In my past experience with working in the group setting, I have found it the be more beneficial than negative. Of course with any experience, there will always be pros and cons to each. Specifically some of the better experiences I have had with working as a collaborative team includes spreading out the workload amongst group members. By doing so, less stress can be brought upon a single person to complete a task. Besides delegating the work out amongst group members, working together as a team on a single project can bring about different ideas to be shared as a group. Collaborating with multiple people to figure out an appropriate approach to a group project can be a great help.
On the other hand of course are the negative experiences I have had with working as a team. Just within this class I have been working on a group project and have run into a bit of trouble. Specifically when assigned to work as a group, not everyone might be willing to contribute an equal amount to a project. Within the group teaching assignment for this class, I was assigned to work with two other people. Unfortunately I was only able to get in contact with one of the members and it was up to both of us to complete the project without the help or assistance of the third member. The downside here is that it increases the workload of those who are willing to participate. Additionally besides the fact that not always will a group be willing to work together, sometimes issues can arise with communication. Without being able to discuss a plan or approach to a project, it can be difficult to complete.
Personally I prefer when working as a collaborative team on a project, to do so in person. It can be very difficult to try and orchestrate a project simply via an online class. However, I have been taking online classes for the past 3 years and have been able to manage group projects effectively. I have learned that sometimes whether I want to or not, the project needs to get done and it might be up to me to do whatever I can to get a passing grade.