Module 3 - Post

• Do you believe that humans have a basic instinct to “interact and work as a group,” as Rheingold proposed in his discussion of the evolution of Wikipedia as a collectively developed encyclopedia?

I disagree with Rheingold’s theory that humans have a basic instinct to “interact and work as a group”. I have been teaching for about twelve years. I have had students in my classes that prefer not to work in a group. Some students are shy and prefer not to work with others. Does that mean that their instinct is incorrect or do the people that prefer to collaborate insist that everyone wants to learn in a community? I think that their instinct is to learn alone. We are all different and do not deserve to be forced into a mold to fit anyone’s ideal learning style.

• How can technology facilitate collaboration among learners based on constructivist principles?   

Technology can be used in many forms to facilitate collaboration among learners. There are several online social collaborative websites that can be used to implement assignments that are based on constructivist principles. For example, blogs, wikis, Skype, and Google docs are just a few collaborative opportunities online. These websites can be used to solve an authentic problem through discussion and group effort.

• Find a current research study that has been conducted in the last 5 years that supports collaboration as an effective tool for learning. Include the link and reference for this study in your blog.

Adamson, B., Walker, E. (2010). Messy collaboration: learning from a learning study. Teaching & Teacher Education, Vol. 27:1 (29-36). DOI: 10.1016/j.tate.2010.06.024

Au, K.H., Raphael, T.E. (2011). The staircase curriculum: Whole-school collaboration to improve literacy achievement. New England Reading Association Journal, Vol. 46:2 (1-8). Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=6&hid=24&sid=f4b07995-f357-4d09-8624-17b957afd7f4%40sessionmgr12

Burton, B.G., Martin, B.N. (2010). Learning in 3D virtual environment: Collaboration and knowledge spirals. Journal of Educational Computing Research,Vol. 43:2 (259-273). Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=11&hid=24&sid=f4b07995-f357-4d09-8624-17b957afd7f4%40sessionmgr12

Davidsen, J., Georgsen, M. (2010). ICT as a tool for collaboration in the classroom – challenges and lessons learned. Designs for Learning, Vol. 3:1/2 (54-69). Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=8&hid=24&sid=f4b07995-f357-4d09-8624-17b957afd7f4%40sessionmgr12

Papanikolaou, K., Boubouka, M. (2010). Promoting collaboration in a project e-learning context. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, Vol. 43:2 (135-155). Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=f4b07995-f357-4d09-8624-17b957afd7f4%40sessionmgr12&vid=4&hid=24