EDUC 8842 Module 2

Siemens identified global diversity, communication, and collaborative interaction as elements that are more easily achievable online compared to F2F learning environments (Laureate, 2008). I agree with Siemens in that all these elements, and particularly collaborative interaction, are facilitating effective learning experiences and increased acceptance of distance education. Reinhold (2008) highlighted humans’ biological instinct to associate with others. Although only in the late 20th century did the concept of collaborative learning become a subject of study, working and learning together has been vastly spread throughout the history of mankind (Reinhold, 2008). As people develop skills to learn, work, and solve problems and actions in which they are immersed, collaborative interaction becomes the basis of learning and success depends on how effectively people work together to accomplish a common goal, on how well they collaborate. Sociocultural constructivism has served as a theoretical framework for this approach to learning, which situates learning as social and mediated (Driscoll, 2005).



Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Web 2.0 tools are continually expanding virtual learning environments and are facilitating the evolution of collaborative interaction. Thus, these interactive environments become new social spaces for learning. ICT and the emergence of virtual platforms for collaborative learning, as well as new tools used today to integrate interpersonal interactions facilitate new approaches to learning based on a sense of community in a collaborative spirit (Hargis & Wilcox, 2008). Collaboration involves the sharing of tasks, activities, ideas, and participants become responsible not only for their own learning, but also that of others. Learning through collaborative interaction responds to a new socio-cultural context that defines and what to learn (Siemens, 2004). E-learning environments bring together features that are especially powerful for collaborative interaction such as skype, weblogs, podcasts, Google Apps, Second Life, wikis, Nings, VoiceThread and are illustrative of collaborative learning experience.

Today’s students expect to learn in an environment that seamlessly integrates 21st century digital tools, one that fosters and encourages collaborative interaction. Online learning does not have to be text only, nor should it feature solely student and instructor interaction. Using social media and digital technologies to build projects through collaborative interactions are powerful dimensions of virtual schooling experiences. A great example of an online learning collaboration project is the wiki created as virtual interaction medium between students from 40 different US states: http://d97unitedstatesregions.wikispaces.com/

References

Driscoll, M. P. (2005). Psychology for Learning Instruction (3rd ED). Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.

Hargis, J, & Wilcox, (2008). Ubiquitos, free, and efficient online collaboration tools for teaching and learning. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, 9(4). Retrived June 22, 2011 from http://tojde.anadolu.edu.tr/tojde32/notes_for_editor/notes_for_editor_1.htm

Laureate Education, Inc. (2008). The Future of Distance Education. Baltimore, MD: Author

Rheingold, H (2008). Way-New Collaboration [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/howard_rheingold_on_collaboration.html

Siemens, G. (2004, December 1). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Retrieved from http://elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm