Scaffolded Help for Learning: How Experts Collaboratively Support Newcomer Participation in Online Communities

dc.contributor.authorJohri, Aditya
dc.contributor.authorYang, Seungwon
dc.contributor.editorLewkowicz, Myriam
dc.contributor.editorRohde, Markus
dc.contributor.editorMulder, Ingrid
dc.contributor.editorSchuler, Douglas
dc.date.accessioned2019-04-04T19:54:11Z
dc.date.available2019-04-04T19:54:11Z
dc.date.issued2017
dc.description.abstractOnline communities, often in the form of discussion forums, encapsulate the very notion of "doing good with technology" by serving as a conduit for help-seeking and problem-solving by users who volunteer their time and effort. One form of helping is assisting others with learning new content, an under-examined topic within the context of online communities, and in this paper we present a study investigating how online discussion forums go beyond informational support and guide newcomers' learning. We analyzed a forum dedicated to helping newcomers learn the programming language Java™. Using an empirical approach that combined analysis of forum data with interviews with expert we found that experts consciously and collaboratively scaffolded newcomers' learning by creating shared understanding, providing ongoing diagnosis, and fading their help over time. Multiple resources were leveraged for scaffolding and learners often received personalized instruction through collaborative contributions of multiple experts on the forum.en
dc.identifier.doi10.1145/3083671.3083694
dc.identifier.isbn978-1-4503-4854-6
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherACM Press, New York
dc.relation.ispartofProceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies
dc.subjectScaffolding
dc.subjectexpert-novice collaboration
dc.subjectonline communities
dc.titleScaffolded Help for Learning: How Experts Collaboratively Support Newcomer Participation in Online Communitiesen
dc.typeText/Conference Paper
gi.citation.endPage158
gi.citation.startPage149
gi.conference.dateJune 26-30, 2017
gi.conference.locationTroyes, France
gi.conference.sessiontitleLong Papers
mci.conference.reviewfull

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