"To place the needs of the group above those of the individual, some people fear entering into a community because they assume in doing so that they must submit to the will of the group"(Paloff &Pratt, 2007, p 28). The importance of building a community and collaborating must be emphasized to each member of the learning community in order for each learner to get the most out of the class. Although some members of the community may be hesitant to participate, they must understand it is a vital part of the online community and that they will be assessed the same as others for the work they have completed in the group. Going into the program, online learners should have known the requirements of participating in an online enviroment and if there were issues with conducting group activitites, maybe the online environment was not the right choice for these individuals. Instructors should, however, when grading take into consideration the levels of learners that are in the class. A learner who has little experience and has made major growth should be considered as having accomplished a lot. Assessments should be evenly divided into the various sections of the course for what is required in online classes giving learners who may be strong in one aspect and not another the same chances of making a well deserved grade in the class.
Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2005). Collaborating online: Learning together in community. San Francisco: Josey-Bass.
Palloff, R. M., & Pratt, K. (2007). Building online learning communities: Effective strategies for the virtual classroom. San Francisco: Josey-Bass.
Swan, K. (2004). Relationships between interactions and learning in online enviroments. The Sloan Consortium.
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