Two posts ago, I gave an example of how virtual work on Wiki's has brought two students physically together. Just as a proof that they have also developed the attitude to follow blogs, they have finally mailed me their picture that I do not want to keep for myself.
Gregoire and Annabelle are a good example refreshing the question about the optimal mix between class room sessions and virtual collaborative work, illustrating that the dynamics between the two (forms of learning) might create unanticipated higer order quality. I would be glad to learn about any research that has been undertaken in the area of how an "optimal" combination of class room sessions and virtual collaborative work (and what is optimal then?) has raised the learning outcome, focusing on the dynamics of the interaction.