In this paper, I review two studies (Roschelle, 1996; Baker, Hansen, Joiner, & Traum, 1999) which I believe to represent paradigmatic examples of CSCL research. I offer a critique of these studies based on the theory of inquiry developed by the American pragmatist philosopher John Dewey. Inquiry, for Dewey, represented an exceedingly broad category of activity of which joint problem solving is ...