Scripting an Integrated Learning and Work Process to Scaffold Online Action-oriented Learning

Abstract

In order to prepare graduates with “competences to act”, vocational education and training require new approaches that enable the future employees to act independently in real work situations. The work-process-oriented curriculum and action-oriented learning could be considered as such a kind of curricula and a pedagogic method. However, how to provide computer-mediate scaffoldings to support online action-oriented learning within a work-process-oriented curriculum is still a challenge. This paper reports our work to scaffold online action-oriented learning by specifying an integrated learning-work process using a scripting language as a formal learning-work process model, called a unit of learning. Such a process model can be interpreted by a language-compatible learning platform to guide and foster the learning-work activities through configuring the learning-work environment dynamically. This paper also reports a case study conducted at a high-level vocational school. The results reveal that the computer-mediated scaffoldings in our process-oriented learning platform are useful to support online action-oriented learning.