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Teacher scaffolding is crucial to promote students' cooperative learning processes, but little is known about the cognitive attention underlying teachers' scaffolding behavior. This study aims to investigate the scaffolding behavior teachers exhibit while intervening in students' cooperative learning and to explore the relation between teachers' scaffolding behavior and visual perception when applying supportive strategies. Four secondary teachers in China were studied during mathematics lessons using eye-tracking glasses complemented by an additional classroom camera with interviews. The results show that the teachers applied scaffolding strategies very often, followed by the usage of diagnostic strategies. Furthermore, they were more concerned about the cognitive aspects of students' learning processes than the social aspects. The applied strategies were significantly related to fixation patterns during scaffolding. Detailed analysis suggests that (1) the teachers diagnosed students' understanding mainly by observing the material with an attention or scan pattern; (2) during scaffolding processes, when applying a cognitive performance strategy, teachers paid attention to both the students and their material; (3) while regulating cognitive processes, most teachers scanned students' material quickly; and (4) teachers generally focused more on materials to provide interaction-related help than on students' facial expressions. Additionally, the study points out that teachers' perception skills and behaviors during class activities may be influenced by the task being performed, teachers' teaching experience, and their beliefs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the role of socially shared regulation on computational thinking performance in cooperative learning. Ninety-four middle school students from China aged between 16 and 18 participated in this study. Forty-six students were in the experimental group, and 48 students were in the control group. Students in the experimental group learned under the socially shared regulation of learning (SSRL) condition, which included planning and goal setting, task and content monitoring, and task and content evaluation. Students in the control group learned in a traditional way. The results showed that the students in the experimental group significantly outperformed their counterparts on the midtest and posttest. Additionally, the learning gain of the experimental group was much better from the pretest to the midtest. Different subgroups in the experimental group had different learning performances, and task monitoring and content monitoring were two important SSRL processes that led to improved computational thinking performance. Our results suggest that SSRL is beneficial for learning computational thinking subjects. Throughout the process of SSRL, different groups have different learning dynamics, and task and content monitoring plays a major role in computational thinking performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews the benefits of conducting communicative language teaching through cooperative learning in EFL (English as a Foreign Language) of English Major students in mainland China. In a foreign language learning context, a cooperative learning environment that structured students in group learning situations foster critical thinking. The paper reveals cooperative learning cultivate university students' communicative language learning and critical thinking abilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the globalization of the world and the Initiative of Belt and Road, Business English learning is becoming increasingly popular and important in China. Based on the comparison between tradional frontal-lecturing approach and cooperative learning and analysis of the characteristics of Business English course, this paper tries to integrate Business English teaching with cooperative learning from Dewey's interactive naturalism and humanism with an attempt to explore why cooperative learning is effective in Business English learning to deveplope students' English competence, business skills and moral qualities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of the present investigation is to examine students' interest in online groupwork and the related factors in the social and cultural context of China. Using data from undergraduates from online study groups, we examined both individual- and group-level predictors for online groupwork interest. The findings indicated that online groupwork interest was positively associated with variables such as monitoring motivation, peer-oriented reasons, and previous online courses. Full-time students rated online groupwork as being more interesting. Among the group-level predictors, 'learning-oriented reasons' were the only one that stood out as being statistically significant. The findings were discussed in the context of online literature, and future research is also suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cooperative learning is based on modern social psychology, cognitive psychology and modern educational technology and so on as the theoretical basis, making full use of the dynamic factors in class and group activities for the basic teaching form. Team members will communicate with each other to finish the tasks assigned by the teacher. The teacher will take assessments, which are a series of teaching activities or strategies to finish the teaching goal. Cooperative learning is one of the new learning styles that the present basic education curriculum advocates. Nowadays, many scholars of China have done research on cooperative learning, but most of their researches only stay in the form of cooperative learning, which haven't made a deep research in the carrying out of cooperative learning in rural middle school. This paper researches the new curriculum and the data at home and abroad. By using questionnaire, interview and observation, taking Xinling Middle School of Enshi as an example, the author did an investigation on the situation of the application of cooperative learning in Xinling Middle School English teaching. The author finds some problems existing in the application of cooperative learning: the teachers lack enough understanding about cooperative learning; the