Collaborative work consists of different people contributing their effort and ability to achieve a common goal.
The idea of work can refer, among other things, to a paid activity; to an effort made by the human being; or to the exercise of a trade or occupation. The term also refers to a work or a product (an element developed by a subject or a set of them).
Collaborative , meanwhile, is what is done in collaboration . This means that it is carried out with the contributions or contributions of different people.
Collaborative work is called, in this framework, the work that advances with the participation of a group of individuals . The concept is used in the workplace, the educational sector and the academic field, for example .
Characteristics of collaborative work
At a general level, collaborative work implies a shared effort . Each of the participants makes a contribution in pursuit of a common objective , since their contribution must aim to achieve the mission of the group and not to obtain an individual benefit.
In any case, it should be considered that collaborative work is not necessarily altruistic. In other words: the shared objective may be the generation of revenue for a company .
Collaborative, in short, is associated with a way of working as a team . The notion itself has nothing to do with the result or effect of the work carried out.
In collaborative work there is a shared mission.
The concept linked to new technologies
Currently, the concept of collaborative work is usually linked to a way of producing services and goods that is made possible thanks to the Internet . This type of collaborative work is carried out by communities that self-organize so that their members work in a coordinated manner with the aim of reaching a certain goal.
In this context, the result of collaborative work does not belong to anyone in particular, but can be used by all people. Even by those that were not part of the creation process .
Continuing with this line, it is understood that collaborative work is a productive and distribution system of information goods whose rules and strategies are not the same as those of the conventional market.
Collaborative work can be seen in free and open source software , to mention one case. Also in the virtual encyclopedia Wikipedia , made up of articles written and edited by a large mass of users acting together.
Collaborative work in education
In the educational sector, it is common for teachers to encourage collaborative work. This seeks to ensure that students develop communication and social skills , generating group projects and each one contributing to the common objective.
The intention is for the student to provide their knowledge and abilities to the group. For this it is essential that you commit to the team , transcending the individual sphere.
Collaborative work in the classroom, on the other hand, allows us to develop values such as respect and solidarity . Each student has to learn to appreciate the contribution of others and collaborate with their classmates to achieve the goal set.
It is important to indicate that collaborative work can be carried out in all subjects or subjects and without distinction of educational level. What varies is the complexity of the various experiences that are launched.