BUILDING ELECTRONIC THESAURI: CO-OPERATIVE GROUNDING DURING GROUPWORK

摘要

In this paper we report on the transfer processes that occurred during several groupware trainings which we organised at Gent University. The goal of these training courses is to learn in small groups to use groupware tools for building a electronic thesaurus within an organisation. In the first part, we explain the basic characteristics of groupwork and focus on the important grounding process, which we consider as crucial for individual cognitive transfer. In the second part of the paper, we illustrate our 'Learning Studio'. All trainings are computer supported and organised in a hybrid way: combinations of different distance-learning modes have been introduced and intranet-connected. The groupware-based construction and maintenance of an electronic thesaurus has an important role in supporting the grounding process. We conclude the paper by stipulating the role of such a group thesaurus as a 'boundary object' for the transfer process.