2015 年 135 巻 5 号 p. 753-759
The KJ method (named for developer Jiro Kawakita; also known as affinity diagramming) is widely used in participatory learning as a means to collect and organize information. In addition, the World Café (WC) has recently become popular. However, differences in the information obtained using each method have not been studied comprehensively. To determine the appropriate information selection criteria, we analyzed differences in the information generated by the WC and KJ methods. Two groups engaged in sessions to collect and organize information using either the WC or KJ method and small group discussions were held to create “proposals to improve first-year education”. Both groups answered two pre- and post- session questionnaires that asked for free descriptions. Key words were extracted from the results of the two questionnaires and categorized using text mining. In the responses to questionnaire 1, which was directly related to the session theme, a significant increase in the number of key words was observed in the WC group (p=0.0050, Fisher's exact test). However, there was no significant increase in the number of key words in the responses to questionnaire 2, which was not directly related to the session theme (p=0.8347, Fisher's exact test). In the KJ method, participants extracted the most notable issues and progressed to a detailed discussion, whereas in the WC method, various information and problems were spread among the participants. The choice between the WC and KJ method should be made to reflect the educational objective and desired direction of discussion.