Technology and Group Projects

As my group, "Team Dynamic", has assembled our proposal for Health Promotions, we have extensively used the "Group Page" in Blackboard. The ability to use blackboard storage space for different pieces of the project has been especially useful because it allows different group members to access different pieces of the project at any time from any computer. Since group files have been edited at different computer labs on campus and on our own laptops, it is reassuring to know that they are safely stored on the Clemson University servers. Uploading and downloading from these servers is possible regardless of location and always faster than dealing with oversize email attachments. Few things are more aggravating than waiting several minutes for a powerpoint attached to an email to finish downloading. Speaking of email, the other convenient thing that blackboard does is allow you to send group emails to each group member without having to individually look up their email address. This avoids the concern I usually have about the validity of the email address I handwrote in class.

On the flip side, the technology that most hindered my group's progress was the text message. I personally prefer to talk directly to my group members because it allows immediate answers to multiple questions. If I am texting with that person, the "conversation" is slower because only one question can be addressed at a time. When you add that to the fact that I am paying for each individual text message I receive (regardless of how short it is), it is easy to see why I prefer actual audio exchange or even voice mail to the text message.