Online chat assistance for students

These include TheRoomLink.co.za, Study Techniques, Together We Pass, JHB Students, Student Village, Stuvia SA and Student View.

Sharing knowledge

"The best way to make a piece of string stronger is to add more strands," says Liezl Hesketh, the founder of TheRoomLink.co.za, who also started the Student Collaboration Group. "This is a collaborative event for young people and those new in business; it is a way that we could collaborate, using shared resources, knowledge and expertise."

Hesketh has discovered several online groups, with students as a target audience, which are not competitive, preferring to work alongside each other and not in competition. Sharing resources is not new: collaboration consumption, or the organised idea that every single person has something to share from time, space and skills to merchandise, is a rapidly growing trend overseas.

"This is collaboration in the workplace, two organisations utilising the same resources. The idea is to improve Twitter engagement, get students to join in the chat, ask questions and they can get answers. We are moving into a world where things are shared we have to work together."

Tweetchat

The Student Collaboration Group is a weekly tweetchat that is promoted amongst the groups' followers about all topics of interest to secondary and tertiary students. The group discusses the topic for the day and answers questions from followers who join the conversation.

"Success is not something that is achieved by you, for yourself. Those who are successful and have knowledge need to share that, to help others. That is why we have formed this collaborative group," she concludes.

The collaborative group 'meets' virtually on Twitter, using the hashtag #StudentSA, on Wednesday evenings at 9pm. Past topics have included exam prep, exam tips, and dealing with nerves before exams.