The Research Of Supporting Collaborative Problem Solving By Semantic Diagram Tools

In the ear of knowledge economy it is important for learners to learn how to solve problem and how to communicate with other in order to cope with the complex, collaborative and uncertainty problems in the future life and work situation. In order to response it, how to organize collaborative problem solving learning in the classroom is a key research issue in the educational research field. From the theorical perspective, collaborative problem solving learning is the suitable way of practicing the idea of constructivism. Many researches have demonstrated that collaborative problem solving learning is a promising learning method of developing students’ deep understanding, which would help them solve problem in a new situation. However, from the practical perspective, students would confront many difficulties during collaborative problem solving learning. Firstly, students would experience high-level cognitive load from complex task during collaborative problem solving. Secondly, students would not get prepare to engaga into the effective collaborative activity during the complex learning process. Thirdly, students would cost many mental efforts when communicating with others because of lack of training and outside support. In order to solve those problems, this study will focus on the research of how to design suitable pedagogical and technological intervention to support student’s collaborative problem solving.Based on cognitive load theory, the pedagogical intervention framework of structuring learning task and scripting group process is proposed in this study. Semantic diagram tools, acting as technological intervention, is combined with the pedagogical intervention framework to support students’collaborative problem solving. The three hypotheses are formed in the study. Hypothese 1:Integration semantic diagram tool to structure learning task and script group process can improve students’ cognitive development during collaborative problem solving. Hypothese 2:Integration semantic diagram tool to structure learning task and script group process can improve students’ effective engagement during collaborative problem solving. Hypothese 3:Integration semantic diagram tool to structure learning task and script group process can make students coordinate and communicate effectively during collaborative problem solving.In order to verify the effectiveness of integration semantic diagram tool to structure learning task and script group process during collaborative problwm solving, a comparative experimental study was conducted. Around the domain knowledge of instructional design, a collaborative problem solving learning project was design supported by the pedagogical intervention framework proposed in this study. Then semantic diagram tool was integrated in the experiement condition, while a text-based collaborative tool was integrated in the control condition. The learning process and result data from the experiment condition and control condition were analyzed in order to responding to the above mention thress hypotheses respectively.In order to test Hypothese 1, the knowledge domain pre-test and post-test data were analysed. It is found out that structuring learning task and scripting group process during collaborative problwm solving can improve students’ high-level cognitive development. What’s more, compared with integration text-based collaborative learning tool, integration semantic diagram tool into collaborative problwm solving will promote students’ cognitive development more breadthly and depthly. In order to test Hypothese 2, the data of overall time of collaborative problem solving, the time engaging into different types of collaborative activities were analyzed in the group level from the both experiment conditions. What’s more, each group’s dynamic change of collaborative activity during the whole learning process was visualized. In order to test Hypothese 3, group discouse data and group artifact data was collected. As for group discouse data, the frequency of communication act was analyzed between the control and experiment condition in the group level. Also, the quality of group artifact data was analyzed between the control and experiment condition in the group level. It was found out that compared with integration text-based collaborative learning tool, integration semantic diagram tool during collaborative problwm solving can make student’s engage into effective collaborative activity more efficently, also can make student coordinate and communicate effectively during collaborative problem solving. Based on the vertified results from three hypotheses, a deep discussion was made in terms of the relationship between students’ cognitive development and the effective design of collaborative problems solving, the mediation effect of semantic diagram tool in collaborative problem solving process and the technological postion of semantic diagram tools in the classroom.The significance of this research is that the pedagogical and technological intervention framework is proposed to support collaborative peoblem solving learning. It can provide teachers practical guidance to organize student’s collaborative learning in the classroom. The technological idea of semantic diagram tool can bring new guidance of how to integration technology support students’ learning. This research will lay the foundation for the future research on collaborative problem solving learning in the classroom.