Collaborative Learning Activities Using Social Software Tools
The following activities were designed for use by self-paced (continuous enrolment) students working at a distance to add a social component to their learning. The activities are customized for the Me2U system (an instance of elgg.net) at Athabasca University, but should be applicable to a variety of social software tool sets and most specifically any ELGG powered system.
This listing is under revision and feedback or suggestions for additional activities are most welcomed to the authors:
Donna Cameron donnacam@telus.net
Terry Anderson Terrya@athabascau.ca
The document is copyright to Athabasca University. The work is licensed under a Creative Commons, non-commercial, attribution license that permits derivative works.
Table of Contents
Orientation Activities Using Me2U
Collaborate Using Me2U
Advanced Web Activities Using Me2U
Activity Name: Me2U Orientation - Register with Me2U
Activities:
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Go to Me2U (http://me2u.athabascau.ca/) and register for an account.
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Log on to the Me2U web site and read 3 examples of completed profiles.
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Create and save your own profile.
Assessment: none
Support technologies: Me2U web site
Suggested time to complete: 30 minutes to one hour
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Activity Name: Me2U Orientation - Lurk
Number of participants: one
Activities
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Go to Me2U (http://me2u.athabascau.ca/) and log on to your account.
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Read recent blog postings (See “Here's what everyone else is talking about right now.”) to see how others are using the site.
Assessment: none
Support technologies: Me2U web site
Suggested time to complete: 30 minutes to one hour
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Activity Name: Me2U Orientation – Introduction
Number of participants: all course participants
Activities:
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Go to Me2U (http://me2u.athabascau.ca/) and log on to your account.
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Create your first blog posting. Use this posting to introduce yourself to other students on the Me2U web site. Give a brief personal history, list the courses you are taking, explain why you are using the site, etc.
Assessment: none
Support technologies: Me2U web site
Suggested time to complete: 30 minutes
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Activity Name: Me2U Orientation – Who’s Who
Activities:
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Go to Me2U (http://me2u.athabascau.ca/) and log on to your account.
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Use the search component or the Random tags link to find another undergrad student who has listed an interest, like or dislike that you share.
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Read the student’s profile and email the student with a question about your similar interest, like or dislike. Make sure to provide a brief introduction and to tell the student that you connected with them through Me2U. Ask the student to email you with one detail about their life related to their family, work, or pastimes that they did not include in their Me2U profile.
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This activity could be done with more than one partner or by all of the students in a course.
Assessment: none
Support technologies: Me2U web site, email program
Suggested time to complete: 30 minutes to one hour
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Activity Name: Me2U Orientation – Communities
Number of participants: varies
Activities:
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This activity could be lead by a course instructor to create a community for their course or could be completed by individual students who are interested in joining or creating communities.
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Go to Me2U (http://me2u.athabascau.ca/) and log on to your account.
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Go to the Your Network area and either join or create a community. Use the search function to find other learners on Me2U that have similar interests.
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Invite others to join and participate in your new community.
Assessment: none
Support technologies: Me2U web site
Suggested time to complete: 1 hour
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Activity Name: Make a Connection – Online Chats or Calls
Activities:
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Use the search function in Me2U to find another student in your course and read their profile.
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Email the student with an invitation to make a connection in real time using instant messaging software or an Internet calling program. Arrange a time to connect.
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Interview the student about his or her experience in the course so far.
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Try the file transfer or text messaging options that are part of the instant messaging system by sending a picture or a web site link.
Assessment: none
Support technologies: Email program, instant messaging software like AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger or an Internet calling program like Skype. (See http://www.skype.com/products/ for more information about using the Skype Internet phone service. It’s free!)
Suggested time to complete: 1 hour
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Activity Name: Jigsaws
Number of participants: two or more
Activities:
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The instructor divides an assignment or topic into equal parts. Each participant is responsible for learning or completing their part.
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Each student becomes an expert on their topic and uses their blog on the ME2U web site to teach their section. Other students are encouraged to ask questions and post comments.
Assessment: learners are assessed based on the quality of their presentation of topic and follow-up discussion.
Support technologies: blog, learners can use the “Your Files” area of Me2U to upload files (graphics, text files, etc.) that can be used to enhance instruction.
