AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF A CLASSROOM APPLICATION OF GROUP SUPPORT SYSTEMS TECHNOLOGY

摘要

Group Support Systems (GSS) are a form of Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) automatedrninformation-sharing tools that have the advantage of facilitating, improving, and speedingrncommunication channels between the different members in a meeting session. Applied to the academicrnsector this technology can speed up communication between the information providers and receivers,rnbrainstorm all members for creative ideas, and improve the learning process in the classroom setting.rnThis paper discusses the advantages and disadvantages of applying the GSS technology as a teachingrntool in a classroom setting. In addition this paper reports the results of an exploratory study in which arnGSS system was used to facilitate discussion of an academic topic. The results of this study providernevidence that GSS technology can be used to enhance the classroom experience for a better learningrnenvironment.