Exploring teamwork beliefs and competencies in technology-enabled 21st century classrooms

Abstract

Many educational institutions, policy-makers and educators recognize teamwork as a competency for the 21st century learner. Teamwork and learning achievement has been examined through various collaborative activities. However, a number of studies suggest that teamwork processes are complex and students do not instinctively practice teamwork. Also, not enough is known about students’ beliefs about teamwork and how these beliefs affect their actual teamwork behaviors.<br> Another related challenge is the difficulty of measuring students’ teamwork competency. This problem can be attributed to the various conceptual understandings of teamwork and also the practical aspects of measuring it. To address some of these challenges and to develop a measurement of teamwork competency, this research aims to develop a micro-profile of teamwork competency, which will be a visual representation of individuals’ and groups’ teamwork competency. It will also serve as a means of formative assessment, allowing students to improve on their future teamwork processes. This micro- profile will be academic domain-neutral and aimed at groups in authentic computer-supported contexts such as teams of 3-5 members collaborating by synchronous group chats.