3 rd IPTS-IS Dissemination Workshop with DG EAC, 16th October 2008 – Learning 2.0: Opportunities and Challenges for Lifelong Learning1 Opportunities &

3rd IPTS-IS Dissemination Workshop with DG EAC, 16th October 2008 – Learning 2.0: Opportunities and Challenges for Lifelong Learning 1

Opportunities & challenges

of social computing

for lifelong learning

Christine Redecker, Kirsti Ala-Mutka, Yves PunieEuropean Commission DG JRCIPTS - Institute for Prospective Technological StudiesSeville - Spain

http://is.jrc.ec.europa.eu/http://ipts.jrc.ec.europa.eu/


Presentation Overview

I. Background: IPTS and its Learning 2.0 Project

II. iLANDS: Strategies for Innovation in Learning

III. Learning 2.0 for Organisational Innovation

IV. Learning 2.0 for Pedagogical Innovation

V. Addressing Challenges


Learning 2.0 Study: Outline

In depth case studiesTo assess good practice

Desk ResearchLiterature Overview & Analysis of Existing Practice

Long List of CasesDatabase containing a variety of

cases

Literature Review of Learning 2.0 practices in

Europe

Assessment of the Impact of Social Computing on Learning

Focus: Innovation

8 cases

Focus: Inclusion

8 cases

Validation Workshop

Development of Policy Options

I – Background


What is social computing?

Open approach: - Not only SC technologies & applications but also the “attitude” of SC- Depends also on how SC applications are used

I – Background

Social computing applications enable interaction and collaboration: → Users are participants (co-creators not end-users) → Networks of individuals & communities become collective resources

Social computing comprises:→ Digital applications for social networking (e.g. Facebook); → video-sharing (e.g. YouTube); → photo-sharing (e.g. Flickr); → user-generated content (e.g. Wikipedia); → multiplayer virtual online worlds (e.g. Second Life); → Blogging; → Tagging, etc.


iLANDS for Innovation

Learning&

Achieving

Society

Diversity

NetworkingP

rimary E

ducationSecondary Education

Higher Education Tea

chin

g P

ract

ice

Personal Development

Teacher

TrainingV

ocat

iona

l Tr

aini

ng

i nnovation


iLANDS for Innovation

Learning&

Achieving

Society

Diversity

Networkingi nnovation

SC applications used as methodological or didactic tools

to directly support, facilitate, enhance & improve

learning processes and outcomes.

→ promoting students’ individual learning progress

→ empowerment of the learner;

Knowledge exchange

between and among

learners and teachers;

Social sphere of understanding &

support

Intercultural Exchange

to broaden horizons:virtually meet people from

other age-groups, backgrounds and cultures

making institutional learning

accessible & transparent

to

current & prospective students, parents & the general public

Prim

ary EducationSecondary Education

Higher Education Tea

chin

g P

ract

ice

Personal Development

Teacher

TrainingV

ocat

iona

l Tr

aini

ng


Opening up to Society

Learning&

Achieving

Society

Diversity

Networking

Opening up to

making institutional learning

accessible & transparent

to

current & prospective students, parents and the general public


Opening up to Society: Web-Cams in Childcare

http://cherryblossomcreche.com/webcams.htm (UK)

http://www.cocoonchildcare.ie/watch_me_live.asp (Ireland)

http://www.escuelainfantileltrenet.com/es/seccion/inicio.html (Spain)

http://www.issy.com/index.php/fr/parents/petite_enfance/les_cyber_creches__1/les_webcams (France)

webcams in pre-primary institutions allow parents to monitor

their children’s activities via internet during the day


Opening up to Society: Schools

http://podcast.ac-rouen.fr

www.flickr.com/groups/classrmdisplays

http://www.sofresh.ch/school/index.php

Blog used as website by a mixed-aged Swiss primary school class, where class projects, including stories and podcasts, are displayed and students and parents are kept up to date with important information

French platform for podcasts produced by primary and secondary school radio projects

