Aims and scope

International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (ijCSCL) is an international, multidisciplinary journal dedicated to research on collaborative learning, especially in settings involving computational support. It addresses uses of computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) in schools, informal settings, gaming, work and social life generally, as well as the impacts of CSCL on individuals, groups and society. The journal strives to promote deeper understanding of the nature, theory and practice of CSCL.

ijCSCL’s primary focus is on how learning unfolds in the context of collaborative activity and how to design effective technological and pedagogical settings to support collaborative learning. It features empirically grounded studies and descriptive analyses of interaction in groups, which investigate the emergence, development and use of practices, processes and mechanisms of collaborative learning. Discussions of technological supports, theoretical perspectives, assessment or evaluation designs, analysis methods and pedagogical approaches related to collaborative learning are also published.

ijCSCL provides a forum for communication among researchers from different disciplines in the learning sciences such as: education, computer science, information technology, psychology and communication. The journal welcomes articles reporting on original studies; extensions of important previous work; critical integrative theoretical and methodological contributions; and synthetic review articles. All papers are rigorously peer-refereed through an anonymous double-blind review process.

ijCSCL serves the needs of the international CSCL research community. This is a diverse community, exploring many approaches to the issues of CSCL. Papers should make clear, novel contributions to the current discourse within the CSCL research community, as reflected in the journals and conferences sponsored by ISLS and similar sources. Whatever approach a submitted paper takes, it must meet the scientific standards of the applicable methodology. This includes providing analysis of data supporting major claims, as well as a persuasive, articulate and focused argument for the claims. In general, stand-alone self-reports of students or of users collected in surveys or questionnaires are not usually sufficient to document claims about the effectiveness of technologies and pedagogies or to support explanations of collaborative learning, such as theories and models. Such sources can be useful for generating research hypotheses or as data accompanying other sources of data for deeper understanding. For instance, the analysis of interactions and products of collaboration can be used to show how technologies or pedagogies are applied in actual practice, and as evidence of learning by students and teachers.