Short communications: Online collaborative learning: The challenge of change

Desktop videoconferencing and project-based online collaborative learning can create new directions in higher education. However, the transition from the "safe space" of a conventional classroom course to a new learning environment often represents a major change for both faculty and students. Faculty need to know what kind of support can help students cope with the challenges of an unfamiliar learning environment in order to make this transition less difficult. In this paper we describe how we create conditions for an effective online collaborative learning environment within the framework of a course module. During the course, the students acquire judgment and decision making abilities for integrating technological systems into their field of expertise. We discuss the difficulties of evaluating outcomes in learning environments that are essentially different from conventional university courses. We conclude by sharing the lessons learned and identify critical factors that helped our students move from the familiar "chalk and talk" model to the relatively uncharted territory of project-based online collaborative learning and show that provision of "safe places" represents one of the most important contributions of online collaborative learning environments.