Student Collaboration in a Distributed Learning Environment Nathaniel Ostashewski Athabasca University Alberta, Canada nostashewski@me.com Daphne Crane MUN University Newfoundland, Canada daphne@mun.ca Robert W Thompson Athabasca University: EDDE Learner Royal Roads University: Adjunct Professor British Columbia, Canada rwthompson@shaw.ca Abstract Complex communications and expert decision making are two 21st Century skills that have been identified as ones which computer applications will not be able to accomplish (Dede, 2010). Expert decision-making refers to the decisions made by people regarding complex situations where numerous types of data need to be examined and considered in the making of a decision. Complex communications can be viewed as the conversations and collaborations people engage in to accomplish a common goal. This paper describes a series of complex communications for the production of a case study scenario using synchronous and asynchronous computer mediated tools. A group of three doctoral students, residing in British Columbia, Alberta, and Newfoundland, dealt with time zones, online collaborative discussions, email, Etherpad, and Elluminate to develop and deliver a complex live presentation case. Keywords: student collaboration, complex communication, online tools, case