Towards adaptable interaction analysis tools in CSCL

Abstract. Interaction analysis has become a basic function in the field of collaborative learning as a means for supporting evaluation processes. These processes can benefit from the use of automatic or semi-automatic interaction analysis tools. If these tools considered the different roles implied in the analysis processes, this could permit to exploit the results of the analysis in function of who is the user and what is his/her purpose. The experience of awareness systems in CSCW that use roles to decide the type and amount of information that they show suggest that this can be an appropriate approach. However, a review of the concept and classification of roles in the CSCL literature has shown a great diversity of classifications and a lack of common vocabulary to describe roles that also ignore the dynamic aspects of real situations. These aspects demand a new dimension for the classification of roles capturing dynamic aspects, such as the evolution of roles in an activity. Moreover, they demand a common vocabulary for defining and describing roles in learning scenarios. This would allow to automatically adapt the functionalities of interaction analysis tool to the evolving needs of the roles. This paper elaborates two proposals that help to detect the changes of roles produced during the collaborative activity and identify the needs established for these roles