Broadening Participation Research Project: Effects of Scaffolding Cyber-Enabled Collaborative Learning in Authentic STEM Education Settings

杰克逊州立大学将调查适当水平的网络协作学习支架对非裔美国STEM学生学习成绩和技能发展的影响，并确定有助于他们通过网络协作学习获得成就的社会和认知因素。PIS将检验这样一种假设，即支架式网络协作学习可以促进非裔美国学生共享知识结构和学习过程的调节，从而提高他们对重要概念的更深层次理解和更高层次的技能发展。该项目将通过在STEM背景下进行研究，特别是研究教学指南在真实的STEM教育环境中对非裔美国学生的影响，来扩展关于网络协作学习的现有知识。以往关于协作学习的研究主要是针对K-12年级的学生或文科大学生。这项研究可以为STEM教师提供新的教学策略，以增加学生的参与度和坚持不懈，并提高STEM和非STEM学科的学习成绩。

Jackson State University will investigate the effects of the proper levels of scaffolding for cyber-enabled collaborative learning on academic performance and skill development of African American STEM students and identify social and cognitive factors that can contribute to their achievement gains through cyber-enabled collaborative learning. The PIs will test the hypothesis that scaffolding cyber-enabled collaborative learning can promote shared construction of knowledge and regulation of learning processes for African American students and, thus, lead to improvement of their deeper understanding of important concepts and higher-order skill development.The project will expand the current knowledge about cyber-enabled collaborative learning by conducting the research in a STEM context, particularly examining the effects of instructional guides in an authentic STEM education setting for African American students. Prior research on collaborative learning was conducted mainly on K-12 students or liberal arts college students. The study could add new perspectives in instructional strategies for STEM faculty to increase student engagement and persistence and improve academic performance in STEM and non-STEM disciplines.