Chat as a Tool for Social Knowledge Construction Using Asynchronous Discussion Groups in Economics Degree

The current higher education programs use information and communication technologies to conduct interactive teaching and learning activities. This paper creates an educational method based on an Interaction Analysis Model through the use of chats in higher education. Compared to the traditional functions of the chats in education, our proposal introduces discussions of current economic events and real cases. This contributes to develop the problem-based learning and leads to students not only to improve their knowledge but to develop skills such as teamwork or leadership, which should be important characteristics of a graduate in Business Degree. As a result, students transfer their knowledge to solve current case studies improving their interest in the subject greatly and, therefore, their motivation and the social knowledge construction of the whole group.