ABSTRACT
We analyzed data collected during a problem-based learning (PEL) activity implemented entirely online as part of a learning sciences course for pre-service teachers. During the activity, the first author (MD) served as the facilitator for a collaborative group of 5 students. This study was performed in the context of the eSTEP (Elementary and Secondary Teacher Education Project) research program. One focus of eSTEP is the reflective analysis of instructional practice utilizing multiple analytical frameworks and methodologies. In one previous study (Derry, Seymour, Fassnacht, & Feltovich, 2001), a novice PBL facilitator collaborated with experts to analyze her practices. This study continued in this vein and provided us with the opportunity to “experiment” with a framework, developed by Radinsky, Leimberer, and Gomez (2000), for analyzing patterns of student reflection in collaborative discourse. We analyzed data collected from an educational psychology course for preservice teachers focusing on the learning sciences. A goal of the course was to educate students to utilize the learning sciences to both analyze and design classroom instruction. The course used the eSTEP system (Derry & STEP Research Group, 2002), a web-based instructional environment that supports learning through video case analysis and instructional design activities. This study focused on a video analysis discussion that MD facilitated. In this discussion, students were instructed to utilize a small number of learning sciences concepts to interpret and analyze a video case of classroom instruction. The video analysis discussion occurred in a threaded discussion board within eSTEP.
