Omid Noroozi wins Most Promising Publication Award of WASS

Jury report

In the publication “a highly relevant and rapidly developing new field of argumentation-based learning via computers was shaped, structured and ordered, while also setting out the research agenda for the future. It was well written and already in such a short time heavily seen and cited. A typical example of excellent scholarship based on library and desk research”, according to the jury.

Most Promising Publication

The ‘Most Promising WASS Publication Award’ is annually being granted to a first author under the age of 35. The jury was extremely pleased with the high quality of the submissions and the wide spreading over various WASS groups and disciplines.  “It was a joy to read all the submissions. However, it made the selection of the winners very difficult”, said the jury, consisting of Rob King, Professor of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota and member of the WASS International Advisory Board, Laan van Staalduinen, Director of the Social Sciences Group of Wageningen UR, and Arthur Mol, Director of WASS.

About the award-winning publication

‘Argumentation-based computer supported collaborative learning (ABCSCL). A systematic review and synthesis of fifteen years of research’, of which Noroozi was the first author, addressed practical implications for the use of technology to prepare students to become capable and qualified professionals, who can argue, analyze, synthesize, and cope with complex issues and societal problems. The theoretical framework proposed in this paper has been considered as innovative and original by the ABCSCL scientific community. Prior to this study, no specific framework was yet available for synthesizing, designing, and analysing ABCSCL.

For this review, 108 publications on ABCSCL research were systematically studied based on specific search strategy and inclusion criteria. Based on quantitative findings, ABCSCL studies varied in terms of research focus, mode of communication, research method, design, educational level, curricula, and geographic location with a strong emphasis on western countries. This wide variety showed the importance and growing nature of this body of scholarship. Based on qualitative findings, a tentative framework was proposed consisting of four interconnected components “student”, “learning environment”, “learning process”, and “learning outcomes”, each of which was divided into sub-components in ABCSCL. Each of these interrelated components was discussed in relation to various aspects of the learning outcomes.

High-rank journals

The paper was published in Educational Research Review,  an A-quality journal amongst the top 5% publication outlets in the field of Educational Research. This review study has been the basis for many top articles Noroozi has published in high-rank ISI journals, like Learning and Instruction (2/206, top 1%), Computers in Human Behavior, Computers & Education (7/206, top 5%), IJCSCL (11/206, top 5%), ETR&D, etc. This paper is the most downloaded and hottest article in the SciVerse ScienceDirect and has already been well recognized and cited by reputable scholars in top journals.

Share knowledge and co-construct through argumentation

The paper is built on the main WASS theme, Knowledge in Society. With the arrival of the knowledge-based era, the swift growth of information and communication technology, it is inevitable that professionals in all fields will be confronted with rapidly changing societal problems and complex issues. These complexities call for appropriate specialization of domain knowledge in which experts from different disciplines need to tackle disagreements, participate and reflect in communities of inquiry, and engage in reasoned debate for managing societal problems. This article explores how knowledge can be shared and co-constructed through argumentation with technology to prepare students to become capable and qualified professionals, who can argue, analyze, synthesize, and cope with complex issues and societal problems.

Other journal publications of Noroozi

• Noroozi, O., Biemans, H.J.A., Busstra, M.C., Mulder, M., & Chizari, M. (2011). Differences in learning processes between successful and less successful students in computer-supported collaborative learning in the field of human nutrition and health. Computers in Human Behaviour, 27(1), 309-318.
• Noroozi, O., Biemans, H.J.A., Weinberger, A., Mulder, M., & Chizari, M. (2013). Scripting for construction of a transactive memory system in multidisciplinary CSCL environments. Learning and Instruction, 25(1), 1-12.
• Noroozi, O., Busstra, M.C., Mulder, M., Biemans, H.J.A., Tobi, H., Geelen, M.M.E.E., van’t Veer, P., & Chizari, M. (2012). Online discussion compensates for suboptimal timing of supportive information presentation in a digitally supported learning environment. Educational Technology Research and Development, 60(2), 193-221.
• Noroozi, O., Teasley, S.D., Biemans, H.J.A., Weinberger, A., & Mulder, M. (2013). Facilitating learning in multidisciplinary groups with transactive CSCL scripts. International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, 8(2), 189-223.
• Noroozi, O., Weinberger, A., Biemans, H.J.A., Mulder, M., & Chizari, M. (2013). Facilitating argumentative knowledge construction through a transactive discussion script in CSCL. Computers and Education, 61(2), 59-76.
• Noroozi, O., Biemans, H.J.A., Busstra, M.C., Mulder, M., Popov, V., & Chizari, M. (2012). Effects of the Drewlite CSCL platform on students’ learning outcomes. In A. Juan., T. Daradoumis., M. Roca., S.E. Grasman., & J. Faulin. (Eds.), Collaborative and distributed E-research: Innovations in technologies, strategies and applications (pp. 276-289).