Suggested time to complete: varies based on course topic
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Activity Name: Mentoring - Formal or Informal
Number of participants: two or more
Activities:
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This activity can be directed by the student or by the instructor. Students can solicit help on a topic through the Me2U blog or instructors can partner students.
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Similar to the jigsaw, the student becomes an expert in a certain topic. The student is then responsible for teaching or mentoring other students on the topic.
Assessment: learners are assessed based on the quality of their presentation and involvement in the follow-up discussion. If informal mentoring occurs assessment would be difficult and unnecessary.
Support technologies: blog, learners can use the “Your Files” area of Me2U to upload files (graphics, text files, etc.) that can be used to enhance the instruction of their topic.
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Debate
Number of participants: two or more
Activities
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The instructor introduces a topic or question in a blog posting.
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Each learner in the group is responsible for posting their ideas/response to the topic on their blog and responding to the postings of others in the group.
Assessment: The instructor sets the requirements for postings and responses. Students are marked based on the quality of their posting and the quality of their responses to the posting of other students. The instructor may also want to set a minimum number of responses.
Support technologies: blog
Suggested time to complete: 1 - 2 hours
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Activity Name: Three-Step Interview
Number of participants: four
Activities
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Divide the four students up into partners. Give the members of each group the task of interviewing each other. The interview can be personal or based on reaction to a course reading, activity, film, etc.
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Students can use their Me2U blog, email, an instant messenger or an internet calling program like Skype to perform the interview.
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Students then post their recorded interview on Me2U and invite comments from the other group. Each student must be involved in the interview and review process.
Assessment: each learner is assessed based on the interview they post and the comments they make on the interviews of the other team.
Support technologies: blog, email, instant messaging software like AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger or an Internet calling program like Skype
Suggested time to complete: 1 - 2 hours
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Activity Name: Group Response Activity
Number of participants: four (can vary)
Activities
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The instructor poses a question on their Me2U blog.
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All members of the group discuss the question and come up with an agreed upon answer. Learners do not know who will be requested to “speak” for the group so all must understand the answer fully.
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The instructor requests one student to make a formal blog posting with the group’s answer to the question.
Assessment: all members are assessed based on the response in the formal posting.
Support technologies: Me2U blog, instant messaging software like AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger or an Internet calling program like Skype could also be used to give students a chance to discuss the topic and respond immediately in real time.
Suggested time to complete: 1 - 2 hours
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Activity Name: Group Discussion – Me2U Communities
Number of participants: all course participants
Activities
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The instructor creates a community for the course on Me2U. For example BIOL 204, ENGL 143 or SOCI 300.
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The instructor responds to questions and posts course information on their Me2U blog.
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All students in the course become members of the course community and have the opportunity to interact with the instructor and other students in the course.
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New course participants can read through old postings to get help on a variety of course topics.
Assessment: none
Support technologies: blog
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Posting a Review – Me2U Communities
Number of participants: 2 or more
Activities
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Students review a movie, article, web site, wiki, etc. that pertains to the content of the course.
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Each student posts their review on their blog and responds to comments.
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This activity can be restricted to one Me2U community or open to all Me2U members.
Assessment: Based on quality of review and comments/responses.
Support technologies: blog
Suggested time to complete: 1 – 2 hours
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Activity Name: Surveys
Number of participants: one or small group
Activities
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Students create a survey based on a course topic they are researching.
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Students can post the survey on the Me2U site and request responses in the form of a blog posting or a confidential email reply.
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Students compile results and post on Me2U site.
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Prepare a synthesis of findings in report form and submit to course instructor. The survey could be connected to a variety of larger course assignments.
Assessment: Based on quality of final report
Support technologies: blog, email
Suggested time to complete: varies based on topic
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Activity Name: Document Sharing
Number of participants: two to four
Activities
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Students who are working on group projects can share documents via email, instant messaging software, Internet call programs (Skype) or by uploading files to the Me2U repository.
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Students can edit and enhance shared files.
Assessment: none, however this could be organized as a specific task with assessment attached to the quality of the resulting files.
