Patterns of Interaction among ESL Students During Online Collaboration

Research has shown that the value of online collaboration is that it supports and fosters effective learning. Underpinning the notion of online collaboration is learning is a social process. This underlines the importance of social interaction which many researchers view as crucial for meaningful learning. The key to online collaborative learning is that it can enhance peer interaction and work in groups which facilitate shared meaning making and learning. In addition, knowledge construction that takes place is captured online thus making visible how knowledge emerges through a network of interactions. In order to understand how students construct knowledge, this study examines the patterns of interaction of ESL students during online collaboration. Gunawardena, Lowe and Anderson's (1997) Interaction Analysis Model was used for this purpose. The results show that co-construction of knowledge was evident among the ESL students during online collaboration. Nevertheless, the results also show that they were chiefly engaged at the lower levels of interactive phases. This has implications on the role of instructors during online collaboration.