Hey all!
In this second module of ESEPSY the overarching topic is the use of communication and collaboration in order to be a successful online student. Though there are many useful bits of information provided throughout the lesson, the information which I found to be the most vital was that which pertained to assigning specific roles within a group project. This is something I’ve never really put into practice nor even considered to be a possibility. Although, looking at previous negative experiences in group work, it really makes perfect sense how useful this concept of specific roles could be. In the video on slide 15 of the lesson “Five Tips For Dealing With Lazy Group Members” by College Info Geek they discuss the importance of getting the group together at the start of the project and provoking a verbal commitment from each member on what tasks they will complete. This brings a sort of clarity to each group member about what needs to be done, as well as creating a sense of responsibility within each member now that they have committed themselves to a task. These roles might consist of positions like; project manager, editor, researcher, or really anything which holds a large enough importance to require all of one persons attention.
The lesson also provides links to many powerful online collaboration tools which could prove to be essential in the success of a groups work. The provided tool which I personally find to be the most useful is the google drive platform. Google drive is something I have used for the past few years in almost all of my group projects. For those who aren’t familiar, Google Drive is basically the entire microsoft suite condensed into one website which is free to use and most importantly provides an excellent work space for collaborators. All documents on google drive are stored in the cloud. This means that all stored documents can be viewed and edited by multiple people at the same time which allows the many members of a group to work on the same project at their own pace and on their own time. There are many other online collaboration resources available, however I find Google Drive to be the most useful and accessible.
I hope you all have found this post to be at least a little bit helpful, and I hope you have a great week!
-William McMury
P.S. The video referenced in this post can be found at the link below!