SUPERVISORS: Chandan dasgupta, Hannie gijlers & alieke van dijk
Uncertainty is defined as an experience of doubt, confusion, and wondering about a situation. It may be personal/shared and subjective/intersubjective experience influenced by self and others. It could be due to lack of knowledge, inherent unknowns in the task, ambiguity of working together in a group, and risk of not reaching the goal. Uncertainty management can be understood as a process of engaging in actions and behaviors aimed at resolving these uncertainties. When students work collaboratively in a group and manage uncertainty productively, they engage in collaborative learning, metacognitive thinking, perform systematic experimentation to reduce uncertainty in an informed manner, negotiate from multiple perspectives, and are motivated to solve problems persistently. Uncertainty and its management mediate sharing of ideas, explanation formation, and co-creation of artifacts thus facilitating collaboration and collaborative learning. This can take place in formal (e.g., classroom) and informal (e.g., makerspaces) collaborative settings in various domains.
However, uncertainty is often viewed as negative by students and educators and something that needs to be avoided or reduced quickly. It frequently triggers negative responses like stress, anxiety, fear, and decision paralysis. Uncertainty is invisible and students are often unaware of uncertainties that need to be addressed to understand a concept or solve a problem. They lack training and experience in managing uncertainty productively and regulating their learning processes. Hence, it is important to investigate how to scaffold productive uncertainty management in collaborative settings.
EXAMPLE RESEARCH QUESTIONS WITHIN THIS THEME
- How does uncertainty influence collaboration and collaborative learning processes?
- What types of guidance do students need to engage in productive uncertainty management during collaborative learning?
- How can effective guidance be provided to students so that they perceive them as meaningful?
- How can we create Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) environments that scaffold productive uncertainty management in small groups?
- What role does uncertainty management play in inquiry learning?
- What self-regulated learning and socially shared regulation of learning (SSRL) strategies are involved (and how) in the process of productive uncertainty management? How can we support these?
- How can productive uncertainty management foster creativity?