35. 10 Questions about Technology Assisted Cooperative Learning

Given the powerful effects of cooperation on achievement,. relationships, and psychological adjustment, and given the numerous advantages of using technology-assisted cooperative learning, there are a number of questions about the use of technology that may tentatively be answered. The first question is: Does technology effect achievement or is it merely a means of delivering instruction? In a review of research, Clark (1983) concluded that technology is merely a means of delivering instruction. Our results support his conclusion. There are cognitive consequences of discussing what one is learning with classmates that technology cannot duplicate. Social interaction is essential for effective learning, the transformation of the mind, and the development of expertise.

The second question is: Is a "dialogue " with a computer as effective in promoting achievement, higher-level reasoning, and ability to apply learning as a "dialogue" with a peer? It takes more than the presentation of information to have a dialogue. There needs to be an exchange of knowledge that leads to episternic conflict and intellectual challenge and curiosity. Such an exchange is personal as well as informational. It involves respect for and belief in each other's abilities and commitment to each other's learning. Our results and the results of other researchers indicate that a dialogue with a peer is far more powerful than one with a computer. The third question is: Can a computer pass as a person? Our research leads to the tentative conclusion that a person interacts quite differently with a computer than he or she does with another person. Machines and people are not equally interesting or persuasive. With another person, there is a commitment to his or her learning and well-being. It is rare to feel the same emotions toward a machine. Fourth: Is the effectiveness of a message separate from the medium? Generally, the research on cognitive development indicates that the same information, presented in other formats (especially nonsocial formats), is only marginally effective in promoting genuine cognitive development (Murray, 1983; Johnson & Johnson, 1989).

Fifth: Is technology an amplifier or a transformer of the mind? An amplifier serves tool function like note taking or measuring. A transformer leads to the discovery and invention of principles. If technological learning devices are transformers, the habitual technology users eventually will be in a new stage of mental functioning. Neil Postman (1985) believes that the introduction into a culture of a technique such as writing or a clock is not merely an extension of the power of human beings to record information or bind time but a transformation of their way of thinking and the content of human culture. Generally, therefore, it may be concluded that technology such as the computer is a tool to amplify the minds of students. As a tool, the computer (as well as the calculator) can free students from the rote memorization of methods of mathematical formulation and formula-driven science, allowing more time for underlying concepts to be integrated with physical examples. A danger of the computer is that a student will know what button to push to get the right answer without understanding the underlying process or developing the ability to solve the problem on his or her own without the computer. There is far more to expertise than knowing how to run hardware and software.

Finally, the sixth question is: Can technology such as computers prepare a studentfor the "real world"? Technological expertise is helpful in finding and holding a job. Working in a modem organization, however, requires team skills such as leadership and conflict management and the ability to engage in interpersonal problem solving. While it is clear that cooperative learning is an analog to modem organizational life, experience in using technology in and of itself may only marginally improve employability and job success. A person has to have interpersonal competence as well as technical competence.