1. Online Collaboration:
Blending the Technical Communication Course
Karen Gulbrandsen, PhD
Assistant Professor of English
University 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 In a focus group, students noted that the online components
”helped them stay engaged.”
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
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.
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.”