Online Collaborative Learning: From Interaction to Asynchronous Collaboration in a course at a Vocational Education Institution in Brazil

Abstract

Investing in the training of teachers to adopt innovative pedagogical practices in the classroom has been the answer to overcome challenges and leverage changes in Vocational Education. This article presents the results of the investigation of the online New Pedagogical Methodologies and Practices course conducted for vocational Education  teachers-trainers and synthesizes the research study done in the master degree  in eLearning Pedagogy (mPeL). The methodology used was the case study, with a qualitative and quantitative approach, using as research techniques the content analysis of the interactions in the discussion forums and semi-structured interview. For the study of the identification and measurement of collaboration in asynchronous discussions, the collaboration model adapted from Murphy (2004) was used, which includes the categories: Social presence, Articulation of the individual perspective, Accommodating or reflecting the perspective of others, Co-construction of perspectives and purposes, Finding common goals and objectives and Production of shared materials. The results show a high level of interaction and collaboration in the initial stages and demonstrate that the asynchronous communication tools served for the moderators to assume the role of facilitators, leading students to reflect, question and analyse their practices, taking an active role along the way of learning, which leads us to conclude that there was collaborative learning, although not reaching the highest levels.