online_learning_communities.jpg
Online Communities

During our PBL group meetings , we have discussed about collaborative learning in teams and the challenges to succeed together , we have shared experiences and give some tips to have an effective work team .

In this Blog I will be sharing my experience of supervising teams of students in the conext of applying Project based learning approach in the university where I’am teaching . I will start by giving the steps of Group Creation , Collaboration and Evaluation . Then I will share my reflection about joining ONL .

**First Step : Team building and project assignment

When building the teams we recommend using a fair composition to different groups. Indeed, each team should include students of good, average and fair level . Then the tutor presents the projects descriptions to the class . Teams choose their projects according to their preferences. In case of conflicts, a draw is made to assign projects. Every Team should create a special label that represents the hole group (Team Name).

**Second Step : Team Work & Supervision

For Project Management , we use Scrum Methodology where every team is invited to divide together the project into small phases (called sprints ) of three weeks each and every sprint contains specific tasks to accomplish by every team member . The role of teacher in this process is to supervise , monitor progress , guide and redirect the students , give feedback during weekly meetings . The team members discuss together how they collaborate , when and where to meet together to synchronize accomplishment

**Final Step : Grading & Evaluation

As team members could have some ups and downs during the implementation of the project ,Grading should be a continous process during all phases . As a Teacher every week I give scores for the students as below : a group score for the progress and the quality of the work , an individual mark is attributed to evaluate the task of each member. In the end every team is invited to present their work to the members of jury in order to obtain a global mark . This way gives the student the opportunity to be graded during the whole process of implementation and not only for the final result .

Reflection of PBL group

Based on our discussions during PBL meetings , Some improvements may be applied to enhance collaborative learning , such as elaborating together a common contract for every team where members agree on the basis of their group to avoid or minimize future conflicts . Also in order to build trust with each other and feel confortable , teacher can give some ice-breaking activities for groups to motivate them .Other important things to add , are active monitoring for work progress to ensure that every member is learning and contributing , giving valuable feedback and assistance for enhancement , providing well planned and clear assessement and insctructions …..

Topic 3: Learning in Communities- Networked Collaborative Learning