Support technologies: blog, email, instant messaging software like AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, MSN Messenger or an Internet calling program like Skype
Suggested time to complete: n/a
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Activity Name: Data/File Collection
Number of participants:
Activities
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Learners, either individually or in groups, can use the Me2U file repository to store files relating to course projects.
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All files stored in the Me2U repository can then be accessed by other learners.
Assessment: learners could be requested to upload a specific number of course related files for sharing with fellow students.
Support technologies: blog
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Information Search
Number of participants: Two or more
Activities
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Students performing group work could use their Me2U blog to report on information gathered for group or individual projects.
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Other learners in the group or individual learners working on similar projects would then be able to access this information.
Assessment: learners are assessed based on the quality and quantity of information posted.
Support technologies: blog
Suggested time to complete: varies based on course topic
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Advanced Collaborative Activities
Students with more advanced internet and web skills can work collaboratively on a host of online projects. The following are a few examples:
Activity Name: Create a Web Site
Number of participants: Two or more
Activities
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Collaborate on the creation of a web site based on a group project or course topic. Many web sites give tips on web page creation and offer free web space for hosting student site.
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Web sites can then be linked on the students’ Me2U blog to further course discussion on the topic.
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Students can also use their Me2U blogs to request help or feedback on their course or personal web sites.
Assessment: learners are assessed based on the quality of the web site.
Support technologies: basic web site design program or web site design techniques, free web space, blog
Suggested time to complete: varies based on course topic
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Activity Name: Develop a web based E-Portfolio
Number of participants: one student for development, two or more for evaluation
Activities
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Students create an e-portfolio, an online digital archive that contains research papers, reports, presentations, graphics and any other electronic files that document their educational career.
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Students can be involved in providing constructive criticism and rating the work presented in the e-portfolio of others.
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More information on the development of and examples of electronic portfolios can be found in the online book entitled “Collaborative Learning Environments Sourcebook” which is available at http://www.criticalmethods.org/collab/v.mv?d=1_76.
Assessment: learners are assessed based on the quality of the work presented in the e-portfolio and their assessment of other students’ work.
Support technologies: e-portfolio tools, blog
Suggested time to complete: varies based on course topic
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Collaborative Web Sites - Working with Wikis on Me2U
A wiki is a collection of web pages that anyone can modify or contribute to the creation of. Check the Me2U web site for more information on how to create a wiki on Me2U. Also see http://c2.com/cgi/wiki for a wealth of information on wikis, do a search on “How to start a wiki” or read the online article “Wiki Pedagogy” at http://www.profetic.org:16080/dossiers/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=110 for more wiki tools and ideas.
Some of the following suggestions are based on activities recommended by instructors at Georgia Tech. The activities were tested using the university’s wiki CoWeb (or Swiki). Full explanations and a more comprehensive list of examples can be found at http://guzdial.cc.gatech.edu/squeakers/coweb-catalog.pdf
Activity Name: Reviews
Number of participants: group or class
Activities
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Create a wiki for posting reviews of material relating to course topics or whatever interests students in your course. Students can post reviews of course articles, books, web sites, or general interest topics like movies, restaurants, books, courses, etc. This is a fun way to introduce students to the use of wikis.
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Once the wiki is established it can be used by students in more than one course who want to practice contributing to a wiki.
Assessment: can be used as a fun introductory activity or assessment can be based on quality of the review.
Support technologies: wiki software
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Create Collaborative FAQs
Number of participants: group or class
Activities
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The basic structure and initial questions/answers can be set by the course instructor.
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Students can add and edit questions and answers throughout course. Individual students or teams can be responsible for specific sections or all students can be responsible for editing the list.
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The wiki can evolve for student use over multiple terms of the course.
Assessment: discretion of instructor based on assignment organization (individual, group, open access for all students)
Support technologies: wiki software
Suggested time to complete: contribution to the FAQs can be set as an assignment with time limit or can continue throughout the course.
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Activity Name: Wiki Based Projects
Number of participants: individuals or groups in a course
Activities
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Similar to creating a web site based on course topic or project but with the added collaborative aspects of a wiki.
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Students create a wiki to showcase, discuss or receive feedback on a course topic or project they are working on. Wikis can be linked to the students’ blogs on Me2U to seek input and feedback from a broader group of students.
