1. What are the advantages of having diversity in a collaborative learning environment? The point of any collaboration is to bring together different ideas for one solution. By exchanging opinions, everyone can decide what works best for the group. When too many like minded people come together, they dole out the same product. If a group contains all organizers or thinkers, they might have a 10 page paper of all conflicting ideas because they couldn’t agree on one topic. History’s bloodiest events usually started with one group of likeminded people pushing their ideas onto the rest of the world.
2. How might factors such as learning and work styles affect your team’s collaboration? Having a diverse set of people in a group can only improve it. Thinkers can look at a topic from all sides, which can help a team anticipate arguments and have an answer ready. Givers can be the voice of reason, helping the group stay on task when an organizer or thinker is stuck on a non consequential detail. Adventurers think outside the box, they may come up with the topic itself or can be counted on to liven up a stale presentation. Organizers are decisive; choosing what information stays, what gets tossed, where it fits, and how to best unify a paper. Like Henry Ford’s assembly line, each person has a role that has to be met for the product to be finished.
3. How can critical thinking improve your team’s collaboration? Being in a team can generate original and creative ideas, making for an interesting project. Critical thinking is the research and facts to uphold those ideas. This involves finding credible sources with valid facts. This question is kicking my butt! I’ll get it eventually. 4. What are methods for improving team writing?
Prewriting is the longest step in the writing process, involving the overall topic of a project and all the research. This is where a team can contribute ideas and opinions, and a rough draft is formed. After this process is finished, the actual writing should be simple. The second draft could be written by one person to ensure that it stays in one voice throughout the paper. Then the team can review the draft and make changes as needed.