What do we do when we analyse the temporal aspects of computer-supported collaborative learning? A systematic literature review

Abstract

To better understand the premises for successful computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL), several studies over the last 10 years have analysed the temporal aspects of CSCL. We broadly define the temporal aspects of CSCL as focusing on the characteristics of or interrelations between events over time. The analysis of these aspects, however, has been loosely defined, creating challenges regarding the comparability and commensurability of studies. To address these challenges, we conducted a systematic literature review to define the temporal analysis procedure for CSCL using 78 journal papers published from 2003 to 2019. After identifying the key operations to be included in the procedure, we studied how the studies implemented these operations. When analysing the temporal aspects of CSCL, six key operations were conducted: (a) proposing theoretically framed research questions (mostly descriptive) regarding the temporal aspects of CSCL; (b) setting up the context (mostly online interaction mediated by communication technologies); (c) collecting process data (mostly asynchronous online discussions); (d) conceptualising events from the process data (mostly communication units, such as messages); (e) conducting one or more temporal analysis methods (mostly social network analysis or sequential analysis); and (f) interpreting the outcomes with the temporal analysis and possible data or method triangulation (mostly sequences of two or more events that had to do with learner interaction or thoughts and ideas developed in the interaction). The temporal analysis procedure can help design both theory-driven studies and methodological experiments advancing CSCL research. Overall, our study increases scholarly understanding regarding the temporal aspects of CSCL.

“Anything taking shape?” Capturing various layers of small group collaborative problem solving in an experiential geometry course in initial teacher education

“…Various methods are applied for analyzing processes and temporality in collaborative learning and CPS studies (for an overview, see Lämsä et al, 2021a;Reimann, 2009Reimann, , 2021. For example, in epistemic network analysis (ENA), which is a discourse analysis technique that models the temporal co-occurrences of codes in discourse, temporality is studied by focusing on the recent temporal context and immediate events of CPS in the groups (e.g., Andrist et al, 2018;Csanadi et al, 2018;Swiecki et al, 2020;Williamson Shaeffer, 2017).…”

Staying at the front line of literature: How can topic modelling help researchers follow recent studies?

“…When manually reviewing the literature on the temporal aspects of CSCL in February 2019 (see Lämsä et al, 2021), we carefully selected the search terms concerning temporality, collaborative learning, and computer-supported learning. We used the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), Scopus, and Web of Science databases and identified 436 articles, of which we manually screened and assessed their eligibility.…”

“…We illustrate the potential of our innovative method in the context of research focusing on the temporal analysis of computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL). This field of research forms a particularly promising basis for studying its progress because the studies focusing on the temporal aspects of CSCL are increasingly being published and involve interdisciplinary collaboration (e.g., Hadwin, 2021;Lämsä et al, 2021).…”

“…In this study, we define the temporal analysis of CSCL as analysing the characteristics of events or the interrelations between these events over time. The events may relate to learner interaction, thoughts and ideas developed during the interaction and the use of technological resources to mediate the interaction (see Lämsä et al, 2021). A temporal analysis of CSCL may benefit both practitioners and researchers by revealing how (not only what) learning occurs in CSCL settings (Lämsä, 2020), particularly now when COVID-19 highlights the need for effective CSCL more than ever (Järvelä & Rosé, 2020).…”

“…A temporal analysis of CSCL may benefit both practitioners and researchers by revealing how (not only what) learning occurs in CSCL settings (Lämsä, 2020), particularly now when COVID-19 highlights the need for effective CSCL more than ever (Järvelä & Rosé, 2020). When we manually reviewed the literature focusing on the temporal aspects of CSCL (see section 2 and Lämsä et al, 2021), we found that the interdisciplinary collaboration in this field has caused challenges regarding the commensurability and comparability of the studies. Particularly, the studies seemed to be fragmented in terms of their theoretical frameworks (cf.…”