Computer Supported Collaborative Learning and Higher Order Thinking Skills: A Case Study of Textile Studies

The scarcity of readily usable instruments to resea rch learning in Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) environments has posed a great challenge to devise appropriate analytical tools to investigate how individuals change their u nderstanding or create a new personal construction of knowledge as a result of social intera ction and negotiation within the group. Given this scenario, the Activity System Model (Engestrom, 1987), based on a socio-cultural perspective, was adopted as a framework for analysing the quality of a CSCL community in this research project. Data were analysed to examine how interactivity had contributed to the fostering of higher order thinking skills in the CSCL community. Findings of this study confirmed that there was a positive correlation between the quality of collaborative pr ocess engaged by groups and the quality of cognitive skills fostered. High levels of social in teraction and collaboration contributed to the establishment of a community of learning, nurturing a space for fostering higher order thinking through co-creation of knowledge processes. Lessons learnt and limitations of the investigation in this study in light of the methodological issues re lating to coding reliability and difficulties in translating Chinese text involved in the CSCL for c omputerized coding process were discussed as well.