Over the last two weeks we were required to work in a small group to create a LMS selection guidance rubric. In my view, group work always holds some challenges, but none more than when you are physically separated from each other. We chose to move out of the Vista group space to take advantage of the affordances of other tools. Our first meeting met with some technical difficulties. The blackboard-sharing tool that we were using to communicate didn’t work for all of our voices at the same time. Then not long after we set up, the site was shut down for maintenance. This sent us to Skype where we all had accounts. We were able to finish our meeting with a plan of action. The blackboard sharing idea was great for its affordances of voice and desktop sharing, however since we couldn’t get it to work properly at either of our meetings, it did not fit the “ease of use” criteria laid out by Bates and Poole (2003) so in the end it was not suitable. A tool may seem great and may even meet many of the necessary criteria but if it does not meet a criteria that is vital, then none of the other “meets expectations” matter.
A second major component (and most significant) for our communication was Google Docs. Here we were able to create as many documents as needed. We could leave comments, and work together to contribute to resources, ideas, the rubric, and writing component. In terms of ease of use, this tool is quite suitable for group work other than the fact that it can be difficult to take work from the document to put it into another polished document for submission. Google Docs seems to be the tool of choice for every group I’ve worked with in MET. However, it should be noted that it is not always accessible in other countries such as China. Access may be gained through a vpn but even then it is often slow and impossible to use.
The human component of our group work was excellent. Everyone jumped in to begin work even before our first meeting. Each member was quick to volunteer for parts of the assignment, working together to get it completed.
Bates, A.W. & Poole, G. (2003). Chapter 4: Framework for Selecting and Using Technology. In Effective Teaching with Technology in Higher Education: Foundations for Success. (pp. 77-105). San Francisco: Jossey Bass Publishers.
Group work can be a challenge in any format, but online presents unique challenges (which you describe eloquently here). But when group work is the right mode of learning for an activity, the challenges are outweighed by the benefits. I’ll explain more in my summary early next week.
Good job!