division of groups is not reasonable; the students lack consciousness and skills of cooperative learning, etc. The author also finds some solutions to solve these problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to be more competitive in the global marketplace, China has adopted a long-term plan to reform their higher education system. One specific aim of this plan is to facilitate the achievement of China’s goal of building a world-class market-driven economy through the development of an adequate supply of MBA-trained professional managers to lead their organizations. This case study presents an exploratory and descriptive research approach to assess the effects of an instructional delivery scenario in which concrescent conversation was used as a communication tool to create a cooperative learning setting in a mainland Chinese MBA course. The Index of Learning Styles (ILS) model was used to determine the learning style preference of the Chinese students. The study also investigated the relation between a student’s preferred learning style with gender and major (business, engineering, math, and science). Sensing-intuitive was the only ILS subscale with a significant difference across gender and major. Females exhibited amoderatepreference for sensing learning while males exhibited amildpreference for sensing learning. Among majors, only business and engineering were significantly different from each other. Business majors tended to prefer themoderatesensing learning style and engineering majors indicated a preference formildsequential learning style. Contrary to the literature on learning style differences attributed to specific cultural orientation, additional observations and results revealed that the Chinese MBA students accepted the instructional delivery scenario in which concrescent conversation was used to implement a student-centered learning setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With teamwork being the norm since the 1980s, many researchers have conducted studies on the relationships among different characteristics of team performance. We investigated 55 teams formed by 294 Master of Business Administration students at a university in China, asking them to complete a task as part of a team of 3-8 members before filling out surveys to assess repeated collaboration and time pressure. Task performance was assessed by the students' instructors. The results showed that repeated collaboration had a negative influence on team performance and that time pressure moderated this relationship. Managerial implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cooperative Learning (or Collaborative Learning), has become one of mainstream learning strategies in the world. As China continues to push forward and lucubrate into the reform of college English, many educational theorists and teachers who work on college English try to use the cooperative learning, a creative and effective learning strategy, into the current college English learning system, and have made some achievements. This paper also tries to sum up some relevant studies on cooperative learning in college English learning, and use some actual instances of college students' English learning to attempt to raise some effective approaches to improve the cooperative learning strategies in the college English learning, and hope to provide some references for the colleges to launch cooperative learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study mainly explored the effects of a Wiki-based Collaborative Process Writing Pedagogy (WCPWP) on writing ability and writing attitudes among Primary Four students in Shenzhen, China. Besides, this study also investigated students' collaborative writing process with the WCPWP. Students wrote their compositions in a MediaWiki platform (www.joyouswriting.com) named Joyous Writing Club (JWC) developed by the first author. By using a quasi-experimental design, two groups (classes) of Primary Four students participated in this study. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected including writing ability composition tests (pre-test and post-test), writing attitude tests (pre-test and post-test), online wiki documents, and observations. The results provided a general picture of the students' collaborative writing process and showed that the WCPWP had a positive but not significant effect on students' writing ability. Importantly, the results indicated that the WCPWP had a significant positive effect on the writing attitudes of students. The study further discussed the reasons related to the positive effects of the WCPWP on writing ability (not significant) and writing interests (significant). Implications and recommendations for primary school educators and Chinese language teachers are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Chinese students constitute the most rapidly growing international cohort of students enrolled in many Western tertiary settings, and it is important to understand more about their preparation for engaging with commonly used teaching approaches such as groupwork. This study investigated their attitudes and experience of groupwork while enrolled at a large Chinese university. Semi-structured and video-stimulated recall interview data were collected from 16 third-year Finance students over a 5-week field study. Results showed that this group of Chinese students experienced more out-of-class than in-class groupwork activities. These out-of-class groupwork sessions fell into three categories: (1) student initiated, (2) student league initiated and (3) teacher initiated. Students identified both individual and collective benefits from groupwork, highlighting that Chinese students value groupwork and actively seek to engage with it in the Chinese tertiary context. This study contributes to the understanding of Chinese students' group practices in Chinese tertiary settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the findings of a one-year longitudinal study that investigated the impact of group work on the development of students’ critical thinking in Hong Kong secondary schools. It explores whether the participation of teachers in a group-based teaching intervention adapted from an earlier study conducted in the United Kingdom (UK) facilitated students’ use of critical arguments in Liberal Studies lessons. In addition to examining students’ critical thinking skills through test performance and the use of reasoned justifications in written class-work, the article also discusses the applicability to the Hong Kong context of the programme on which the intervention was based. In general, the results of the study indicate that group work is more effective than whole-class instruction in developing students’ critical-thinking skills and that students make better progress in ‘teacher-supported’ than ‘student self-directed’ group work. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

