Tag Archives: Collaboration

Your Survival Guide to Group Work Online

Posted on February 23, 2012 by | 1 Comment

If you are an instructor for online courses, then this posting is for you. There are so many advantages to online courses that students enjoy, but one aspect of the course they may not particularly like is group work. Group work online can be a difficult and tedious task-one that many students may wish to avoid at all costs. But as instructors, you know that is not always possible and that group work can be an integral part of a good class. We have constructed an online group work “Survival Guide”, and would like to share a few tips and tricks for you to give your students next time they complete online group work!

  • Get to know one another: share interests and details about one another to create a sense of community and target individual strengths. Also share contact information and schedules and time zones to best decide when to schedule online meetings.
  • Appoint a leader for the group: Choose someone who will commit to keeping the group on track, oversee all work, facilitate decisions, keep the instructor up-to-date, etc.
  • Divide responsibilities: Make choices based on the strengths, interests, and backgrounds of each group member. Make sure each member clearly knows their responsbilities.
  • Discuss guidelines: This includes how you will communicate, how decisions will be made, timelines for completing the work and rules for missing milestones, how to deal with group members who don’t fully contribute, etc. Put these guidelines in writing so you can refer back to them when issues arise.
  • Commit to communication: Decide as a group how to communicate and how often the communications will take place. The group may find it helpful to have a weekly schedule for working on the project and communicating with each other. See below for some communication options.
  • Continuously review tasks and progress: Always keep up on deadlines and make sure others are staying on top of their tasks and responsibilities.

 

These tips are a great foundation for a successful online group project. Be sure to check out our post next week where we will discuss  free web tools we have found that make group work online a breeze!

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The “5” Series is Back-with Blogging!

Posted on October 21, 2011 by | 1 Comment

A few months ago, we launched a “5 ways to use a…” series, giving you new and creative ideas to utilize some of the fantastic tools we have available for your use! To refresh your memory and keep you inspired, here is a “flashback” of…

5 ways you can use… a Blog!

The internet has started a new era of educational tools that have great capabilities to be an effective addition to your classroom.  One of the most versatile and useful tool is the blog. Blogs are a great way to communicate with students outside the classroom in an environment which is both easy to update and easy to navigate. Blogs lend themselves to be useful in various aspects of class including writing and journaling, collaboration, classroom management, and tutoring.  Here are 5 ideas to get you started:

  1. Promote collaboration and reflection among your students by posting a meaningful quotation, excerpt from a novel, or a news article, and ask them to reflect in writing and relate the piece to the material being covered in class.
  2. Blogs encourage participation in discussions, which can be particularly effective with shy students. Post a question weekly to your blog requiring students to respond and comment on their peers’ responses.
  3. Assign a project requiring students to create their own blog and use it as a portfolio of their work and career goals. The blog will become a valuable tool they can use to build connections and network.
  4. Easily incorporate sources from the “real world” such as news articles, videos, or websites to relate class material to the current events in the world.
  5. Try hosting a debate on your blog. Post a question or controversial topic and have students make their points and debate with one another. This encourages collaboration, discussion, and critical thinking.

UIS’ newly launched blog service, WordPress, is available for all faculty, staff and students for free. It is simple to navigate and update, and a great communication tool for educators and students alike. Checkout our WordPress Blogging Service informational page to start your blog today!

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5 ways you can use…A Wiki!

Posted on August 1, 2011 by | Comments Off on 5 ways you can use…A Wiki!

Wikis are a prime tool for educators wanting to promote collaboration in their classroom. It is a central space that can be accessed by the entire web or only authorized users. The wiki can be edited by all users, which promotes a sense of openness and encourages sharing and learning. Wikis are a great way to achieve great discussions even with students who may be shy in the classroom. Here are 5 ideas to get you started:

  1. Create a wiki to use as a study guide throughout the semester. Assign each student a different topic to cover, then everyone will be able to benefit from the wiki when studying for exams or reviewing.
  2. Have students post the highlights of their weekly notes from class to the wiki to encourage sharing and discussion with their peers.
  3. Create wikis for each group during a group project. It’s an easy way to track groups on the tasks they have completed and those that still need to be finished. Try tracking participation of each member by assigning each member a specific task. It makes them more accountable for their work within the group setting!
  4. Instead of PowerPoint, have students create a wiki to present to the class for a project and have them navigate through the different areas they’ve created.
  5. Use a wiki as a brainstorming “space” for students outside the classroom. They can share their thoughts or suggestions, and discuss different topics or ideas for projects.

Wikis are a simple, fun and effective tool to supplement your class. They are a great way to keep class material on the minds of students even when they are not physically in class. Try Wikispaces to start your wiki today!

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5 ways you can use…A Blog!

Posted on July 25, 2011 by | 3 Comments

The internet has started a new era of educational tools that have great capabilities to be an effective addition to your classroom.  One of the most versatile and useful tool is the blog. Blogs are a great way to communicate with students outside the classroom in an environment which is both easy to update and easy to navigate. Blogs lend themselves to be useful in various aspects of class including writing and journaling, collaboration, classroom management, and tutoring.  Here are 5 ideas to get you started:

  1. Promote collaboration and reflection among your students by posting a meaningful quotation, excerpt from a novel, or a news article, and ask them to reflect in writing and relate the piece to the material being covered in class.
  2. Blogs encourage participation in discussions, which can be particularly effective with shy students. Post a question weekly to your blog requiring students to respond and comment on their peers’ responses.
  3. Assign a project requiring students to create their own blog and use it as a portfolio of their work and career goals. The blog will become a valuable tool they can use to build connections and network.
  4. Easily incorporate sources from the “real world” such as news articles, videos, or websites to relate class material to the current events in the world.
  5. Try hosting a debate on your blog. Post a question or controversial topic and have students make their points and debate with one another. This encourages collaboration, discussion, and critical thinking.

UIS’ newly launched blog service, WordPress, is available for all faculty, staff and students for free. It is simple to navigate and update, and a great communication tool for educators and students alike. Checkout our WordPress Blogging Service informational page to start your blog today!

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