ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on research and instructional design on the use of educational technologies to support group problem solving. David Jonassen's (2000a) seminal paper on the design theory of problem solving initiated an important research agenda in the field of instructional design and technology. Building on his past research work — constructivist learning environ-ments (Jonassen, 1999), structuredness of problems (Jonassen, 1997), knowledge representation (Jonassen, Beisnner, & Yacci, 1993) and individual differences (Jonassen & Grabowski, 1993) — he proposed a design theory of problem solving by examining problem types, problem representations, and individual differences, with the goal of generating instructional theory on developing problem-solving skills among learners. One way of rationalizing the roles of technologies in supporting problem solving is from the perspective of using computers as mindtools (Jonassen, 1996, 2000b), which represents another major research track of Jonassen. In essence, as mindtools, computers are used for knowledge representation by learners rather than as a repository of knowledge or as a surrogate tutor. In other words, students learn with computers rather than from computers.
