Online Collaborative Learning

The vehicle of online learning provides an excellent opportunity to foster collaborative learning. Since the online class cannot participate in a physical group, the learning experience moves away from the cooperative group in which tasks to complete the final project are dictated, divided, and assigned by the teacher to a true collaborative effort in which ideas are shared and discussed by group individuals who take personal responsibility for how much each will contribute to the learning process. In this collaborative effort, it is the members of the online group, not the instructor, that determine how the learning takes place and how the assignment tasks are divided and conquered. The members of the group will set deadlines, assign tasks, and monitor participation. Effective cooperative group work in the early (elementary/middle school) stages of the educational experience will provide the foundation and tools that will prepare the more mature student to be an effective member of a collaborative group.