Note: This update was posted the first week of class and was commented on by a few of you but I posted it in the wrong spot! Some of you may have already seen this.

Most of the HRD classes I have been enrolled in at UIUC we have had a group project that we work on throughout the semester with 3-4 partners. As we all know, it can be very difficult to coordinate a time in which all group members can meet in person. The main platform I use with my groups is Google. One thing that is great about google doc is you can meet when a part through google documents, spreadsheets, presentation, and etc. You can share the document of your choice with your group members and work on the document at the same time. The team members are able to see each individual make changes and each person can communicate in the chat box.

http://www.rus-ameeduforum.com/content/en/?task=art&article=1001045&iid=18

https://www.slideshare.net/jrcampos/collaborative-work-with-google-docs

There are several reasons why people find Google Docs useful. You can access it anywhere, and it is easy to share and collaborate. One downside that comes with working on Google Docs away from your group is it may be hard to collaborate through a chat box. That being said, I found this app called “House Party” that is similar to facetime but you can talk to several people at a time. My group members and I normally have House Party on our phones so we can speak out loud while also editing our Google Doc. This allows us to not have too many scheduling conflicts. You can even create “Google Groups” which is like a mailing list: It contains the email addresses of its members, but also has its own address. Using just the one email address for the group, you can: send email to group members, Invite group members to meeting times, and share your content with group members, including Google documents, sites, videos, and calendars for due dates.