School Learning Goes Web 2.0
SUMMARYThe new “social Web” or Web 2.0 is gradually having an impact in schools as teachers and students begin to explore the potential of social networking, blogs, shared online features and wikis. These technologies are giving rise to new educational opportunities - social collaborative learning. As time goes on, teachers are increasingly becoming familiarized with these new technologies and are using blogs and wikis more and more. They are beginning to catch up with their students who are already accustomed to socializing online, instant messaging, podcasting etc. Earlier forms of online education, such as e-learning, have traditionally focused on publishing content online, but the social Web today has empowered individuals to actively share knowledge and learning experiences. Sites like Schoopy, Groupvine, mynoteIT, Carmun and Haiku are built upon community communications among students and teachers; each revolves around online collaboration on projects via social networking/blogs and wikis as well as tools like online grade tracker, shared files/calendar, managing class schedules and assignments.
THE PLAY
Learning is most effective when students actively connect and share knowledge during group social interactions and collaboration periods. Time and location constraints often put limits on social learning in classroom teaching. Moreover, students are sometimes reluctant to share or express their thoughts on topics publicly. Thanks to the rise of the social Web, today teachers and students can now create and publish their own content, and this enables the shared construction of knowledge. In other words, education is gradually moving towards the so called buzz word "social constructivism". The technology now allows students to contribute to the learning process anywhere, anytime; whether it’s engaging in live conversations with teachers, downloading lessons via podcasts, editing a shared document on wiki or blogging on school news/events/activities.
Schoopy builds communities around schools by connecting to students, teachers and parents. Teachers usually create an account for their school; after which, parents and students register to gain personalized educational resources. Teachers, students, and parents can communicate with each other through messages or forums as well as keep track of group resources such as a calendars, files, assignments, and lesson plans to help everyone stay organized. Haiku, a learning management system, encourages teachers to create a public Website for their classes, manage content, list assignments and announcements, track grades, and interact via blogs, wikis and forum. Groupvine is designed to bring group members together (clubs, specific chapters/subjects, project group, etc.) to keep track of projects, events, gather feedback/comments and collaborate with others on projects. CollegeRuled lets users create their class schedule with message boards for each class schedule allowing students a platform to discuss assignments with classmates or work group, ask questions and share their personal views. Moreover, users can also connect with friends on Facebook.
Wikis are also increasingly being use in the educational field for collaborative sharing of notes, class lessons or projects. Vicki Davis, a teacher at
Learning today has to go beyond the traditional top-down approach of blackboards or project presentations taking place within the walls of the classroom. The merging of technological tools and education will only result in efficient social learning, bring in greater innovation and creativity - much needed in the 21st century environment.
Resources: Wired, CNET, Read/Write Web
Bob Rattivarakorn
Trends Research Analyst
RarePlay