Flickr group, where primary school classes publish their classroom displaysSC is used in primary & secondary schools

to publish students’ work & information on school projects


Opening up to Society: Universities

http://www.myspace.com/warwickuniversity

http://admission.case.edu/secondlife.asp ht

tp:/

/ww

w.y

outu

be.c

om/u

cber

kele

y

II – Perspectives on Learning 2.0

Higher education institutions are moving to SC sites to become more accessible

to current & prospective students


Embracing Diversity

Society

Diversity

Networking

Learning&

Achieving

Learning&

Achieving

Diversity

Networking

Embracing

Intercultural Exchange

virtually meet people from other age-groups,

backgrounds and cultures


Embracing Diversity: Cultural Exchange

www.geocities.com/optionalcourse7a191

http://slua.com/

http://horizonproject.wikispaces.com

http://www.icamp.eu/learnmore/project/

SC can be used as a means to facilitate intercultural exchange


Networking & Community Building

Society

Diversity

NetworkingNetworking&

Community Building

Learning&

Achieving


Networking Learners

http://community.brighton.ac.uk/

Community Approach based on OSN Community Approach based on blogs

https://elgg.leeds.ac.uk/

http://www.lts.leeds.ac.uk/elgg/

Community Approaches based on various tools

Universities encourage social networking to enhance communication & cooperation among students & staff

creating an environment of understanding, fun, mutual assistance & shared interests.


Networking Researchers & Teachers

Global Facebook-like community for researchers

https://www.researchgate.net/

Virtual learning network for vocational education and training (VET) professionals

www.eurotrainer.org/

multilingual exchange & collaboration platform for teachers in training, initiated by the University of Cologne (Germany)

http://www.share.uni-koeln.de/ http://primarymfl.ning.com

social network for people teaching foreign languages in primary school

SC allows teachers to exchange knowledge, material & experiences and to collaborate on projects. A social (& emotional)

network of support & assistance can be established.


Learning 2.0 for Organisational Innovation

Society

Diversity

Networking

Communities for LearningGlobal places:

Transcending borders between organisations, countries and cultures

Re-integrating E&T into society

Transparent & accessible service

providers

E&T Institutions become...

i nnovation in E&T organisations


Learning & Achieving

Knowledge management

Subject-specific methods

Personal skills

Access to learning sources

Metaskills

Achievement

podcasts

blogs

wikis

immersive environmentsmedia-sharing

bookmarkingsocial networking

collaboration

learner as (co-)producer

multimediaSociety

Diversity

Networking

Learning&

Achieving


Access to Learning Sources

III – Areas in which SC enhances learning

http://itunes.stanford.edu/ Stanford University

→ SC tools can be used as platforms for the distribution of learning materials

http://itec610porto.blogspot.com/

Course blog by Prof. Stella Porto,Graduate School of Management & TechnologyUniversity of Maryland University College

http://www.podcampus.de/

German-language Podcasting platform for research institutes


Access to Learning Sources: Insights

→ Podcasts are attractive to learners: learning at one's own pace, listening to the content as many times as necessary, anywhere & anytime (Morales & Moses, 2006).

→ Podcasts effective in exam revision: Study by Evans (2008): Students believed podcasts to be more effective than textbooks & own notes; Students were more receptive to audio learning material; in the form of a podcast than a traditional lecture or textbook. Students needed less revision time, were able to take in more information and were more flexible in when, where and how to learn.

→ Podcasts contribute to better achievement: Study by Cramer (2007): Students using lecture recordings extensively scored 15% higher in their second than in their first midterm exam.



Personal Knowledge Management


http://tags.library.upenn.edu/

Penntags (University of Pennsylvania):

Social bookmarking for students & staff

http://de.wikibooks.org/wiki/Soziologische_Klassiker

collaborative “Wikibook” by students of sociology at the University of Salzburg (Austria): encyclopaedia of important sociologists

Wikis gathering the collective knowledge of (groups of) students in primary & secondary education:

http://wiki.zum.de/ZUM-Grundschulwiki

http://www.prowiki2.org/glarnerschulen/wiki.cgi

http://welkerswikinomics.wetpaint.com/?t=anon

SC tools can be used to gather the collective knowledge of a group, empowering learners to become authors of content, integrating them into a network of peer reflection, revision and support.


Knowledge management: Insights

Advantages of Social Computing for knowledge management: Students appreciate the ease of building up a substantial knowledge

base and the collaborative mode of operation (Barth, 2007) Individual & the group performance can be significantly increased by

collaborative work with SC (Liaw et al., 2008). Wikis can handle different forms of knowledge (Barth, 2007).

Findings on students’ research strategies: Students are already using and combining SC tools on their own

account for research network building (Conole et al., 2008). Students use blogs to support self-regulated learning in various ways

(Baggetun & Wasson, 2006), e.g.

