Abstract:

Collaborative online learning undoubtedly seems to be well-aligned with aspirations for a globalized and transformative society of knowledge in the twenty-first century. Without collaboration, cooperation, and full engagement, students’ learning performance might not be as effective as expected. The aim of this study is to present the state of the art of collaborative learning by investigating, mapping and synthesizing the data and research foci trends in this scientific field.

Methodologically, this paper was based on a recent study presented by the two co-authors. In that study, a research agenda protocol was developed for conducting a scoping review on the contribution of collaboration in the effectiveness of online courses. This methodology was chosen since it was considered as a rapid, valuable, and increasingly popular method of reviewing related work. A five-stage methodological framework proposed by Arksey and O’Malley was highlighted, research questions were clearly defined, inclusion and exclusion criteria were clearly depicted, and the whole research outline was presented. On the basis of that scoping review protocol, the two co-authors continued by carrying out the scoping review. In such comprehensive scoping review, selected empirical research and systematically reviewed articles were charted and mapped with respect to a plethora of dimensions.

Findings indicated that collaborative learning was guided by social constructivist paradigms and was approached from different perspectives. Online students were also urged to get engaged in different collaborative projects and activities through the use of different collaborative tools. Moreover, the contribution of collaboration among students was definitely stressed at the end of this paper. Such findings would engender a theoretical framework for future research activity in this sector suggesting the application of collaborative methods in online education for enhancing meaningful learning experiences. Finally, results were discussed in the light of research questions along with the identification of research gaps, limitations, and implications for future research.

In this respect, investigating these issues is critical to contemporary online learning settings, since this issue is still up to date in order to fulfill a major current need in the related scientific communities. Also, this paper was considered of extreme importance, since collaborative learning could be implemented in the e-learning design and development of professional development online training seminars, courses or even programs as well.

Keywords:

Collaborative learning, engagement, scoping review, online education, e-learning, constructivism, study protocol.