Project assignment

Facilitators - As Assistants of Students in Network-based Problem Solving

To make a framework for the use of educators as assistants of students in network-based problem solving.

Implication:

In the area of Group Decision Support System(GDSS), there are many experimental studies how people could corporate with each other in creative discussions. For example, it was said that the group size should not be large but not so small, small goals should be determined before discussion, people should be collected from different area with interests, facilitator would be needed to make discussion active, and so on.

In this information age, education will be change with new technologies. Especially in network-based problem solving classroom, the same assistant environment of GDSS and CSCW will be needed. Educators will be assistants or leaders to make discussions active or successful. I would like to study experimental studies in the USA in collecting papers and web pages. The final goal is to make framework of role of the facilitator.

Questions from Prof. Levin:

•  What questions will you want to be able to answer about your project focus area at the end of your project?
 The needs for educator in network-based problem solving classroom.

•  What issues concerning your focus area would you like to address?
 Role of educators will be change in this information age.

•  In what target audience do you have for your research project? (in other words, in what publication would you like the results of your project to appear?)
 I am not sure what kind of publication would be better to publish. At least, I should present it in the funded association of my visiting to USA. If I could compare with difference between American and Japanese classroom, I would like to present it in a conference which will be held in USA.