K. Kawamoto and N.H. Arai (Japan)
Logical thinking ability, Electronic bulletin board, Mutual Evaluation, Mathematics, CSCL
The purpose of this study is to propose a way to develop logical thinking ability of the students that is feasible in class at ordinary schools. E-kyoshitsu, an online learning community centered on an electronic bulletin board system, promotes the method for students to increase their experience to write mathematical statements while being given advice by the mathematicians. This method has already been found effective for the purpose. In order for this to be introduced to ordinary classes, a strategy involving students' mutual evaluation, rather than that of the mathematicians and specialists, was experimented. When the group were made up of seven students, the results were ambiguous: the strategy itself proved effective, but there were too many dropouts. Then the authors experimented with groups of fewer students: the groups of five students, and those of two students. Comparing and analyzing the answers in the second experiment, the authors found that the strategy worked most effectively with two-member groups (pairs).
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