Creating and Collaborating: Students’ and Tutors’ Perceptions of an Online Group Project

Abstract

Although collaboration skills are highly valued by employers, convincing students that collaborative learning activities are worthwhile, and ensuring that the experience is both useful and enjoyable, are significant challenges for educators. This paper addresses these challenges by exploring students’ and tutors’ experiences of a group project where part-time distance learners collaborate online to create a website. Focus groups were conducted with students who had recently completed the project, and discussion forums were used to gather feedback from tutors who supported students and marked their group work. The research showed that students’ attitudes towards the group project on completion were generally favourable. Findings highlighted key aspects for successful online group projects and for motivating students to participate fully. These included: the design of authentic tasks, with skills development relevant to the workplace; careful attention to how the group work is assessed; and enabling students to develop websites they could be proud of. Frustrations for students were associated with the lack of engagement of fellow students and with limitations of the tool provided for building the website. Tutors found marking the work a time-consuming and complex process. Tutors were also unconvinced of the value and fairness of assessing students partly on a group, as opposed to an individual, basis.

Students’ experiences of anxiety in an assessed, online, collaborative project

“…For instance, interpersonal interaction between peers may evoke enjoyment and enthusiasm for some learners whilst for others it may induce anxiety and fear (McConnell, 2005;O'Regan, 2003). Many challenges can arise in online collaborative learning contexts that can lead to conflict and negative emotional arousal, for example, personality clashes (Helen Donelan & Kear, 2018), differences in goals and expectations (Capdeferro & Romero, 2012), challenges with commitment and time (Brindley et al, 2009), and differences in styles of working and communicating (e.g. 'free riders') (Capdeferro & Romero, 2012).…”

“…Bolliger and Halupa, 2012;Capdeferro and Romero, 2012), overall emotional experiences (e.g. Zembylas, 2008;O'Regan, 2003), or general experiences (Helen Donelan & Kear, 2018) in these learning environments.…”

“…anxiety and frustration) when undertaking such learning activities (Bakhtiar et al, 2018;Kwon et al, 2014;Capdeferro and Romero, 2012;Oliveira et al, 2011). Researchers have reported that these unpleasant emotions can be caused by a variety of factors including working in an unknown learning environment, communicating with 'strangers', uncertainty over the commitment demands, personality clashes, and dealing with 'free-riders' (Brindley, Walti, & Blaschke, 2009;Donelan, Kear, & Ramage, 2010;Helen Donelan & Kear, 2018;Kear, 2011).…”

“…One unpleasant emotion that has been reported by students in these online learning contexts is anxiety (e.g. Helen Donelan & Kear, 2018;Oliveira et al, 2011), an emotion that is often viewed as being detrimental to learning and academic performance. Only a limited number of studies have focussed specifically on anxiety in online collaborative settings, with past research tending to explore the overall emotional experiences of students or focussed on experiences of collaborative learning more generally.…”

Enabling Inclusive Group Work

“…A theme that arose in many discussions around group work was anxiety. Donelan and Kear [22] noted that the prospect or experience of collaboration could cause anxiety for some students and this theme was also raised in our interviews. A further issue involved the lack of contribution by one or more students and how this may cause significant anxiety to others within the group.…”