Representational scripting: sequencing part-tasks and matching each tool's ontology to part-task demands¶

Design · All designs
Evidence · 2 claims (2 for) · 1 study (1 causal), q3 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 2 claims rest on one study

Description¶

Representational scripting integrates collaboration scripts with representational tools so that the problem-solving process is sequenced into part-tasks whose demands are made explicit, and each tool's representational guidance is congruent with those demands. According to the article, a script is "a set of instructions regarding to how the group members should interact, how they should collaborate and how they should solve the problem". A tool's ontology (its objects, relations and combination rules) makes certain concepts and interrelationships salient: less expressive, first-order ontologies support qualitative causal inference-making, while more expressive, second-order ontologies support quantitative inference-making. In the study, a causal tool was matched to the problem–solution phase and a simulation tool to the solution–evaluation phase.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

A learning-task analysis to determine the sequence and demands of the part-tasks so that part-task congruent tools can be developed

Constraints¶

The article states the design principles do not automatically apply to other domains, learning tasks and settings; effects depend on the characteristics of the learning task and the involved knowledge domains

Target Learners¶

secondary-school students (novices) working on complex learning tasks in teams

Learning Goals¶

acquiring a well-developed qualitative and quantitative understanding of a domain and applying it to solve complex problems

Claims¶

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

B. Slof, G. Erkens, P. A. Kirschner, J. Janssen, J. G. M. Jaspers. (2012). Successfully carrying out complex learning-tasks through guiding teams' qualitative and quantitative reasoning. Instr Sci 40:623–643. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11251-011-9185-2

Page metadata

Field	Value
`type`	`design`
`id`	`representational-scripting-framework`
`title`	`Representational scripting: sequencing part-tasks and matching each tool's ontology to part-task demands`
`description`	`Representational scripting integrates collaboration scripts with representational tools so that the problem-solving process is sequenced into part-tasks whose demands are made explicit, and each tool's representationa...`
`status`	`review`
`generated`	by `process:settle-candidates` on `2026-10-18`
`trust`	unverified — no one has confirmed this page's content
`sources`	1 — `b-slof-2012`

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