Supporting online collaboration for design
2: How students perform in online synchronous environments
Mark Childs
Senior Researcher, Loughborough University
BIM-Hub project
• Based on a project funded by HP Catalyst 2011 – 2012,
• Funded by HEA, runs 2013 to 2014• Loughborough University, Coventry University,
Ryerson University (Canada)• Teams of students architecture, structural engineers
and construction managers • Design a building (sem. 1 and submit report (sem. 2)• Use GoToMeeting for synchronous and students’
choice for asynchronous
Also …
Of appeal to students because• Motivating• Authentic experience• Transferable skills• Perception of improved employability
IPO – Transactional Distance
(Source: Soetanto et al. 2012, 2014)
IV. Skills for online
collaboration
III. Skills for collaborationII. Support for collaboration
I. Design of learning activities for subject discipline
0. Professional and institutional/ pedagogical requirements.
V. Skills for online synchronous collaboration
Lessons students learn from working online …
… that we thought were self-evident• Not breaking off for private conversations. • Effectively supplementing face-to-face behaviours to
compensate for less physical presence. • Chairing meetings formally so that only one person speaks at
the same time. • Planning and structuring meetings. • Ensuring everyone is included. • Eliminating echo. • Taking into account students with disabilities.• Don’t work in unsuitable areas.
Developing ability in online meetings
Improved over time (but correlation not causation)• Applying meeting management techniques; scheduling,
agendas, action points.• Improvement in IT skills.• Developing a greater understanding of the task.• Reification through creation of models.• Developing presence in online meetings.However …• Inauthenticity of virtual connections.• Lack of socialisation.
Developing Presence in GoToMeeting
• Early stages; talk offline, limited use of applications, (also note echo)– demo of stage 1.wmv
• Ah-ha moments, groups choose to clarify by showing on screen– demo of stage 2.wmv
• Experienced users, gesture, switch between applications, modify in realtime– demo of stage 3.wmv
Example of GoToMeeting
Creating presence
Developing presence in meetings
• Getting the technology right. • Fluency with software.• Online etiquette.• Don’t tell, show. • Keep the conversation on screen not offline. • Doodle• Modify each others’ work• Make an appearance• Socialise
Next step in analysis
• Loughborough students were two cohorts, one for semester one, a different set for semester two.
• We anticipate seeing difficulties specific to new users entering an existing dynamic of competent users.
• Was hoping to present that here too, but ran out of time.
BIM-Hub team
Loughborough: Robby Soetanto (PI), Mark Childs, Jacqui Glass, Zulfikar Adamu, Chinwe Isiadinso
Coventry: Stephen AustinRyerson : Paul Poh, Dmitri KnyazevProject evaluators: Harry Tolley, Helen MacKenzie
Thanks to Hewlett Packard and UK Higher Education Academy for funding this initiative
http://bim-hub.lboro.ac.uk/
Further information http://bim-hub.lboro.ac.uk/ Twitter: @oc4d1 LinkedIn: http://
www.linkedin.com/groups/Online-Collaborative-Design-7469178
Email [email protected] Reference: Soetanto, R., Childs, M., Poh, P., Austin, S and Hao,
J. (2014) Virtual collaborative learning for building design, Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers: Management, Procurement and Law 167 February 2014 Issue MP1, Pages 25–34
