Online Business Forums And Communications: Future Workspace Skills, Credibility Evaluation, And Collaborative Spaces

Topic 1:  Future Workspace Skills

Discuss about the Online Business Forums and Communications.

Participating in the online forums and communications makes an individual both a creator and user of information. Conventional education developed just information consumers (Lunz, 2015). Most sources used were from well advanced professionals who had vested several years in their careers. Students and entry level researchers had a limited access to content development and production. The creation and development of information has had drastic changes in the recent years. These changes have in turn made a difference in the today learning environment. The internet has come out strong as the main source of research work for every content writer. The purpose of this paper is to show how my 21^st century work skills have developed as a major aspect of my experiences in this unit as a consumer, producer and shaper of online sources of information.

For centuries literacy has been referred to the ability to read and write. According to a research undertaken by the University of Phoenix Research Institute, New-media literacy is referred as the ability to critically evaluate and develop content that uses new media forms, and to influence these media for persuasive communication. This skill requires one to be able to infiltrate media technology in our workplace as it is in our social life.

According to the oxford dictionary the definition of collaboration is the action of working with someone or a group to produce something. The virtual collaboration skill is the ability to produce a work, drive engagement and be present as part of a virtual team. 

I have worked on presentations such as PowerPoint in the past. It has proved to be very efficient and more beneficial to the viewers. In this unit I have learnt something new which is Prezi presentation. This is so engaging and we could present our work in a clear and simple way. If ever I have to do a presentation with some other co-workers and it needs to be done through the internet due to lack of time, I will definitely use Prezi to do so. It is so easy for everyone to insert their part without having to go through the email and downloading the file and then email it again. Although Prezi have some disadvantages like limited internet access, overall it is a great tool for the future workforce. Virtual collaboration was all new to me. I had to work with a virtual team to set up a Prezi presentation. Although we never met face to face we could get the presentation done and we were all happy with it. I have learnt how to work together as a team, virtually. Through this process I have also developed a sense of responsibility and respect. In the future I would be able to use the skill that I have gained to save time.

Topic 2: Evaluation of Credibility of Online Sources

Through the informational development I have learnt a lot to do with credibility evaluation. As information consumer, I there in need to be keen when selecting a source of information. There are key aspects that have to be met to consider a source as credible or not. Among the aspects that have to be met include: -

A background study reveals a lot about an author. It reveals if the author has written any article or book before. It also reveals his or her credentials and academic background. The length of experience he or she has. According to a research done by Knoll Workplace (2013), from the background check one will be able to tell if they have ever been cited by other researchers or content developers. If it is a web based source, I have learnt that I need to do an analysis on the URL to ascertain ownership. For instance, a website published on a research organizations domain e.g. www.csiro.au indicates that it has been well researched and therefore of a high quality. A source published on a personal domain e.g. www.stevesblogs.com may not have been well research meaning it is of a lower source quality. A domain with other journals and research papers published on them also stands out stronger as compared with a domain with no other journals or research publications. A deep scrutiny of the author gives a clear indication whether the source can be relied upon or not. Scanty information on an author may be a clear indication that he or she has not developed well in the subject matter.

Information quality and accuracy has a massive impact in any work. The information need to be specific. A source should not be full of speculations (McGrath, J., 1984). They need to have their research or article based on data from analysis and observations. Even on an art based work where imaginations rule, the sources used has to follow a specific guideline for originality. The conclusion and method of study need to be based on the research conducted. Additionally, one needs to assess the reliability of the cited sources for each source they use. Other means through which this can be achieved is through consideration of the sentence structure, information flow and grammar used in an article.

Confirming the reason behind a publication gives a deep insight into the credibility of a source. Biased representation may be documented for a paper developed for a donation or solicitation purpose. A highly financed research on the other hand may imply a widely sourced and backed research.

Topic 3: Develops Job and Learning Control

An outdated sourced may not be recommended for a fast paced research topic. A 30-year age gap in the source may imply the findings at that time are not the same as the current situation. According to Haller et.al, (2010), it might impact on judgment. The timelines may have an impact on credibility while in some instances it might not have. For online media information on creation date and update dates come in handy.

Assess the source coverage of the subject matter. Adequacy in coverage is a great indicator of relevance. The source need to be deep to be relevant. It needs to address all the research questions. The introduction section of a source provides much information for this. Collaborative spaces have a way of overcoming the differentials in terms of time and space. The platforms and communication channels enhance this (Cameron et. al. 2006). As I learned through my participations in my group, there is always a common mentality, understanding and information shared within the spaces.

Collaborative spaces have a way of overcoming the differentials in terms of time and space. The platforms and communication channels enhance this (Cameron et. al. 2006). Within the spaces there is always a common mentality, understanding and information shared. The following are some of the factors enhancing collaboration within the spaces.

When individuals are involved in a collaborative space, they tend to see more value in the work they do. When other students make positive comments on mine or if they approve my ideas, I feel valued. The diversity makes them feel unique and informative. They develop a stronger identity. The diversity brings up a "help each other" environment where the participants give the best in their specialties. We interact very frequently thus learning new concepts and getting more motivated. We also exchange ideas regarding our future assignments.

The collaborative spaces create an "always available" environment for the participants. Accessibility is highly enhanced as they are not geographically constrained. Working and learning conditions are highly enhanced. Communication is not as confined as it is in the conventional methods. I could still study while I was away for 2 weeks. I was also able to reach out to my group members for discussions and follow ups on pending work.

As users and members participate in these collaborative spaces, I felt as part of the team. The interactions within these spaces make the units tied together on attributes (Mittleman, D., 2009). In my team, we would help each other and I felt like I has to do my best for my team. I spent more time on the team work that any because of the closeness we had.

Conclusion

There are a number of factors that make the collaborating within these spaces a challenge. The concept leads to a change in the roles. All the learning materials are developed by the students themselves. The teachers only facilitate, as cited by Simmons (2015) and web (2014). Additional group work implies delivery time has to be extended. Revision of the materials also takes a longer time as the chain is longer. Time management for personal activities and roles may also be interfered with due to the indecisiveness within the spaces.

Conclusion

For centuries both communication and literacy skills were used be it at work or in education. The following points have focused on the two 21^st century skills which are new-media literacy and virtual collaboration respectively. Through informational sources and blackboard collaboration, we can achieve great things and share ideas broadly. We are now able to detect if a source is reliable or not by studying the background of the author, the source accuracy and quality, the source objectivity, the source coverage and the currency of the article. Despite that We have also come across some negative aspects that this can bring up, we have also gained plenty of knowledge regarding blackboard collaboration and how this can enhance group work. 

References

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