses (voices): transitives, unaccusatives (anticausatives), adjectival (stative) passives, and verbal (eventive) passives. A quantitative survey of dictionaries reveals a discrepancy between these diatheses: Only transitives, unaccusatives, and adjectival passives can give rise to unique semantic drifts, unshared with their related root counterparts, while verbal passives cannot. A corpus- based study shows that frequency is unable to account for this finding; nor can approaches demarcating a syntactic domain for special meanings. I propose that semantic drifts are stored as subentries of the entries from which they evolved, as long as the drift’s frequency remains smaller than or equal to that of the original entry. Once the drift’s frequency greatly surpasses that of the original entry, it is stored as an independent lexical entry. In light of that, I suggest that predicates giving rise to unique semantic drifts have to constitute lexical entries. It thus follows that transitives, unaccusatives, and adjectival passives are formed and listed in the lexicon, while verbal passives are not. Consequently, the lexicon is argued to function as an active (operational) component of the grammar, contra syntacticocentric approaches.
Abstract In Israel, the Israeli–Palestinian conflict is the most fundamental political and moral issue current and future citizens face. If we accept the maxim that schools should prepare citizens for participation in determining the future of their state, Israeli students must be introduced to the historical, political and moral questions at the heart of the conflict. But this responsibility of Israeli schools and teachers is a highly contentious issue. The most important issue in Israeli political education is thus the hardest to teach. In this article I argue that, despite considerable educational and political risks, teaching Jewish Israeli students about the 1948 Palestinian Nakba (alternatively known as the Israeli War of Independence) holds substantial potential for their epistemic development as capable knowers. I begin by reviewing the political, dialogical, cognitive and epistemic deficits in Israeli education, highlighting how the Nakba is suppressed in history and citizenship education. By analysing the epistemic context of the Nakba in Israeli society and education, I present two pedagogical approaches for teaching controversial issues, arguing for an inquiry-based approach over the widely held approach. I demonstrate the benefits of an inquiry-based approach in the context of history education. In the final section of the article, I build on the case of the Nakba to argue for a new epistemic framework for Israeli citizenship education. I begin by outlining the shortcomings of the current epistemic framework of the subject and point to possible future directions for the subject.
Abstract What sets CSCL research apart is a principled commitment to learning in settings of collaboration. This commitment necessitates developing a foundational understanding of how participants build meaning together in practical situations. Case studies are a traditional means of investigating such matters. Researchers must be cognizant, however, of the assumptions underlying their approach. Historically, case studies have been undertaken within multiple disciplines and from a variety of theoretical perspectives. We provide here a set of examples in CSCL research. Questions that arise include: What is being construed as a “case?” How was it selected? What forms of contrast are built into the analysis and to what end? What is the role of time and sequence within the analysis? Does the study seek to alter the social phenomenon under investigation or merely document it faithfully? As case studies become a more prominent feature of CSCL research, we need to develop a keener appreciation of these issues.
Abstract There is increasing consensus among psycho-educational scholars about argumentation as a
means to improve student knowledge and understanding of subject matter. In this article, we
argue that, notwithstanding a strong theoretical rationale, causal evidence is not abundant,
definitions of the objects of study (argumentation, learning) are often not well defined, and
the variance in research methods is large. We argue that we systematically review the
available research evidence by mapping it on the Argumentation For Learning research
framework, which specifies the different antecedents, dialogue characteristics, and learning
outcomes of argumentation. In doing so, we identify claims that are supported with
substantive empirical evidence and demonstrate which questions are still open to further
empirical examination. We also uncover several promising, relatively unexplored venues for
future research.
Abstract The field of CSCL is at a critical moment in its development. Internally we face issues of fragmentation and questions about what progress is being made. Externally the rise of social media and a variety of research communities that study the interactions within it raise questions about our unique identity and larger impact on the world. To illuminate the complex issues involved and the multiple perspectives that exist on them, we conducted an iterative and generative consultation with members of the CSCL community through individual interviews and public interactive presentations. The result is a series of eight provocations for the field, each presented as a dialogue between the Provocateur/Provocatrice (who seeks to shake up the status quo) and the Conciliator (who seeks to build on the achievements of our current traditions). The provocations address the debated need for six things: one conceptual framework to unite our diverse tools and theories (#1), prioritization of learner agency over collaborative scripting (#2), scrupulous scrutiny of when “collaboration” and “community” are said to exist (#3), the pursuit of computational approaches to understand collaborative learning (#5), learning analytics and adaptive support to be a top priority in the field (#6), and the expansion of our focus to seriously address social media and large-scale learning environments (#7). In addition, the provocations highlight two areas in which perhaps we should desist: the attempt to reconcile analytical and interpretative approaches to understanding collaboration (#4), and the goal of achieving tangible change in the education system (#8). There are no resolutions offered in this paper; the interchanges presented are designed to lay out the complex constellation of issues involved and can be considered a dialogue that we are still in the process of having with ourselves as individuals and together as a community. We stress the urgency and importance for the field of CSCL to take up these questions and tensions, and critically, to work towards decisions and resultant actions. Our future as a scientific community — our very existence and identity, depends on it.