Digital Media in the Classroom: A Study on How to Improve Guidance for Successful Collaboration and Learning in Student Teams

Abstract

Digital video technologies provide a variety of functions to support collaborative knowledge construction. Yet, for novice learners, positive outcomes also depend on effective guidance of group interactions. In this paper, we present empirical evidence for the use of web-based video tools to support students' collaborative learning in a history class. In an experiment with 16-year old learners (N=148) working with a history topic, we compared two contrasting types of guidance for student collaboration in dyads (cognitive task-related guidance or social interaction-related guidance). We also compared two types of video tools. Both types of guidance and tools were aimed at supporting students' active, meaningful learning and critical reflection. Results indicate that social interaction-related guidance was more effective in terms of learning outcome (e.g., critical reflection skills) than cognitive task- related guidance. The different tools did not yield significant differences in learning. The practical implications of these results are discussed.