Framework for an Agent Assisted Virtual Group-work Environment Using Newsgroup Platform

More than two-thirds of the students in three courses taught by the first author at the Gippsland School of Information Technology (GSIT) of Monash University are enrolled in distance education (DE) mode. The DE students come from different geographical locations and have diversified academic/professional backgrounds. The aim of the current research is to minimise the gap between DE and on-campus students using technologies at our disposal today. A large number of DE students with a strong professional background have the ability to share practical experiences with others to enrich the learning experience of the entire class. The challenge is to get all DE and on-campus students actively involved in group activities through virtual tutorial and/or group works. The current practice at the GSIT does not allow for any group/team activities among DE and on-campus students, and offers only limited online interaction among students. The focus of this action research project is to propose a framework for the development of a software agent-based virtual group-work environment that will enable improved group activities between on-campus and DE students using the existing technological infrastructure. This is aimed at minimising the gap between on-campus and distance mode of delivery. Since the students come from different language, social and cultural backgrounds, the proposed design of the interacting platform also considers socio-cultural issues.