The demand for online learning in colleges and universities is on the upswing. We know with online learning students may never meet one another; but professors can create classrooms that foster strong bonds, projects that include teamwork, and a social atmosphere that creates lasting friendships. With a swift switch to online, a question continues to arise; will collaborative learning occur for teachers in grades P-12?

With respect to online learning, the expectations of teachers to excel in online teaching is very high. Teachers are overwhelmed with learning new technology, implementing varied pieces of curriculum, and communicating effectively with their students and their parents. Teachers are expected to become experts while under scrutiny from their districts and parents. Although teachers are working hard to try to meet the needs of all learners there are several challenges;

1. Access- Computer technology and internet access are necessary for students to be able to log on, parents must have the means to sustain these items

2. Oversight- Even though families may have the means to afford the technology the flexibility may not work for working parents.

3. Digital Literacy- Troubleshooting and overcoming technical issues may be a challenge for parents and students

4. The right fit- Social skills may be a concern due to a lack of peer-to-peer connection. Individual students motivation

More important to student learning is the method teachers use to engage students than how it is delivered. As research suggests, the interactions of students with teachers and other students have an effective impact on learning outcomes.

Collaborative Learning

Collaboration has grown in the 21st century to be easier and less expensive due to emerging technologies. Some of these collaborative tools are free and flexible such as Skype, social network tools, mobile devices, online collaborating spaces and so on. This trend in collaboration is transforming online education where students can collaborate and learn from a distance. Knowledge transfer from teacher to a student cannot happen, cognitive science tells that.

As complex as learning is, learners must actively engage learning with meaningful connections between old and new information. Collaborative learning allows students to assimilate new and old data into their learning scheme and significantly enhances learning. Online environments promote collaborative learning through student participation, socialization, reflection, self-development without face-to-face interaction.

Students can learn to appreciate how important collaborative learning is when they experience knowledge as a co-constructed process, not as a transferal of knowledge from teacher to student. For collaborative online learning to be successful the course instructor (teacher) has to design a course that will:

• Set well-structured learning tasks that promote learning.

• Align the tasks to meet learning goals.

• Regulate the size and placement of student groups.

• Set conditions for dialogue.

• Set standards for assessment and evaluation of the online collaborative work.

Many in the field of collaborative learning believe there are three things that should be present for successful online learning:

1.        Social Presence: “The ability of participants in a community of inquiry to project themselves socially and emotionally as ‘real’ people.”

2.        Teaching Presence: “The design, facilitation, and direction of a cognitive and social process for the purpose of achieving meaningful learning outcomes.”

3.        Cognitive Presence: “The extent to which learners are able to construct and confirm meaning through sustained reflection and discourse in a critical community of inquiry.”

 Pre-service teachers require a learning environment that allows for learning through collaboration. It falls on the shoulders of the educators who instruct the online collaboration courses for these pre-service teachers. Only then can students learn in a positive online environment that promotes learning.

Resources:

Vassiliki Zygouris-Coe. The University Of Central Flordia.