WebLabs: Virtual collaborative learning experience for researchers, teachers and students

Abstract

The paper presents experiences from a 3 year international project, WebLabs: New representational infrastructure for e-learning, in which researchers, teachers and young students from UK, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Sweden, Portugal and Italy participated. The project explored innovative pedagogy based on the integration of constructionist learning approach and virtual co-learning. For the purposes of the project a visual programming environment, Toon Talk, and a virtual collaborative system, Wplone, were adopted, and special instruments - webreports - were designed and developed. The experience proved that mathematical and science concepts, usually considered as difficult and unattainable for young children, can be made accessible and meaningful to them, by using different representations as well as group co-learning and reflection.