Designing blended learning environments with thinking tool strategies: examining a Chinese teacher's decision-making and beliefs

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to examine a Chinese teacher's decision-making and changes in beliefs in a designed, blended learning environment that explored the use of thinking tools (TTs) strategies in nurturing students' thinking skills. The study used a qualitative methodology of Cultural Psychology, Trajectory Equifinality Approach (TEA), to analyze data of a Chinese primary school teacher, Teacher C. Through the analysis, the authors found Teacher C went through five developmental stages. During these stages, the authors identified that (1) online support to address the teacher's problem was effective and multiple viewpoints at international workshops triggered the “Aha” experience. (2) Reflections on beliefs better facilitated exploring TTs strategies in a concrete context. (3) Social guidance, such as presenting Lesson Studies and support of researchers, guided good decision-making, but social directions, such as transferring of supportive administrators and opposition from senior teachers inhibited Teacher C from making certain choices. Based on these results, the authors offer two design principles, combining belief reflection activities with decision-making and paying attention to the interaction of social factors, to improve blended learning environments and to support Chinese teachers to explore TTs strategies in the future.

KEYWORDS:

• Blended learning environment
• decision-making
• belief
• thinking tools
• higher-order thinking skills
• trajectory equifinality approach

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science: [Grant Number 17H04572].

Notes on contributors

Xiaohong Zhang

Xiaohong Zhang is a researcher in Research Center for Instructional Systems, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan. She received her PhD in Faculty of Informatic, Kansai University, Osaka, Japan. Her research interests include instructional design, constructivist learning environments design, higher-order thinking skills improving and professional development of teachers.

Kenichi Kubota

Kenichi Kubota is a professor at Kansai University, Osaka, Japan. He received his PhD in Instructional System Technology Department, School of Education at Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana. His research interests include constructivist learning environment design, project-based learning and international collaborative learning.

Mayumi Kubota

Mayumi Kubota received her PhD in the Speech Communication Department at Indiana University. Currently, she is a professor in the Faculty of Informatics at Kansai University in Japan. Because of her working experiences as a mathematics teacher in the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers in Ghana, her research interests include the perspective of development education, intercultural communication, non-verbal communication and collaborative online learning.

Kedong Li

Kedong Li is the Director at the Research Institute of Educational Technology at South Normal University, and the Director of Educational Technology Centre for Guangdong Province Higher Education. His research interests include theories of educational technology and applications of educational technology.