What Can We Gain by Collaboration?

This question is a tough one to answer because I think that we have almost everything to gain, and very little, if anything to lose, by collaboration. Collaboration allows everyone involved to test ideas, to build on others' ideas, and to create at a geometric rate instead of a linear rate. Use of technology allows global collaboration and increased exposure to other perspectives.

According to Tom Daccord, a contributor to the 2009 K12 Online Conference, for teachers and students, collaboration using the read-write web provides authentic, meaningful, and social opportunities for learning. These three attributes are important to engage contemporary students in learning. Daccord also points out that since teachers traditionally prepare lessons in isolation, joining an academic community online can help teachers to break out of isolation, get comfortable with the technology, and to test their ideas and learn from colleagues around the globe.