Emerging social positions in a
Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning Community
Li Sha & Jan van Aalst Simon Fraser University
Results
�Four sub-groups
(blocks) with structural equivalence were found by blockmodel analysis. This means that the 24 students
clustered around four different �social positions� as their
interactions unfolded
�A logistical
regression analysis shows that FSA scores for reading and numeracy were
statistically significant discriminators of group membership, after adjusting for gender (p<.05)
Significance
�The disclosure of
social positions of students provides an insight into mechanisms of collaboration in the course of
constructing collective knowledge, particularly when the social
positions are obtained empirically rather than pre-assigned.
�This study may be
one of the first attempts to explore the existence of naturally emerging social positions in knowledge
building communities.