Issues with Online Collaboration

The largest issue staring online collaboration in the face is the accessibility for all learners. How do those with learning challenges and issues access the same content as their peers. Digital accessibility can be an issue based on location as well. Students who range from all over the world, how are they expected to collaborate and work together when they are placed from all around the world. How do we work with those who struggle with internet issues because of their location. How can we punish people when accessibility can be out of their control?  How do teachers and instructors combat these challenges?  Well one way we can combat these challenges is offering asynchronous options for collaboration on projects. We can use LMS that track each student's contribution to projects. Also by establishing norms, expectations, and laying out the groundwork for students on what is expected from them combats a lot of the group issues that could arrise. As for those who have learning disabilities we can provide students with a list of tools and resources available to them to assist them with their learning in an online community.

Another large issue brought up in my research was how do we track the students collaboration and how much each person contributes. The issue of competition came up as well in my research, students can compete to do the work. Many type A and type B will approach a problem differently, and some people are procrastinators and some people prefer to get work done right away. There needs to be leadership and guidance from the instructor to guide the equal participation and have a form of peer assessment that is anonymous to determine if everyone did their fair share. As someone who enjoys getting things done early, I would be frustrated by group mates who push the deadline to the last day, hour, or even minute. 

Depending on what the instructor has set up, there is sometimes not very much punishment or accountability for the actions of group mates. In my schooling experience, I have worked in some really good groups that have been able to work well collaboratively but also been in groups where people have failed to hold up their part and then other group mates take over because they still value having good grades on the projects. 

I have discovered this with working with different people that there is not one common platform that people prefer to use. Some people use word, or google docs, or another document system online. It is something that is not very common place to run into. Sometimes this can be combated by the professor providing a template on a certain platform and telling students that this will be the application we will be using for this assignment.