Collaboration in a Web 2.0 World

Last year during the major Jr. Theme research project which centered on immigration and hyphenated Americans, we discovered the importance of communication with students to get them on track and keep them moving toward due dates. One of our English teachers, Adena Horwitz posted these questions to BlackBoard:

1. What sources have been used for gathering information? What methods of collection (Internet, text, interview, observation of neighborhood, etc.) were used? Why did you choose these methods?

2. What are the most important, surprising, and informative findings in the research?

3. In what ways does the research give rise to new questions, points-of-view, ideas, or suggestions?

4. In what ways does the research suggest your next steps, in terms of further information collection, analysis, or action?

The English teacher read the posts and logged me in as an instructional assistant to read student postings from two different classes. I could tell right away which students were on track and which students were dazed and confused.
I was able to direct students to appropriate resources and get right back to them. My advice both needed and appreciated.

Not all teachers use the discussion/comment features of BlackBoard. For those teachers I plan on suggesting a collaboration using student blogs. If I set up the student blogs, the teachers not so fluent with technology will also be able to reap the benefits of tracking student progress and contributing to the conversations.