Online Collaboration: Blending the Technical Communication CourseKaren Gulbrandsen, PhDAssistant Professor of EnglishUniversity of Massachusetts Dartmouth

What was my goal?To support these learning outcomes

Create reader-based documents that includes information the reader needs to know

Create accessible documents that help the reader find the information needed, using principles of effective document design

Given a technical communication genre (report, proposals, memos, instructions, oral presentations), list and analyze its features in relation to its context, purpose and audience

What did I do?Combined a variety of tools

Online quizzes to encourage student reading

Discussion boards to analyze and apply key concepts

Online Q&A Discussion Board for students to ask and answer questions about the class

Wiki to encourage collaborative writing

What did I learn?Model expectations, ask questions, & have fun

Discuss and model expectations

Give feedback online to let students know they are on the right track

Ask students for feedback about how the online component is working for them

Have fun using online activities to complement and extend student’s work in the face-to-face classroom

Students said the wiki and other online tools, “helped with the team project because they could ‘meet’ online.”

In a focus group, students noted that the online components ”helped them stay engaged.”

When they met online every Friday, students still felt connected to each other, saying “class participation was still ongoing on Friday due to [the] online” component.