Assessment: based on the quality of the wiki produced.
Support technologies: wiki software, Me2U blog
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Create a Course Assignment Library
Number of participants: individuals in a course
Activities
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Students contribute to the development of a collection of course assignments, projects and solved problems.
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Students with high marks in coursework are asked to post completed assignments on the wiki as examples for future students. Extra credit can be given to students who add to the collection.
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This wiki should be set up by the course instructor and can be developed over multiple terms of the course for ongoing student use.
Assessment: extra course credit based on completing the task of adding the assignment to the wiki and on corrections and improvements students make to the assignment prior to postingg.
Support technologies: wiki software
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Student Advice Pages or Link Lists
Number of participants: individuals or teams
Activities
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Students can contribute to the creation of advice pages or lists of helpful links or tutorials on the web. These activities can be done as individuals or in groups.
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This wiki can be set up by the course instructor but could also be created by student teams. These types of wikis can be developed over multiple terms of the course for ongoing student use.
Assessment: based on grouping for assignment
Support technologies: wiki software
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Collaborative Glossary
Number of participants: group or class
Activities
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Students develop a glossary based on a research topic or a glossary based on content for the entire course.
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This wiki could be either teacher or student directed depending on the goal of the assignment. If instructor maintains the wiki it can evolve for student use over multiple terms of the course.
Assessment: group assessment based on results
Support technologies: wiki software
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Collaborative Writing
Number of participants: 2 or more
Activities
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Collaborative writing activities are an excellent use of wiki technology as all students have access to the document to be edited and all edits happen in real-time.
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Instructor can set up wiki space for this activity and set some ground rules for group editing.
Assessment: group assessment based on results
Support technologies: wiki software
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Activity Name: Exam Review
Number of participants: group or class
Activities
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This type of wiki must be closely directed by the course instructor or there will be little incentive for students to participate and contribute.
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The instructor posts past exam questions and students can contribute answers and provide feedback/ help to others. The instructor must be present on the site to provide necessary feedback and to ensure that correct answers are available.
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A site like this can be maintained through numerous versions of the course for ongoing student use.
Assessment: n/a
Support technologies: wiki software
Suggested time to complete: varies
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Additional Online Collaborative Tools
Athabasca University has performed an extensive review of online collaborative tools. For the listing of tools and reviews for each product see http://cde.athabascau.ca/softeval/index.htm
Central Queensland University also has a listing of software tools for online collaborative learning which is available at University http://clp.cqu.edu.au/software_tools.htm
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Reference List
A Catalogue of CoWeb Uses. (2000) Retrieved Nov 2005 from http://guzdial.cc.gatech.edu/squeakers/coweb-catalog.pdf
Blanche, M.T., et. al. (2002). Collaborative Learning Environments Sourcebook. Retrieved Nov 2005 from http://www.criticalmethods.org/collab/index.htm.
Cooperative Learning Strategies for University Students. (2005) Retrieved Nov 2005 from http://www.oic.id.ucsb.edu/Resources/Collab-L/strategies.html.
Electronic Collaboration: A Practical Guide for Educators. (1999) Retrieved Nov. 2005 from http://www.alliance.brown.edu/pubs/collab/elec-collab.pdf.
Facilitating Online Collaboration and Interaction. Teaching with Technology. (2002) Retrieved Nov. 2005 from http://www.cmu.edu/teaching/technology/collab.html.
Godwin-Jones, B., Emerging Technologies Blogs and Wikis: Environments for On-line Collaboration. Language Learning & Technologies. 7(2), 12-16. Retrieved Nov. 2005 from http://llt.msu.edu/vol7num2/emerging/default.html.
Harris, J., (1995) Mining the Internet. The Computing Teacher. 22(5), 66-69. Retrieved Nov. 2005 from http://lrs.ed.uiuc.edu/mining/February95-TCT.html.
Online Collaborative Learning in higher Education. (2005) Central Queensland University. Retrieved Nov 2005 from http://clp.cqu.edu.au/index.htm.
Online Collaborative Tools: evaluation reports (2005) Athabasca University. Retrieved Nov 2005 from http://cde.athabascau.ca/softeval/index.htm.