Scenario Response for Promoting Student Collaboration in Online Courses
Abstract: With the increase in instructional use of the World Wide Web, learners now often collaborate online for projects. This can involve students in higher-order learning tasks and the benefits of cooperative learning. However, students in collaborative groups frequently complain about some members of the group not doing their fair share or cooperating productively. Our study offers an approach to promoting better collaborative effort within project groups. We presented to half of the students in an online graduate teacher education class a scenario about an online student group encountering difficulties during collaboration. Those students who responded to the scenario, compared with students in the control group, developed more positive attitudes about the effectiveness of teamwork for their learning in this course. They also proposed strategies for improving communication and responsibility for roles on the team.