Is Collaboration a Naturally Occurring Phenomenon?

Rheingold proposes that humans have a natural tendency to, "interact and work as a group". As proof he offers the development of hunting teams among developing humans as well as more recent collaborative efforts including the development of opensource software and Wikipedia. While there are elements of truth in these conclusions Rheingold seems to hold an inaccurately positive view of human nature. Another interpretation of these events makes the claim that in each of these scenarios the individuals involved realized that their own personal benefit could be increased through the involvement of a greater workforce. This view of human nature is supported more clearly in situations where an individuals personal benefit was increased through the coercion of additional people to join their efforts. Slaves were forced to build structures like the Pyramids for the benefit of the Pharaohs. Mercenaries have been coerced through the promise of financial gain to join battles that were not their own.

People seem to work together when they stand to gain from the cooperation and collaboration efforts. They continue to work in these efforts until the personal benefits gained from the work become of lesser value than the effort and investment they must make.

When we understand these motivational factors driving individuals to collaborate then we can harness this tool and use it to increase our effectiveness as educators. To accomplish this we must learn to demonstrate to students how they can achieve greater benefit through collaboration than they could achieve on their own. 

For older students there are a numbers of ways that technology can assist in facilitating a collaborative environment. Google Apps for Education offers free tools for schools that can allow secure areas where students can work on shared documents within a controlled environment. Younger students would benefit from the shared work spaces provided by products similar to the Promethean ActivTable. This type of product is designed to both encourage and require collaboration among students.

In addition to the student benefits that can be achieved through collaboration there are many ways in which Teachers can personally benefit from professional collaboration efforts (Morgan, 2011). When the educational leadership desires teachers to engage in collaborative efforts then they must demonstrate how those teachers will personally benefit from the collaboration.




Reference

Morgan, A., Parr, B., & Fuhrman, N. (2011). Enhancing Collaboration among Math and Career and Technical Education Teachers: Is Technology the Answer?. Journal Of Career And Technical Education, 26(2), 77-89.