One major challenge of developing problem-based learning (PBL) curricula in medical schools in China is to meet the requirements of sufficient qualified PBL tutors. Since 2011, we have developed a modified group teaching approach where an experienced faculty tutor facilitates several small PBL student groups in a large class. Although our study indicates that it was effective for student's learning, we note that several challenges still exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some educators may see cooperative learning as a Western pedagogy that is difficult to use in Eastern countries with a Confucian Heritage, while others argue that the philosophy of Confucius parallels the elements of cooperative learning. This article reports the key findings of a 2-year longitudinal study that investigated the perceptions of cooperative learning and pupils’ problems with cooperative learning in a Hong Kong primary school. A school-based staff development programme was conducted to help teachers prepare students for using cooperative learning in their classes. Pupils were interviewed at various stages of the study, and classroom observations were conducted to see how they worked in cooperative groups in the core subjects. The results showed that pupils’ perceptions of cooperative learning were generally positive though they encountered some problems in working together. The results are discussed with reference to the influence of Confucian heritage culture on pupils’ perceptions of CL, and recommendations are made for accommodating cooperative learning accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Highlights: [•] Kuhn's model has positive effects on students’ development of critical thinking. [•] The key strategies of effective group work in the SPRinG project are applicable to HK. [•] The teaching intervention enhanced students’ critical-thinking ability. [•] A desirable lesson duration is a necessary condition for high-quality group work. [•] Briefing and debriefing facilitate students’ cooperation and self-reflection. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • The impact of supplier interdependences on product quaility is explored. • Resource and task interdependence enhance cooperative learning. • Technology novelty reduces task interdependence's impact on cooperative learning. • Technology novelty boosts resource interdependence's impact on learning. As automobile manufacturing firms often outsource third-party designers to produce key innovative components, the suppliers of these third-party designers must be capable of collaborative innovation through cooperative learning in today's changing technology and customers' demands. However, research has rarely investigated how suppliers' relationships - specifically, the mutual dependence among suppliers - can be leveraged to enhance cooperative learning and thus the final product quality. This research draws on social interdependence theory to examine the associations between two main types of interdependence (task and resources) and cooperative learning under different levels of technology novelty conditions. Based on data collected from automobile parts suppliers in China, the results indicate that resource and task interdependence were positively associated with cooperative learning. However, high task interdependence is unfavorable under high technological novelty; whereas, resource interdependence is a key driver of inter-organizational learning under higher levels of technological novelty. The results of this study have significant theoretical and implications for researchers and designers to nurture suppliers' cooperative learning capabilities under diverse technology novelty conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was aimed at investigating the impact of cooperative learning on the motivation of tertiary English learners. Participants were from two randomly assigned classes at a university in the north of China. A pre-test–post-test control group design was employed to compare the impact of the cooperative learning approach with that of traditional whole-class instruction on six aspects of learning motivation: intrinsic motivation, integrated regulation, identified regulation, introjected regulation, external regulation and amotivation. Findings suggested significant differences in favour of cooperative learning in improving intrinsic motivation, but no differences were found on other aspects of motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

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On the basis of a literature review, this paper discusses some issues when cooperative learning is applied in the Chinese tertiary-level EFL classroom. Specifically, beginning with gaining an understanding of the College English teaching situation in China, it conducts an overview of cooperative learning and discusses what makes cooperative learning work in second language acquisition. It goes on to discuss the issues of the application of cooperative learning to improving Chinese students' oral proficiency and provides suggestions on using this approach in the EFL context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Built from data collected through three-phase in-depth interviews, this study explores from cultural and social perspectives why Chinese students may initially be termed silent participants when they first commence group work with western students; and then examines the impact of cultural interaction through group work on their adjustment. ‘Discourse system’ is used to categorise how they adapt over the course of the year, with changes in expressing opinions, holding ground and self-autonomy. The study suggests that preparation for the new educational system and cultures