Collaboration

We just had the first night of the "Using emerging technologies for learning" class and we spent some time talking about collaboration. It got me to thinking: how much does how we individually define collaboration impact our participation and success when we collaborate?

For example, what about the purpose of collaboration? if I see collaboration primarily as a faster (better, more efficient) way to achieve a "right answer" or some kind of result; do I collaborate differently than if I see collaboration primarily as a about a communication process? What about structure? Are some of us more or less likely to collaborate depending on the amount of structure or control in the environment? What about the amount of investment/engagement I have in the topic: is there such a thing as a silent collaborator? Is it only an outwardly process? Is collaboration a strickly volunteer activity? Can you "make" people collaborate? Does this limit when people are really collaborating?

I think collaboration is worth thinking about for several reasons:
(1) certainly it's relevant to ALOP; both for you as a student who is "forced" to collaborate as part of your learning process and as someone who likely works and helps others learn in some measure via collaboration. How can being more mindful of collaboration help us in our graduate work, or in our professional work?

(2) I also think it's useful for us to think collaboration with us as an advisee group. Are there ways we can collaborate with each other (in small groups or as an entire advisee group) to maximize our time together in graduate school? Are there "holes" or additions in what we want to learn, that we aren't getting in our coursework? Or can we extend/deepen/expand what we're learning in our coursework through some kind of collaboration with each other?

I'd love to hear your thoughts about collaboration in general, and advantages or the potential of collaboration amongst our advisee group.