Evaluating a collaborative online learning environment

Computer conferencing is used in a number of educational institutions to add openness and flexibility to courses taught on campus. This paper argues for the use of ethnographic techniques to evaluate this type of provision. The research reported is an attempt to develop an adequate understanding of group work as it occurs on-line. Examples are taken from the research to indicate how ethnographic techniques can be used to inform the design and use of groupware systems in education. In particular ethnography stresses context and refuses to use a priori categories or concentrate exclusively on the learning process.