Review by: Seufert, Sabine (2006-01-30)

The article focuses on structuring Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) by applying functional roles for the team work. Since collaborative activities in (virtual or non-virtual) learning environments often lack sustaining students’ participation providing instructional support or a specific type of pre-structuring (“scripting”) such as the use of roles can be seen as “facilitating” approaches. The authors distinguish between content-oriented roles (e. g., facilitating knowledge acquisition through individual differences, using for example “jigsaw”) and process-oriented or management roles focusing on individual responsibilities regarding the coordination of activities. Although roles are widely considered as an effective instructional strategy, so far their effect has not been analysed systematically and that’s why the authors accomplished two empirical studies:-one half of the student groups received instructional support in terms of a prescribed role-instruction (project planner, communicator, editor and data collector)-the other half of the groups received a non-directive instruction.

The design of the studies was a quasi-experimental random independent groups design. The student population lead to a small sample size (four student groups with four students). The main communication mean was email. Supervision was kept to a minimum and the roles didn’t rotate in order to avoid to interfere with the research objective and to maximise the impact of roles. The result of the studies are devoted to the following three research question:1.Do functional roles during CSCL lead to better learning outcomes?A positive effect of functional role behaviour could be stated: the more functional role behaviour in nonrole groups the higher the grade. Another effect was investigated: the longer the collaboration takes the lower the group grade.2.Do functional roles during CSCL lead to a more satisfying collaborative experience?Role groups appear to be more aware of their groups’ efficiency than nonrole groups. 3.Do functional roles during CSCL lead to a more efficient group process in terms of communication (coordination and content-focused statements)The authors conclude from the studies that functional roles increase the amount of coordinative statements, whereas in an uncontrolled environment the amount of content-focused statements increases as well. In an uncontrolled environment messages are longer, whereas the frequency is higher in a controlled environment.

Overall, the article provides a profound research investigating the effect of instructional support in terms of using functional roles as instructional support for CSCL. An open question is whether a virtual learning environment makes a significant difference to “usual” classroom settings in that context (in particular because email was the main communication mean – can that really be regarded as a form of CSCL?). Unfortunately, the sample size is quite small so that the results of the empirical study have to be carefully interpreted in respect to generalising the outcome.