We often talk about online collaboration, but how does it really work?
Online Collaboration saves my travel time…
To work with my colleagues or students, I can organize projects and solicit contributions from all interested participants and still attend dinner with my friends, read a book, or simply enjoy a short break from my busy schedule.
It does not mean that work will be less. It means that I can go to a designated site on the Internet, log in and pour in my ideas, share files, comment on others’ postings, all at my own time.
As a facilitator of this communication, I have the opportunity to invite and remind participants of the deadlines through other media, such as e-mails, phone calls or a simple meeting over lunchtime.
Online collaboration does not replace face-to-face time with other participants – it simply makes those communications more effective by having all participants sharing ideas and resources prior to decision making sessions. It can eliminate some meetings and help with scheduling.
There are many online tools that we can use for free to share different things: pictures, documents, videos, etc.
It is easy to set up these tools and also easy to use them.
If you’d like to learn more about how these tools can be implemented in your environment, please contact a specialist at the Faculty Development Center.
Thank you.
Elvir Mandzukic
Faculty Development Specialist, School of Education