of learning before students' departure, a facilitative environment in which students have interactive contact with different cultures and tutors' support are essential for Chinese students to achieve a fulfilled learning experience in the UK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines young Chinese students’ (born post 1985) adaptation to cultural exposure in the UK. Built from data collected from in-depth interviews, the research establishes that, through direct communication with students from various cultural backgrounds during teamwork, the Chinese students adapt to varying degrees in ideology, socialisation, forms of discourse and face system. The research finds that the extent of adjustment is moderated by their individual learning approaches as well as contextual mediation. The results are confirmed by the findings from a comparison group of similar students in China, with respect to age, gender and learning. Implications arising from the study suggest that the internationalisation of education should enhance ‘cultural synergy’, so that both the local and international students can enrich their learning experiences and develop intercultural competence. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Background: Cooperative learning (CL) and role play are both efficient educational tools for enhancing Chinese student active learning and communication skills. Objective: This study was designed to obtain student feedback on the format of CL together with role play in the study of pharmacology in Chinese pharmaceutical undergraduates. Materials and Methods: CL was used in the self-study of new drugs used clinically but neglected in textbook and class teaching, so that groups of students were assigned to become ''specialists'' in one area of new drugs. Then, these ''specialists'' taught their new-found knowledge to other groups in role play approach involving an interaction between the pharmacist and a patient. Student perceptions of CL together with role play were examined using an eight-item survey instrument. Results: Students were satisfied with CL together with role play. Majority of the students believed this teaching method enhanced their learning experience, made them gain more pharmacological expertise, increased the awareness of their career in future and self-educational abilities, and fostered their cooperation spirit and confidence. The materials on CL and role play were also believed pertinent. Only 63.4-76.5% and 63.1-37.3% of the students thought "CL and role-play were very funny" and "I felt very relaxed during CL together with role-play", respectively. Conclusion: CL together with role play is an efficient educational tool for enhancing student active-learning and communication skills. But Chinese students will take some time to adapt to this new teaching method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research indicates that cooperative learning with teacher-guided instruction is more effective in helping young children to learn than cooperative learning with minimal guidance. In the present study, two different cooperative learning activities (jigsaw and drama) and a control condition (a traditional teacher-led approach) were compared. The participants were 279 Grade 5 Hong Kong students located in nine classrooms. The two experimental conditions emphasised teachers' cognitive support in helping students to understand a text through both teacher-led and student-led activities. Post-test data included a reading comprehension test and three questionnaires that investigated students' goal orientations, initial level of relative autonomy and perceptions of instructional practices. Findings indicate that students in the jigsaw group outperformed students in both the drama group and the control group in the reading comprehension test. The implications of conducting cooperative learning activities with well-planned teacher guidance are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There have been numerous researches on autonomous learning, cooperative learning, and exploratory learning, but lack those concerning their relationship. The present aims at that goal from the perspectives of their natures, factors, and functions respectively. It is based on the three dimensions (content, motivation, and interaction) of learning process proposed by the Comprehensive Learning Theory, and discusses the relationship of the three ways of learning. It concludes with a discussion of the possible ways of combination of the three regarding the case of knowledge building community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An updated guideline for tertiary ELT in China has shifted the emphasis to the development of learners’ ability to communicate in English. Using group work and getting learners actively involved in the actual use of English are highlighted more than before. This article focuses on adapting cooperative learning methods for ELT with tertiary learners. The adaptation mainly involved three aspects: group formation, technique adaptation, and course evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Few studies have been conducted of the impact of cooperative learning (CL) on the teaching of English as a foreign language (EFL) at the tertiary level. This study investigated the effects of CL on Chinese EFL learners' English language competencies in listening, speaking, reading, writing and vocabulary. Participants were a 100 first-year College English learners from a university in the north of China. A pre-test-post-test control group quasi-experimental design was employed to study the effects of the CL approach on students' language competencies in comparison to traditional instruction. Findings revealed clear differences in favour of the CL approach in the areas of listening, speaking and reading but no differences were found between the two approaches in the areas of writing and vocabulary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, English reading is playing a more and more important role in international communication and cooperation. However, teachers often do not attach much importance to English reading in the classroom. In order to reform traditional reading teaching approaches, the author tries to combine jigsaw cooperative learning with the teaching of English reading for the purpose of confirming