Collaborative learning has been shown as an effective way to develop both the range and depth of student competence. Participants who work together towards a common goal first need to develop a shared understanding of the task at hand and then negotiate an agreed approach. The ensuing social processes such as dialogue, discussion, debate and resolving differences of opinion have a positive effect on the overall learning process.
Most students are already using a whole host of independent digital tools that enable them to work more flexibly with materials. This includes, but is not limited to software like Dropbox, WhatsApp and others. Because these commercial software applications are familiar and ubiquitous, they enable students to share and respond to information quickly.
With the project eCollaboration, our goal is to enable students and staff to easily access, edit and manage information, as well as how it flows between people. The resulting collaboration between students and between students and teaching staff should therefore become easier due to this access to reliable tools. Meanwhile, stringent expectations regarding data privacy are still met.