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Co-located single display collaborative learning for early childhood education

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Abstract

The benefits of collaborative learning are well documented. However, most of the research has been done with children beyond the ages of early childhood. This could be due to the common and erroneous belief that young children have not developed the capacity to work collaboratively toward a given aim. In this paper we show how small group co-located collaborative learning on a single display computer improves oral language, logical-mathematical and social skills in pre-school children. Considering that early childhood teachers have a responsibility to provide a supportive environment, teacher mediation is essential in order to achieve collaborative learning. Thus, teachers were trained in the use of the technology and strategies for effective collaborative learning. The study was implemented in 10 kindergarten classrooms with 268 children between the ages of 5 and 6 years old. A group of 5 kindergarten classrooms with equivalent characteristics participated as a comparison group. During the four-month intervention, children worked on collaborative activities at least twice a week. A quasi-experimental approach was used to assess the implementation, including pre- and post-testing. The data showed differences in the learning of oral language, logical-mathematical and social skills, with the experimental group demonstrating significantly greater achievement.

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Acknowledgements

This paper was partially funded by Microsoft Research, the Center for Research on Educational Policy and Practice Grant CIE01-CONICYT, and a grant from the Ministry of Education.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Engineering, Computer Science Department, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Vicuña Mackenna, 4860, Santiago, Chile

    Miguel Nussbaum, Juan F. Weitz, Ximena Lopez, Javiera Mena & Alex Torres

  2. School of Education, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Vicuña Mackenna, 4860, Santiago, Chile

    Florencia Gómez

Authors
  1. Florencia Gómez
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  2. Miguel Nussbaum
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  3. Juan F. Weitz
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  4. Ximena Lopez
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Correspondence to Florencia Gómez.

Appendix 1

Appendix 1

Example 1:

Sample items of Oral Language and Logical-Mathematical Relationships and Quantification Test.

Item information (curricular area, specific content, and descriptor) was taken from the national curriculum for kindergarten (MINEDUC, 2005). Item images are presented in students’ first language—Spanish.

Curricular area: Communication

Specific content: Oral Language

Descriptor: Children recognize words that correspond to their immediate surroundings.

Directions:

Paint the element that corresponds to the word.

figure a

Example 2:

Curricular area: Relations with natural and cultural environment

Specific content: Logical mathematical relationships and quantification

Descriptor: Sort at least six elements according to different criteria.

Directions:

Circle the series that is sorted in descending order.

figure b

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Gómez, F., Nussbaum, M., Weitz, J.F. et al. Co-located single display collaborative learning for early childhood education. Computer Supported Learning 8, 225–244 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11412-013-9168-1

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