Collaborative Learning through Mendeley: Effectiveness and Students’ Perceptions

Abstract

The positive impact of collaborative learning (CL) on students’ learning in general and language learning as well as its impact on learners’ interaction in classrooms has been stressed a lot in the literature (Ghaith, 2003; Johnson & Johnson, 1996 among others). Nevertheless, despite stressing collaborative learning in language classes, students often complain that their partners in group projects don’t contribute equally to the task. Another problem they report is that their note-taking skills aren’t properly utilized and that they find difficulty retrieving relevant resources for their group projects despite working in a team. Therefore, the researcher aims in this research to examine (1) students’ collaboration as a result of using an online social network platform; (2) students’ note-taking skills as a result of using an online social network platform; and (3) students’ resource discovery skills as a result of using an online social network platform, as well as, (4) students’ perception of the effectiveness of working collaboratively using an online social network platform.