This paper highlights some connections between cultural psychology, educational psychology, and identity psychology. This aim is pursued through the constructivist view of conceptualized learning as building knowledge. It is contended that identities should explicitly be considered as part of this process. Useful approaches to explore the relationship between learning and identity are the Dialogical Self Theory (DST) and the Communities of Learning model (CoL), both of which demonstrate a shared interest in dialogue and constructivism. DST defines the self as being composed of a set of I-positions, which are constantly in dialogue and in movement. The CoL model conceptualizes the classroom as a set of cultural contexts where dialogues permit the analysis of context and also shape it. Empirical examples of how relevant concepts related to learning, such as motivation and sense-making, can be viewed as innovation of the self are discussed.

This paper aims at describing, according to the recent advances in social psychology and Computer Mediated Communication, how identities are perceived and constructed in cyberspace. All interactions analyzed in this study were performed within "Euroland," a collaborative virtual environment. The interacting community was composed of students, teachers, and researchers working on a transnational educational project. Practices and dialogues within Euroland are analyzed using an ethnographic and conversational method. A sample of discourses and actions that occurred during 8 months of time, selected according to the research aims, was analyzed. During online connections, users were personified by an "Avatar." Avatars are able to walk, fly, and look around the virtual world. They are also able to build and manipulate three-dimensional objects, perform virtual actions, and chat with other connected users. Results showed that "Eurolanders" showed and constructed their identities using strategic "positioning" depending on the interactive situation. Identities are thus dynamic and strongly related to the context, created and constantly recreated by the users. It is concluded that specific features offered by the Euroland environment are exploited by the users as resources to play with, while moving from one strategic positioning to another. Cyber identities involve resources given by specific technological tools and by community. The cyber-identity construction process seems to be highly congruent to the advances in the dialogical perspective in psychology, where identities are considered in their conceptualizations as multiple, "multivoiced," "positioned," and context-dependent.

In this paper, we describe a procedure to promote active participation in online courses by supporting students in performing the role of an e-Tutor during group activities. A case-study, conducted to explore the procedural effects both on students' interactions and on their perceptions about the role, is discussed. Eighteen university students (67% female, Mean Age = 23 years) took part in online collaborative learning activities as part of a 15 week blended learning course. Twelve participants took turns in covering the role of e-Tutor. Findings were based on a mixed methods analysis of 7,105 contributions posted online by the 18 students. An analysis of e-Tutor self-assessment forms was also considered. Results indicated that utilizing peer-based e-Tutors promoted substantial active participation in online discussions. Moreover, students performing the role of e-Tutor adopted a supportive, collaborative and educational style, which was maintained even after their turn as e-Tutor had ended.

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