Web 2.0 Potencial learning

A personal view

Web 2.0 has a growing potential in online learning. It is an open and permeable environment opening new portals to learners.

Both teachers and students can participate in the activities and integrate instruments already in use. Working with the same platforms, with the same tools, the participants have a very friendly and active environment. This way, teachers prepare, work or distribute units, allowing, also, students to develop and structure personal interests or knowledge. Simply by using tags, they make the contents more navigable. This is what is happening with our group MPEL’03, in DIIGO; the use of this tool, suggested by a student, and organized by two learners, allows individual engagement of every learner visible in a transparent way. With benefits to the group and individual learners, I would add.

This way, teachers show their presence in the learning environment, delivering resources, making suggestions, for instance moderating discussions or forums. With a regular feedback, tutors also have an important role monitoring, encouraging and motivating students in order to improve their participation and contributions.

A Web 2.0 learning environment can be implemented in a variety of ways and the decision of choosing a certain environment can depende upon individual experience, learning objectives or skills.

Another interesting tool utilized is blog. Blogging is more and more finding a space in online education, as well as in more traditional environments. Blogs are becoming more popular since the software is very friendly, removed a few technical barriers to write and publish online "journal". This format also encourages students to keep an update record of their thinking over time, bluilding a "digital portfolio". Blogs facilitate critical feedback; they enable readers to add comments - which could be from teachers, peers or even a wider audience. Edu-blogging are becoming more important in the learning process, creating a truly democratic learning space, providing an horizontal way of communication between teachers and students, mixing different voices and approaches.

Podcasting has also become a popular technology, because provides a wide range of digital contents to students and also the sense of audience to the contents presented. The educational potential of social software and services is increasing, being more utilized in the learning process.