The work-reflection-learning cycle - Department of Computer and ...

The work-reflection-learning cycle in SE student projects: Use of collaboration tools
constructionist perspective is common in CSCL research (Stahl 2002; Strijbos et al.
2004; Suthers 2006) and also within CSCW (e.g. with activity theory (Kaptelinin and
Nardi 2006)).
The constructionist perspective has implications for the thesis in the following ways:
• Ontologically/epistemologically: The reality to be understood and designed for
(in student SE project teams) should be considered a social construct.
Participants (including the researcher) constantly engage in the construction of
this reality.
• Research focus: If we want to understand work and learning, knowledge
construction among participants is an important object of study.
• Research approach: It must always be kept in mind that participants have
different interpretations and that these are made in certain social and historical
contexts (Klein and Myers 1999).
Viewing human activity mainly from a socio-cultural perspective or mainly from a
cognitive one can be seen as two different strands of constructionism. In this thesis, I
take an intermediate position (Cobb 1994; Lin et al. 1999), stressing the social as well
as the cognitive aspects of work and learning in collaborative settings. This provides a
starting point for shedding light on the interplay between thought processes and social
processes.
2.1.2 Communities of practice and learning
Communities of practice (CoP) (Lave and Wenger 1991; Wenger 1998) are an
important arena for the construction of knowledge. CoPs are characterized by members
having mutual engagement, a joint enterprise, and a shared repertoire. They have a
shared history of learning and boundaries with other communities. Learning the practice
of a CoP is something that happens through participation in the community. A new
participant entering a community starts out as a novice engaged in “legitimate
peripheral participation” and gradually increases expertise through situated learning
(Lave and Wenger 1991). Along the same line, Brown and colleagues describe learning
as situated cognition (Brown et al. 1989), arguing that activity and situations are
integral to cognition and learning.
A student team engaged in a project throughout a semester can be seen as a CoP, albeit
a small and relatively short-lived one. The team develops a shared history of learning
and has boundaries with other communities (e.g. those of project stakeholders). The
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