Small Group Collaborative Discovery Learning from Hypertext

Abstract

A study is reported in which pairs of students were set the task of learning specified material from a hypertext-based discovery learning system (StrathTutor). Conventional pre- to post-test change measures of learning were employed and demonstrated an average learning gain of some 20%, which was highly significant. In addition, the pairs were videotaped as they used the system together and the resulting dialogue was fully transcribed and annotated to reflect the subjects' interactions, both with each other and with the machine. In this paper, we compare those dialogues in which the subjects were relatively more successful at the learning task, with those dialogues corresponding to less successful learning outcomes in an attempt to illuminate the process aspects of collaborative learning around the computer.