Intertwining synchronous and asynchronous communication to support collaborative learningsystem design and evaluation
This paper presents the design and evaluation of the CSCL-system KOLUMBUS 2 that integrates synchronous and asynchronous communication support and the joint work on material. The design is theory driven and is based on characteristics of collaborative learning, context-oriented communication theory and media synchronicity theory. The description of the design of the system follows a model that shows the interweavement of asynchronous and synchronous functionalities. The evaluation showed mixed acceptance: concerning the interweavement a successful technical solution with limitations in its usage was found. The technical functionalities were widely used but the usage also reveals potentials for improvements. Based on the description of the study and its results the paper ends with proposals for these improvements of the integration as well as for the redesign of the functionalities.
asynchronous communication evaluation cscl synchronous communication integration of different communication media system design