2. Selection of Collaborative Tools

Abstract

The previous report summarised the findings of an online survey concerning Master’s of Distance Education students’ attitudes to online collaborative tools. The respondents in the study were 135 graduate students and faculty members of Athabasca University’s Centre for Distance Education (CDE). They demonstrated particular interest in tools that offer the following features: file sharing; automatic synchronisation of documentation for the group; audio conferencing; text chat; and privacy. In the effort to respond to this interest, the Centre conducted a series of trials of conferencing and other file-sharing products. This report discusses the merits and disadvantages of current collaborative methods, and problems faced by distance educators and their students in seeking to adopt them.