that cooperative learning is more effective in teaching English reading in Colleges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report compares important aspects of American and Chinese dance education through the lens of the "Chinese Leadership in Arts Education" workshops organized by Brigham Young University in response to requests from Chinese arts educators to observe American arts education in practice as a benchmark for assessing the direction of Chinese arts education reform. The workshops provided Chinese arts educators with an opportunity to observe American arts education and explore the cultural and value-based influences behind an education model different from their own. Insights arising from in-workshop interactions and post-workshop interviews combine to present the importance of cultural context, the essence of arts education, and the balance between unity and diversity in dance as well as in life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the number of off-shore content-based courses presented by Western universities increases, the issue as to the suitability of elements of constructivist pedagogy arises. This paper reports on mainland Chinese student views of two different types of collaborative work conducted bilingually within a Master of Education program specializing in Educational Leadership. Despite the fact that the literature is divided on the appropriateness of such activity within Confucian-Heritage contexts, initial student evaluations voted the two group activities as the most valuable of all the course components. This encouraged the team to investigate the phenomenon by gathering both quantitative and qualitative evidence relating to the value, the organization and the contribution of individuals in each case. The extent and the nature of the generally positive responses are reported in the paper before a discussion reflecting on what the comparison of "think, pair, share" with "team activities" reveals for future courses. The conclusion is drawn that the study underscores confidence that group work can be very effective in such bilingual, content-based courses in China and elsewhere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The principle of matching services to needs suggests that group work would be most effective when it targets those most in need of the services — delinquents with low involvement with the family and high involvement with friends. Less time with the family indicates a greater need for conventional social control, while more time with friends may entail a greater need for learning social skills in order to resist delinquent peer influences. To address these needs, developmental group work is appropriate for delinquents identified by social workers. The effectiveness of services tend to be contingent upon the delinquents' relationship with family and friends. To test this hypothesis, the present study collected data from 190 delinquents in Hong Kong. It was found that developmental group activities were beneficial to delinquents who spent less time with family and/or more time with friends. For delinquents in general, developmental group activities were helpful in diminishing delinquency. Moreover, the help was significantly greater for delinquents who spent more time with friends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite its origins in Western educational settings, communicative methodology, including the use of groups, has been largely accepted in both English-speaking and non-English-speaking English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts across the world. However, students who approach learning from a highly collectivist orientation may experience discomfort in Western-style group work situations that require a combination of both cooperative and individualist behaviour from participants. This study examines the collaborative behaviour of Chinese university students when they work in groups in English language lessons. The study shows that while Chinese students can collaborate successfully in groups, there are aspects of Chinese culture that may limit the effectiveness of group work in the language classroom in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small group work in EFL classrooms has been largely accepted as an effective strategy in the development of students' communicative proficiency in English. This acceptance has occurred despite a lack of research in key areas about what actually happens when students work in groups in real classrooms. This study examines both quantitative and qualitative data relating to student behaviour in groups collected in EFL lessons in China. Tape recordings of group discussions were analysed and data dealing with turn taking and length of turns were calculated. Interview data were also collected and student perceptions of their contributions to the discussions are presented. Results highlight the complexity of what happens when students work in groups in EFL lessons. The study shows that it is difficult to generalize about student behaviour in group work and though there are some aspects of how students behave in groups that are well understood, there are still many questions that remain unexplored regarding how group work functions in the EFL setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines two teaching styles in Chinese middle schools, traditional lecture-based and cooperative learning. The study uses simple descriptive statistics to analyze economic status and achievement scores for both strategies in four Chinese middle schools. There were 145 randomly selected middle school students involved in the study. The results showed that the participants in the traditional lecture-based group obtained higher achievement scores during the course of the semester. The paper concludes with some discussion about the application, implementation and recommendation of traditional and cooperative learning and their impact on educational leaders, school improvement, educational policy, and educational reforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploratory Practice emphasizes integrating research into pedagogy, and attaches great importance to the quality of life in the classroom. It suggests that we work primarily to understand language classroom life, to bring people together, and to develop students' language competency in a harmonious atmosphere. By putting EP principles into my teaching practice, I explore ways of solving a problem I experienced in teaching English extensive reading to English majors in a Chinese University. