Studying Virtual Math Teams centers on detailed empirical studies of
how students in small online groups make sense of math issues and how
they solve problems by making meaning together. These studies are woven
together with materials that describe the online environment and
pedagogical orientation, as well as reflections on the theoretical
implications of the findings in the studies. The nature of group
cognition and shared meaning making in collaborative learning is a
foundational research issue in CSCL. More generally, the theme of sense
making is a central topic in information science. While many authors
allude to these topics, few have provided this kind of detailed analysis
of the mechanisms of intersubjective meaning making.
This book presents a coherent research agenda that has been pursued by
the author and his research group. The book opens with descriptions of
the project and its methodology, as well as situating this research in
the past and present context of the CSCL research field. The core
research team then presents five concrete analyses of group interactions
in different phases of the Virtual Math Teams research project. These
chapters are followed by several studies by international collaborators,
discussing the group discourse, the software affordances and alternative
representations of the interaction, all using data from the VMT project.
The concluding chapters address implications for the theory of group
cognition and for the methodology of the learning sciences. In addition
to substantial introductory and concluding chapters, this important new
book includes analyses based upon the author's previous research,
thereby providing smooth continuity and an engaging flow that follows
the progression of the research.
The VMT project has dual goals: (a) to provide a source of experience
and data for practical and theoretical explorations of group knowledge
building and (b) to develop an effective online environment and
educational service for collaborative learning of mathematics. Studying
Virtual Math Teams reflects these twin orientations, reviewing the
intertwined aims and development of a rigorous science of small-group
cognition and a Web 2.0 educational math service. It documents the kinds
of interactional methods that small groups use to explore math issues
and provides a glimpse into the potential of online interaction to
promote productive math discourse.
