Rights Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License Student-Directed Assessment of Knowledge Building Using Electronic Portfolios

Despite emphasis and progress in developing collaborative inquiry in computer-sup-ported collaborative learning research, little attention has been given to examining how collective learning can be assessed in computer-supported collaborative learn-ing classrooms, and how students can have agency in assessing their own collabora-tive process. We propose that assessments should capture both individual and collec-tive aspects of learning and be designed in ways that foster collaboration. We describe the design of student-directed electronic portfolio assessments to character-ize and “scaffold ” collaborative inquiry using Knowledge Forum™. Our design in-volved asking students to identify exemplary notes in the computer discourse de-picting knowledge building episodes using four knowledge building principles as criteria. We report three studies that examined the designs and roles of knowledge building portfolios with graduate and Grade 12 students in Hong Kong and Canada. The findings suggest that knowledge building portfolios help to characterize collec-tive knowledge advances and foster domain understanding. We discuss lessons learned regarding how knowledge building may be fostered and provide principle