Review by: Reichert, Raimond (2004-08-17)

Scardamalia, Bereiter et al have conducted renowned research into computer supported collaborative learning environments. In this article, they present results from classroom uses of their computer-supported intentional learning environments (CSILE). Though most of this research was done in the K-12 context, the ideas could be applied at other levels of education as well. The environment has been used in many contexts such as science, mathematics, social studies, biology, and art. This article concentrates on the communal database component of CSILE as it was used in four classes over several years.

In CSILE environments, the communal database is at the center of classroom discourse. Users produce public-access materials in the form of text or graphical notes. They can search existing notes, link to and comment on other students’ work, and organize notes into more complex structures. Student write statements of what they need to understand in order to make conceptual advances, and students justify the links they create to other students’ work.

The article describes qualitative observations of educational uses of CSILE with many illustrative examples. In the interest of brevity, this review summarizes only some of the results regarding educational outcomes of CSILE use. Two Grade 5–6 classes used CSILE, in two quite different settings, with a control class not using CSCILE. The following summarizes some interesting results:

(1) The quantity of writing of Grade 5–6 students exceeds that of average American high school students, even when CSILE is used less than 30 min per day.

(2) The depth of explanations, as measured on a holistic depth of explanation scale, is significantly higher for CSILE students, indicating that they attempted to construct explanations rather than simply listing discrete facts.

(3) The quality of knowledge, as measured on a knowledge quality scale, is significantly better for CSILE students, indicating that they learned well and correctly.

(4) In standardized tests on reading comprehension, spelling, and vocabulary, CSILE classes performed significantly better than the control group.

It is also interesting to note that the data showed a tendency for students at or below grade level to gain more than those above grade level. This result demonstrates that CSILE is not only effective with high-achieving students.

This article provides colorful examples of CSILE classroom use, with many interesting qualitative and quantitative results. The enduring value of CSILE is evident in the fact that it is still alive, now known as WebSCILE, even more than a decade later.

The concept of CSILE is described in separate articles, see for example Scardamalia and Bereiter (1994): Computer Support for Knowledge-Building Communities. Journal of the Learning Sciences, Vol. 3, No. 3, pp. 265–283.