The online learning environment can be one that is a lonely for some, and when help is needed, it can be stressful. Many students find that if they are able to chat with someone via instant message that they can collaborate on ideas on how to handle the issues that they are having with their school work. This is the best way to handle issues that come up. Many online schools offer chats boards and message boards that students can access so that they can feel connected to others in their program. This means that the student can feel like they have access to other for the means of collaborating in order to gain insight and to get encouragement with their studies. This is also helpful because students can discuss their issues and their ideas with a certain task so that they can combine ideas and work with their peers for the sake of collaboration.

The other factor that is appealing with online collaboration is that students are able to reach out to other professors in other areas so that they can fill in the gaps and explore more possibilities related to the topic that they are studying. This also includes finding teachers and other respected individuals in other states and countries. The purpose of collaboration is to share ideas with others and come to a conclusion based on a consensus of ideas. This is a powerful way for students to truly learn about the topic and to apply what has been learned. It is actually using the top rung of Bloom’s Taxonomy where they are exercising the highest level of critical thinking and application. Students are able to take what they have learned and apply it to a project or with a lecture so that he or she can share what they have learned, and the new philosophies or line of thinking that has been developed as a result of the collaboration.