Ducky and Sherman's CSCW Project 3

Milestones:

• Tell Sara what we're going to do by 25 Oct
• Write up a research protocol and consent by 1 Nov
• Do the work by 6 Dec

Idea 1: EcoPath

Pro:

• It could help Sherman with EcoPath
• Sherman might be able to find academics
• Can propose ways to make Ecopath more colloborative

Con:

• EcoPath is not intrinsicly collaborative

Objective 1: See if screen-capture-video of EcoPath sessions is helpful when one researcher asks a non-co-located colleague for help debugging an EcoPath model.

Pro

• Identify screen-capture-video solutions
  • MS Media Encover
  • VNC2SWF
  • Captivate (free 30-day trial)
  • CamStudio
  • tips on how to make a good demo includes some eval of different software
• Identify modellers at UBC who frequently assist others.
• Ask UBC model-helpers to request screen-capture-videos.
• Observe the resulting debugging sessions.

Objective 2: Observe researchers and see if we can figure out a way to make EcoPath more collaborative.

Idea 2: Distance learning

Study students in different distance learning environments.

Pro:

• highly collaborative
• something the teachers are interested in
• high potential for a thesis work for a student

Con:

• need to go off-campus for fieldwork
• need to find participants

Possible Objectives:

• Evaluate how well different tools promote collaboration between students.
• Evaluate how well different tools promote feedback from student to teacher.

Possible participants:

• UBC continuing ed
• SFU
• Northwest Indian College in Bellingham (First Nations/Aboriginal)
• Greader Vancouver Distance Education School (high school)
• WWU online and CD-ROM based (emailed stranger)
• Nicola Valley Institute of Technology (3 hrs away)
• Justice Institute of BC
• BC Institute of Technology

• U Denver
• U Illinois (emailed Burks)
• Stanford (Ducky to email her contacts)
• UW (emailed Alaina)

Tools used in distance learning:

• email
• live video
• archived video
• synchronized slides
• voice chat
• IM
• newgroups / BBSes
• snailmail
• posting material for pickup (i.e. Web)

First deliverable

Task 1: Project Outline and Research Protocol (due 11/1) Each team will need to determine and describe in brief the following for a project outline:

• An existing collaborative work group setting (one to which team members do not belong)
• (Optionally) An existing NECTAR or other known CSCW technology
• Research objective(s)
• 3-5 focal points for the fieldwork (class exercise, 10/18)
• Method(s) for data collection (class material, 10/18)
• Research protocol for purposes of ethics approval
• Recruit participants so that field work can begin as soon as ethics approval is received