Tarzan and Jane Share an iPad

Increasingly, tablets are entering children’s lives and the classroom. We developed the Proportion iPad application to investigate how tablets can support at-device collaborative learning. We provide a microanalysis of a particularly successful dyad to concretely demonstrate our vision of at-tablet collaboration. We analyze the processes of strategy development, territoriality, modes of collaboration, emotion regulation and task focus. Collaborative learning with tablets Multi-touch devices are starting to replace PCs (both desktops and laptops) as the dominant form of computing, particularly for children. As a result, serious efforts are underway to investigate and integrate tablets into both the primary (Gasparini & Culén, 2013) and secondary (Kaganer et al., 2013) classroom. Most of these research efforts are software agnostic, assuming that the current software ecology is sufficient to realize and study the potential of the hardware. In such a research mode, it is natural to think of tablets as personal devices since the vast majority of software is built around that premise (e.g., tablets as ebooks). Can tablets support collaborative learning? One approach is to have tablets act as personal devices (one user per tablet) but orchestrate activities through software to further collaboration. For instance, Group Scribbles utilizes a classroom projector as a large shared display that can be used to share objects across tablets (Roschelle et al., 2007). The SINQ tablet application allows children to keep and share notes on their inquiry activities; as the information is shared, it affords others noticing connections and spurs on face-to-face collaboration (Ahn et al., 2013). There is less work on using tablets as collaborative devices (multiple users per tablet). One notable exception is the work of Hourcade et al. (2013) on using at-tablet interaction to help children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) to become more comfortable working with one another; the joint tablet use encouraged a greater rate of verbal interactions than comparable non-electronic activities. Why would at-device collaboration be useful? A seminal vision of how technology can support at-device collaborative learning is Roschelle’s (1992) theory of convergent conceptual change: a process by which two novices working with a reflective tool help each other converge on a better domain understanding. Roschelle illustrates the process with two children working with a Newtonian motion simulation. The children were instructed to hypothesize solutions to problems and test them with the software. As both were novices, neither came in with the correct understanding; however, the two generated many ideas and were able to build on each other’s successes and failures. Using the tool, they were able to test their hypotheses and reflect on the outcome. Over time, they converged on an understanding that was more closely aligned with each other and the underlying principles. While Roschelle used a desktop PC, interactive surfaces may be more suited for supporting this type of interaction. First, they may further more equitable interaction as no user can dominate the mouse. Second, they may enhance shared focus as large body movements are easier for partners to monitor than small cursor movements. Third, they may make it easier to switch from gesturing to communicate with a partner to gesturing to interact with the application. Already, there is an established research tradition of using interactive tabletops to support collaboration (Higgins et al., 2011) and learning (Dillenbourg & Evans, 2011; Evans & Rick, 2014). Tablets as tiny tabletops Interactive tabletops are commonly regarded as collaborative devices; in contrast, tablets are thought of as personal devices. While significantly smaller, tablets share two key properties of tabletops: direct input and multiple access points. Direct input means that an end user can directly manipulate the software interface using touch, pen and / or by moving tangible objects. In comparison to using a mouse to control a cursor, the cognitive distance between intent and execution is shortened. This benefit is particularly salient for younger users (e.g., toddlers using tablets). Multiple access points means that multiple concurrent interaction points are sensed by the hardware and utilized by the software. This enables both multi-point gestures, such as pinching with two fingers to zoom out, and switching which hand to use. In addition, the access points can be distributed among multiple participants, thereby enabling collaboration. Because of this common core, we hypothesize that collaborative learning can be similarly supported with tablets. We ground our tablet efforts in tabletop research. We start with the premise of working with learners in the age range of 9-11. This has been a CSCL 2015 Proceedings 356 © ISLS Copyright 2015 International Society of the Learning Sciences. Presented at the Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) Conference 2015. Reproduced by permission.