UNCO_LE@RNStudent guide: What tools can I use to collaborate in groups?

Whether groupwork and/or group projects are assigned in your asynchronous online course or not, these courses are an opportunity to gain, build, develop and refine your skills with using tools that are available for collaboration in these kinds of work and life environments. The guides included here provide assistance in using these tools whether necessitated by instructor requirement or chosen by you the student.

Tools that facilitate group work

When required by the course instructor, find guides for how to join student groups, submit group assignments, include a variety of elements in a post to a Canvas discussion, and submit surveys. Additionally, the tools included here facilitate a variety of ways of working together. Student groups provide a shared Canvas environment unique to each group where students can "talk" together and coordinate with classmates via group discussions. Students can construct shared documents through Canvas collaborations and wikis. Doodle tools helps facilitate scheduling between group members, and Zoom allows for virtual group meetings. Click on the tabs below to learn more about how to use these collaboration tools.

When reading through the following descriptions, notice which of the tools are supported by UNC and which are not. The guides provide basic information as well as how to go beyond the basics to use these tools in interesting ways.

Canvas Student Groups

Student groups allows access to a Canvas group environment where the group has a range of tools similar to what is available on the Canvas course menu including Announcements, Pages, Discussions, Files, Collaborations, and Zoom Meetings. Since only group members can access the discussion, pages, announcements etc. in that Canvas group environment, this is a straightforward way to collaborate with assigned groups or, if allowed in your course, to build and work within student-generated groups of your own choosing and construction.

This video reviews what Canvas groups are, how to find them and join them, and the unique features available to you and your group members in the group environment. Please note that in this video, you'll see a reference to "Conferences" in the group environment. Replace "Conferences" with "Zoom Meetings" and everything else will be the same.

The following guides provide more details on the features covered in the video:

How to View, Join, and Leave a Canvas Group

How to Communicate through Announcements

How to Communicate through Discussions

How do I create a discussion in a group?

How to Set Up a Collaboration

How do I start a collaboration in a group?

How to Upload and View Files

How do I upload a file to a group?
How do I view group files a student?
How do I move and organize files as a student?

How to Create and Edit a Page (Wikis)

How do I create a new page in a group?
How do I edit a page in a group?

How to Create Your Own Canvas Student Group(s)

If you see an "Add Group" button in the People tab of your course, you have the option to create your own group of classmates.

If the "Add Group" button is available, the following guide provides details on how to create a group as a student:

How do I create a group as a student?

Canvas Group Assignments

If your instructor assigns you and your group to a group assignment, the key thing to know is only one person in the group will submit the assignment. Your instructor may then choose to grade you as a group (each group member gets the same grade) or individually (each group member gets a different grade).

The following guide provides details on how to submit a Canvas group assignment:

How do I submit an assignment on behalf of a group?

Canvas Collaborations

When you want to construct a shared document, your go to is Canvas collaborations, where you can access Office 365 as well as Google Docs. Canvas collaborations can be set up so you and your group members can work together on a project, such as a PowerPoint or Google Doc.

The following guides provide details on how to work in a Canvas collaboration:

Canvas Discussions

There are three discussion types in Canvas:

Group environment discussions - you and other members of your group communicate freely within your group environment
Course discussions - everyone in the course is assigned to reply to the discussion
Group discussions - you and your group are assigned to reply to the discussion

The following guides provide details on how to interact in Canvas discussions (no matter the type):

How do I reply to a discussion as a student?
How do I attach a file to a discussion reply as a student?
How do I link to a YouTube video in a discussion reply as a student?
How do I l create hyperlinks to external URLs in the Rich Content Editor as a student?

Canvas Pages (Wikis)

A less familiar way to have a shared work platform is through utilizing Canvas pages. A Canvas page is a wiki and so it can be written, drafted, edited, and updated by multiple group members.

The following guides provide details on how to "edit" or add content to a page as a student:

How do I edit a course page as a student?
How do I create hyperlinks to external URLs?
How do I upload a document into a page?
How do I embed media in a page in a group?

Canvas Surveys

Canvas surveys are a tool for you to share your thoughts with your instructor. If your instructor assigns you to a survey, review the details in this guide: How do I submit a survey?

Zoom

Zoom is a video meeting platform. Meetings can be recorded and downloaded as .mp4 files. All UNC students have a basic Zoom account, which allows for 40-minute meetings and the ability to record meetings to your computer (local recordings). You can also record individual or group Zoom sessions if you need to post a video or audio recording for an assignment.

To use Zoom, go to unco.zoom.us and use your UNCO student ("Bear") credentials to log into your Zoom account.

The Zoom for Collaboration student guide below provides details on scheduling and inviting others to a meeting, joining and participating in a meeting, and recording a meeting.

Zoom for Collaboration: Student Guide

Panopto

Panopto is a video platform that is supported by UNC. If your instructor asks that you submit a video file to a Panopto assignment folder, review the details in this guide:

Upload a Panopto Video Assignment: Student Guide

Office 365

Office 365 is a cloud service that provides access to the following Microsoft applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and more. Office 365 products are supported by UNC's Information Management & Technology (IM&T) department. Students can download Office 365 by following the directions provided in IM&T's Office 365 web page.

The following link to the Quick Start guides provides details on Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and other programs in the Office 365 suite:

Microsoft Office 365 Quick Starts

Doodle

Want to find a time when your group members are available to meet? Use Doodle to set possible dates and see what works for whom. Then meet together via Zoom. Doodle is not supported by UNC. However, Doodle does provide support guides that may assist you with any questions or issues that you run across.

Create online polls fast with the Doodle poll maker

Google Docs

Google Docs is a suite of applications that allow you to create collaborative documents for free once you and your collaborators have a Google account.

Google Docs are not supported by UNC. However, Google provides support guides that may assist you with any questions or issues that you run across.