Home PublicationsJRTEPast IssuesVolume 39 Number 2: Winter 2006

	Edited by Dr. Lynne Schrum, George Mason University
formerly Journal of Research on Computing in Education

Volume 39 Number 2 Winter 2006

Knowledge Construction in Inservice Teacher Online Discourse: Impacts of Instructor Roles and Facilitative Strategies

Li-Fen Lilly Lu
Northern Illinois University
Ifeng Jeng
Indiana University

Abstract

This study investigates how inservice teachers constructed new knowledge, the extent of knowledge construction achieved, and how instructors participated in and facilitated the online discussion to affect knowledge construction. One finding is that most inservice teachers seemed to favor discussion activities at the stage of knowledge confirmation rather than knowledge construction. Another finding is that some facilitation approaches used by the instructors when serving as both facilitator and co-participant were particularly helpful for enhancing knowledge construction. However, neither student-perceived learning nor satisfaction with instructor roles and facilitative strategies significantly differ between the two classes involved.

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Contributors

Li-Fen Lilly Lu, PhD, is currently an assistant professor for the art education program at Northern Illinois University’s school of art. Before joining the faculty as an instructional technology specialist, she provided consultation to many higher education faculty and K–12 teachers regarding integrating technology into teaching, especially designing activities and implementing pedagogies for online learning. Her research interests focus on online pedagogy, knowledge construction, and assessment. (Address: Li-Fen Lilly Lu, Jack Arends Hall 203C, School of Art, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115; lillylu26@gmail.com.)

Ifeng Jeng is a doctoral student at Instructional Systems Technology and an instructional and informational systems coordinator in the Department of Applied Health Science at Indiana University. His research interests include instructional technology, diffusion of innovations, change theories, and measurement and evaluation. (Address: Ifeng Jeng, HPER 116, Department of Applied Health Science, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47404, ifjeng@ indiana.edu.)

Copyright 2006, (International Society for Technology in Education). All rights reserved.