ENHANCING UNDERGRADUATE GROUP PROJECT OUTCOMES THROUGH BLENDED COLLABORATIVE SUPERVISION: A SUPERVISORS’ EXPERIENCE

Abstract

Abstract

Combining the task of student project supervision with the other responsibilities associated with teaching, research and administration can be demanding, especially in universities that are understaffed. Supervisors and students undergo significant stress to ensure completion of projects to specifications within stipulated time. When the project to be executed is a hands-on task, not by individual final year students, but by teams of sophomores, the challenge of supervision increases. There is high tendency that any approach that can facilitate the supervision of projects in an efficient, effective and ethical manner will be attractive to the average university lecturer, hence the need to share an experience with the use of the blended collaborative approach for supervision. The primary aim of the research is to explore the use of blended collaborative supervision approach in improving group project outcomes among undergraduates. After four consecutive sessions of blended collaborative supervision via a social networking site, data was collected through participant observation, and content analysis of group threads. Qualitative analysis of the posts identified the learning outcomes, challenges and coping strategies when supervising group projects through a blended collaborate approach. Results showed that the approach facilitated greater supervisor presence and attention, cooperative learning, effective resource utilization, relatively hitch free supervision and effective documentation. The study concluded that blended collaborative supervision has the potentials to ease supervision tasks and provide effective learning experiences for students engaged in projects; and that, a major strategy for handling group project challenges was the promotion of transparency through open communication.