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies teaching and learning strategies that firms use to transfer collective knowledge between organizations. The benefits of group teaching and group learning in transferring collective knowledge from a source community to a recipient community are discussed first, followed by an examination of international R&D capability transfer in the Chinese auto industry, based on interviews at multiple ventures in China and the US. Several results emerge from the study. Group teaching is more effective than individual teaching in helping recipients understand multiple dimensions of a source's collective knowledge and in creating bridge networks, and group learning is more effective than individual learning for helping trainees integrate their learning and then re-embed it with their local context. Among four teaching-learning configurations, group teaching--group learning is the most effective transfer strategy for transferring collective knowledge. Individual teaching--individual learning transfers collective knowledge poorly, but can lay a foundation for more complex teaching--learning combinations. The sequence of group teaching--individual learning followed by individual teaching--group learning is less costly than group--group education but takes longer and is less effective for transferring collective knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cooperative Learning (CL) has been adopted in many countries in recent years. This pilot study looked at a one-year investigation into the teaching of English in Hong Kong secondary school classrooms. The teachers were given support to assist them in designing and carrying out group learning activities. These were organized so that learning was dependent on the socially structured exchange of information between learners in the groups. The data indicated that there were no significant differences in the performance of the experimental group. However, what did become clear were the difficulties of transferring laboratory-based studies of task performance to the realities of the curriculum-in-action in normal classroom conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The two studies examined in this paper compare the different mathematical opportunities provided in preschool classrooms in China, Japan, and the United States, with an emphasis on mathematical-themed books in classroom libraries. Study one presents the results of an online survey to examining the content of preschool classroom libraries in China (N = 134), Japan (N = 168), and the United States (N = 291). Study two presents data obtained from semi-structured interviews of teachers in China (N = 8), Japan (N = 8), and the United States (N = 8). The interviews examined teacher perceptions of how they teach mathematics, the importance of teaching mathematics, and the use of the classroom library as a venue for mathematics. Study one results indicated that teachers from all three countries encourage classroom library use; however, teachers from China reported more mathematics storybooks than their Japanese or United States counterparts. Study two results indicated that teachers from all three countries viewed mathematics as important and provided various mathematics learning opportunities to children throughout the school day. Chinese teachers reported providing the most mathematics learning opportunities using whole group instruction, mathematics centers, and free play. Japanese teachers reported few whole group forms of instruction other than circle time but reported providing opportunities for using mathematics during free play and other embedded activities. United States teachers indicated that mathematics learning occurred using whole group instruction and mathematics centers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The online discussion format has proven itself to be useful for promoting student collaboration and for accomplishing better learning outcomes. As a popular instant message software in China, WeChat has been commonly adopted for supporting academic group discussions. Many studies have explored how teacher facilitation affects students' learning performance in the synchronous or asynchronous discussion settings. However, the conclusions are not consistent and there is relative less research about the effects of teacher role on student engagement in the context of online discussion using the semi-synchronous tool-WeChat. This study began by identifying three dimensions of student engagement: behavioral engagement, cognitive engagement, and emotional engagement. A quasi-experiment was then conducted to compare student engagement among experiment groups (with teacher facilitation) and control groups (without teacher facilitation). A total of 46 college students were divided into eight groups and asked to discuss two specific topic tasks. To evaluate participants' behavioral and cognitive engagement, this study used a more objective data analysis method by applying content analysis rather than only based on surveys. Participants were required to complete a questionnaire to report their emotional engagement. The results show the behavioral and cognitive engagement of the experimental group with teacher facilitation were significantly higher than that of the control group without teacher facilitation. However, there was no significant effect of teacher facilitation on participants' emotional engagement in the experimental group. It is also found that the emerging student leaders show similar positive effects of teacher facilitation towards improving behavioral and cognitive engagement. Future studies about the moderating effects of teaching experience and student leaders are also needed. • We examined the effects of teacher role on student engagement in online discussion. • Content analysis and questionnaires are used to evaluate student engagement. • Behavioral and cognitive engagement are higher in groups with teacher facilitation. • Teacher's role has no significant impact on student emotional engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]