The Experience of Participants in an Online Collaborative Learning Environment

This study explored the experience of participants in an online collaborative learning environment, including the experience of the technical facilitator. The study was conducted from an action research perspective using Peters' (1997, 2002) DATA-DATA model and a qualitative case study methodology.

Data were collected through participant interviews, document analysis, and participant observation. The inductive analysis model of Hatch (2002) was employed to reveal five themes that describe participants' experience of the online collaborative learning environment: establishing a comfortable environment, perceptions of other participants, participating in collaborative learning, making sense of the experience, and learning outcomes.

The experience of the participants and the facilitator, along with related literature in the areas of collaborative learning and online learning, were informative with respect to how the elements of collaborative learning are experienced online and ways in which the facilitation of online collaborative learning may be improved to enhance the collaborative learning process.