Collaborative Critical Incident Development

Abstract

We have been using critical incidents to research the design and evaluation of computer-mediated collaborative and communication technologies for use in K-12 education. A variety of methods have generated a number of critical incidents identified during classroom evaluations. To enhance our analysis and understanding of these incidents, we developed a Web-based forum called the collaborative critical incident tool (CCIT). Users (teachers) and researchers collaboratively post, rate incident criticality, and elaborate on critical incidents through sustained dialog, contributing to the understanding of underlying conditions, causes, and implications. In this paper we describe the tool and its impact on evaluation.