Module 3 - Assessing Collaborative Efforts

Assessment of participation in collaborative learning communities should be reflective of both participation and learning. Palloff & Pratt (2007) makes an excellent point in that the only way for a professor to know the student is “attending class” is if the student participates in posts. “Students should be given credit for self-reflection…In addition, asking students to reflect on the process not only allows them to evaluate the activity, but also gives the instructor important formative and summative information that can be incorporated into future iterations of the assignment” (Palloff & Pratt, 2005, p. 43). Siemens (n.d.) coins this learning as “participative pedagogy” and learning from ones’ peers can have enormous potential for learning. “Another way of accessing learning during an online class is the creation of an eportfolio (Palloff & Pratt, 2005). The work that is entered in this portfolio is an evaluation of the research completed throughout the semester along with individual growth of a particular topic (Siemens, n.d.). Each student will not learn the same way and/or take from each class the same amount of information, however, the instructor’s only way of fairly assessing this knowledge is to create specific rubrics for each assignment and follow them when grading each assignment.

Specific roles of each individual usually develop in face-to –face learning environments. However, these roles can also be seen in collaborative learning communities also (Palloff & Pratt, 2007). The professor is also a major component who can serve as an “organizer or cheerleader to imparter of information” (Palloff & Pratt, 2007, p.53). The professor should monitor the collaborative groups closely for over participation and/or under participation of group members (Palloff & Pratt, 2005). If the professor needs to step in to help the overall discussion and/or participation then he or she should do so for the wellbeing of the group. If participation among group members lapse, the participating group members should inquire of the other members to see if there is a personal issue and/or to identify if that person has left the class entirely. If the students are not still not responding to their peers then the participating students should contact the professor to make them aware of the situation and if the assignments are unable to be completed, to ask for an alternative assignment. Group members leaving an online collaborative group could impose some problems such as there are not enough group members to participate in constructive feedback from their peers. Palloff & Pratt (2005) provide some examples of collaborative assessments for collaborative work. These guidelines show the students what is expected of them for not only their posts, but for also the feedback to their peers which in turn take the grading off the professor and solely on the student. If the student does what is asked of them in the rubric then it is easy for both the professor and the student to know what they have and/or should earn. These collaborative assessments given by Palloff & Pratt (2005) can be found on p. 45-47 & 52. Again, these rubrics might have to be altered as the class progresses, but they are guidelines for all parties involved.

A recent blog that I read was also concerned with online collaboration assessment. The author, Brad, used some of the same resources I did for my blog which brought up an interesting point – this is such a new and upcoming part of education, that resources are not abundant. This is a process that will have to be revisited and worked on until there are quality assessments and the instructor, students, and peers feel that the grades are fair and equal.

References:

Brad. (2009, October 12). Collaborative assessment challenges. Retrieved October 12, 2009, from http://r-elearning.blogspot.com/2009/01/collaborative-assessment-challenges.html.

Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2005). Collaborating online: Learning together in community. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2007). Building online learning communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Siemens, G. (n.d.). Assessment of collaborative learning. Retrieved Oct. 9, 2009, from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=3649021&Survey=1&47=5863341&ClientNodeID=984645&coursenav=1&bhcp=1.