Problem-based learning online

TLDR

Online problem‑based learning environments enable collaborative knowledge construction, and activity theory provides a suitable framework to study the processes learners experience in such settings. The study blends two complementary perspectives to provide a comprehensive picture of learning in an online problem‑based learning system. The authors analyze tool use and discourse among students and facilitators, and examine facilitator reflections on the evolution of group collaborative practices and norms.

Abstract

Online problem-based learning (PBL) environments afford many opportunities to engage in collaborative knowledge construction. Activity theory is a suitable framework to study such environments and the processes learners go through when using these environments. Two complementary perspectives are blended in this paper in an attempt to create a comprehensive picture of learning using an online PBL system. One perspective is the detailed analysis of tool use and discourse students and facilitator engage in. The second perspective is facilitator reflections about the evolution of the group's collaborative practices and norms.