| Social interaction is the process of exchanging ideas,sharing resources and exploring knowledge among multiple learners.The online learning discussion forum is a place for learners to interact and learn online.Learners use the discussion forum interaction platform to learn and communicate with each other emotionally,and carry out social interaction through posting,forwarding,browsing and commenting,etc.Such learning behaviors can cultivate learners’ problem-solving ability,improve their social adaptability and sense of cooperation and communication,and form correct selfconcept.Therefore,exploring the characteristics of learners’ online interactions,discovering the shortcomings of learners’ online learning discussions and taking corresponding measures to correct them are very practical guidance for the effective implementation of subsequent online teaching activities.This study uses the triadic reciprocal determinism,social interaction theory,and learning community theory as support,introduces teacher support,and explores the quality of learners’ social interaction in online learning,and selects the discussions generated by 2019-level educational technology students of Shenyang X University based on the Super Star Learning Platform in the online course "Advanced Language Programming" in the second semester of the 2019-2020 academic year.The discussion contents generated in the study data,comprehensive content analysis,social network analysis,lagged sequence analysis,case study analysis and statistical analysis methods,quantitative and qualitative methods complement each other and are illustrated against each other,throughout the whole process of social interaction quality exploration and analysis to ensure the scientific and validity of the research process.The main manifestations are: using content analysis to specifically analyze the patterns of learners’ online discussions based on coding tables;using social network analysis to explore the characteristics of social networks exhibited among learners;using lagged sequence analysis to explore the transition relationships between learners’ behavioral codes,which complement the coding and technical methods in content analysis to detect the transition relationships between different coding categories in order to reveal the associations between them.A case study of a typical discussion example is used to cross-check with the results of the quantitative study,revealing the quality of learners’ social interactions based on the results of the analysis,identifying problems in the process of social interactions,and then suggesting possible references for teachers to develop online learning support.A quantitative analysis of teacher support and learner social interaction quality revealed that teacher support affects learner social interaction quality.The results of the study showed that the depth of interaction content was more at the stage of providing solutions to possible answers;the social network showed a shift from "uncentered" to "polycentered";and the behavioral sequence characteristics were significant when teachers provided both emotional and professional support.The behavioral sequences were effective when teachers provided both emotional and professional support.On this basis,three suggestions are made for teachers to provide online learning support: first,to develop learners’ ability to summarize problem solving solutions;second,to play the role of "core participants" in leading discussions;and third,to play the role of teachers and teaching assistants in supporting learners. |
