Singapore Educators and Researchers Lead Global Knowledge Building Dialogues at ISLS/CSCL & KBSI 2025, Helsinki
We celebrate the remarkable achievements of 10 educators from 4 Singapore schools, who, together with researchers from the National Institute of Education (NIE), represented Singapore prominently at the International Conference on Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) / International Society of the Learning Sciences (ISLS) and the Knowledge Building Summer Institute (KBSI), held in Helsinki, Finland in 2025.
Singapore contributed 3 out of the 18 globally accepted practitioner papers and 4 research-based contributions at ISLS/CSCL, alongside a strong suite of papers and symposia at KBSI 2025. These contributions reflect Singapore’s ongoing commitment to bridging research and practice through Knowledge Building (KB) pedagogies, epistemic innovation, and teacher-researcher collaborations.
Firstly, it is worth noting that at ISLS, Professor Marlene Scardamalia, inaugural Presidents’ Chair and University Distinguished Professor of Knowledge Innovation and Technology, President of Knowledge Building International from 2012 to 2020, delivered a keynote titled:
"Expanding the Realm of Possibilities in Education through Knowledge Building: Epistemic Agency, Collective Responsibility and Generative AI"
She urged education systems to move from “working backward” (toward pre-defined learning outcomes) to “working forward”, where teachers and students collaboratively pursue knowledge advancement. She called for responsible integration of AI—not to automate learning—but to augment student creativity, agency, and community knowledge growth, reinforcing values central to Singapore’s current initiatives.
ISLS/CSCL 2025 – Practitioner Papers
1. Co-Designing Educational Practices Through Research-Practice Partnerships
Ms Norhazlinda, Ms Liyana, Mr Elwirandi, Ms Melissa, Ms Christine, and Dr Teo Chew Lee shared how a teacher-led professional learning community at Oasis Primary School, working in collaboration with a researcher, applied KB principles to redesign classroom practice. The team explored how to elevate student agency and align with school-wide strategies through idea-centered inquiry.
2. Enhancing Student Metacognitive Thinking and Content Learning in Chinese and Science Classrooms with Generative AI Chatbots
Dr Guangji Yuan and Mr Zhijin Han presented findings from their use of Fairbot, an AI chatbot designed to support metacognitive thinking and domain-specific learning. Through co-designed teacher prompts and AI scaffolds, the chatbot guided student inquiry and showed promise in improving reflective thinking and text comprehension.
3. Gamifying Knowledge Building: Fostering Inquiry and Motivation in the Primary Classroom
Ms Usha discussed the integration of game-based mechanics with Knowledge Building principles to enhance inquiry and engagement. Her design supported younger learners in navigating complex ideas while maintaining motivation and collaborative depth.
ISLS/CSCL 2025 – Research Contributions
1. Recognizing Group-Level Epistemic Emotions during Knowledge Building Activities
Dr Alwyn Lee introduced EmoSense, a prototype leveraging facial recognition and surveys to recognize group-level epistemic emotions such as curiosity and confusion. This work provided new insights into how emotional dynamics influence collaborative knowledge advancement.
2. Emotion and Online Collaborative Knowledge Building Using the Knowledge Forum
Dr Teo Chew Lee, presenting at the ICLS symposium on emotions and epistemic engagement, shared a multi-modal study of student emotions during KB. Physiological and behavioral data revealed that emotions like challenge and interest correlated strongly with perceived learning, providing design cues for emotionally attuned learning environments.
3. How Do Students Build Community Knowledge for Sustainability through Collaborative Discourse?
Dr Alwyn on behalf of Dr Aloysius Ong explored how student-generated questions deepened inquiry in a sustainability-themed KB program. Findings emphasized the central role of “wonderment” and “explanation-seeking” questions in advancing student understanding and collective meaning-making.
4. Poster: Elevating Design Knowledge in CSCL
Dr Alwyn Lee also presented a poster examining how design knowledge in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) is often under-recognized in research literature. By reviewing articles from the International Journal of CSCL, the team identified five key design patterns supporting online collaborative learning—spanning learning goals, task structures, platform affordances, and peer interaction processes. The study calls for greater emphasis on documenting and sharing reusable design knowledge to strengthen CSCL innovation and implementation.
Knowledge Building Summer Institute (KBSI) 2025 – Paper Presentations
Theme: Advancing Knowledge Building and Epistemic Agency Using Generative AI (I)
Tensions and Contradictions of Supporting Knowledge Building with a Generative Artificial Intelligence Learning Companion
Prof Tan Seng Chee, Ms Yee Yin Tan, Dr Teo Chew Lee, and Dr Guangji Yuan presented this paper examining the complex dynamics of integrating AI companions into KB environments. The team identified key tensions between student epistemic agency and AI-generated scaffolding, highlighting the importance of design considerations that preserve student ownership over knowledge creation while leveraging AI affordances.
Theme: Improvable Ideas and Practice in Multiple Learning-System Contexts (II)
Fostering Secondary School Students’ Engagement and Conceptual Understanding in Mathematics through Knowledge Building
Mr Lin Jiehui shared how Secondary One students with weaker math foundations benefited from a KB approach emphasizing idea diversity, improvable ideas, and democratization of knowledge. Discourse analysis on Knowledge Forum revealed improved conceptual engagement and peer contribution, demonstrating the potential for KB to transform mathematical understanding in less confident learners.
Teacher Knowledge Building Mindset
Mr Melvin Chan reflected on his and a colleague’s journey in developing and sustaining a knowledge building mindset. They discussed shifts in teacher identity, strategies for encouraging curiosity-driven innovation, and the importance of community support in sustaining long-term pedagogical transformation. Their narrative emphasized that a mindset grounded in collective responsibility, openness, and continuous improvement is key to advancing KB in schools.
Symposium: Advancing Knowledge Building Innovation Networks
Creating Concrete Impact in Classrooms through Knowledge Building Singapore
Dr Teo Chew Lee and Prof Tan Seng Chee led this symposium presentation showcasing Singapore’s Knowledge Building innovation network. Drawing on classroom research and practitioner partnerships, they illustrated how local schools have implemented KB at scale. Emphasis was placed on how designing for impact, not just fidelity, enables KB to adapt meaningfully across diverse school systems and learner needs.
ISLS early career workshop
Exploring Knowledge Building Through Interdisciplinary Lenses
Dr. Guangji Yuan also introduced her innovative research on KB at the Early Career Workshop. Her work uniquely integrates interdisciplinary tools, including electroencephalography (EEG), AI, and adaptive thinking, to deepen the understanding of KB. By exploring the cognitive and neural processes of collaborative learning and leveraging AI-supported educational tools, Dr. Yuan aims to improve collaborative learning and share some new ideas about education, brain science, and technology.
The combined contributions across ISLS/CSCL and KBSI 2025 with the collaboration of researchers and teachers highlight Singapore’s growing contribution in educational innovation.