(1) by reflecting publicly on a topic,

(2) as filters for links, building a personal knowledge base,

(3) as a knowledge repositories. III – Areas in which SC enhances learning


New Subject Specific Methods


htt

p:/

/an

cie

nt.

art

s.u

bc.

ca/

http://artsmetaverse.arts.ubc.ca/

RWTH Aachen, Germany: School of Architecture

http://www.manuelglasl.de/index.php?article_id=6

University of British Columbia, Canada: Ancient History & Culture; Arts

3D virtual worlds, like Second Life, are suited to replicate and investigate a three-dimensional reality as is done in architecture, medicine, geography, natural sciences, history, law and metaphysics. (Reihman, 2007; Rauch & Wang, 2007; Chittaro & Ranon, 2007; Mzoughi et al., 2007; John, 2007 )

Similarly: Media sharing supports a more active student involvement and practical approach in arts, design, music, composition, etc. (NMC & educause, 2008; Reid, 2008)

→ New learning tools, new learning methods


Personal Achievement: Performance



Access to learning sourcespodcasts

blogs

wikis

immersive environments

media-sharing


PersonalAchievement

collaborationpersonalisation

Social computing facilitates personalisation and collaboration, which can both contribute to a significant increase in students’ performance and achievement in any subject

Cavallaro & Tan, 2006; Gibson, 2004, 2005; Makri & Kynios, 2007; Laurinen &Marttunen, 2007; Cobos & Pifarré, 2008; Liaw et al., 2008

Evans, 2008; Cramer, 2007; Carletti et al., 2008


Personal Achievement: Writing Skills

“Bookworms” (Iceland): students publish, share & comment on each others’ book reviews

primary and secondary school students write book reviews & recommendations

http://childrenreviewingbooks.wikispaces.com/

http://sourceforge.net/projects/ourscrapbook

Collaborative book-writing project

(Catalonia, Spain)

Wikis and blogs support writing skills, especially in primary and secondary education

Collaborative book-writing project Austria)


Personal Achievement: Language Skills

Wikis and blogs can support foreign language skills

“Wikispace for English” project at an Italian secondary school

Latin Blog: cooperation of an Italian & French secondary school


Personal Skills




blogs

wikis


media-sharing


Personal skills

motivationself-directed learning

participationcommunication & social skills

De Laat (2007); Cavallaro & Tan (2006); Rau et al. (2008); Langhorst (2006)

De Laat (2007); Antoniou & Siskos (2007);

responsibilityCruz & Carvalho (2007), Frydenberg (2007)

Lee et al. (2008)

de Laat (2007); Barth (2007)


Personal Skills: Examples

http://www.avataratschool.eu/

http://pcomunitaria.wordpress.com/

University of Salamanca (Spain): Collaborative subject blog increasing motivation, participation & social relationships

Increasing motivation, participation & intercultural skills

http://www.andeducation.co.uk/etwinpodcast.htm

Conflict resolution & mediation skills


Higher Order Skills




blogs

wikis


media-sharing


Metaskills

Online writing (blogs, wikis, etc.)→ increases reflective thinking levels (Xie et al.,2008);

→ encourages active participation, meta-cognition and critical thinking (Antoniou & Siskos, 2007);

→ supports reflective activities & the development of meta-competences (Carletti et al., 2008).

However, a clear structure is necessary to attain higher order cognitive skills (Kanuka et al., 2007; Carletti et al., 2008)


Learning 2.0 for Pedagogical Innovation

Kn

ow

led

ge

man

agem

ent

Su

bje

ct-s

pec

ific

met

ho

ds

Per

son

al

skil

ls

Acc

ess

to l

earn

ing

so

urc

es

Me

tas

kil

ls

Ach

ieve

men

t

i nnovation

collaboration

personalisation

motivation

→ self-directed learning

participation

social skills

empowerment of the learner

→ new methods & tools

→ new learning resources

reflectionmeta-cognition

→ learning collaborative process


Scaffolding Learning 2.0

Scaffolding

UsabilityAttitudes

Interaction

→ Start simple, be patient;→ provide ample (technical) support;

→ fit SC tool to learning objectives.

Even advanced users need time & assistance to familiarise with learning 2.0 tools, functions & options.

(1) Students’ attitudes influence acceptance and performance

(2) SC can be used in very personal ways → individual learning pathways

→ Allow & encourage appropriation tailored to individuals’ needs;

→ Develop ways for personalized assessment.

Preconditions for SC collaboration:

(1) propensity & willingness to contribute

(2) team cohesiveness

(3) minimum level of prior knowledge

→ Provide incentives for collaboration;→ Promote open, friendly & supportive

working atmosphere; → pay attention to weak students’ needs.

Structured Approach:

→ SC tools fitted to objectives, learners’ experiences, attitudes and interaction patterns;

→ Tasks need to be transparent, relevant and targeted;

→ Tools need to be embedded in a supportive environment of guidance and support.

Importance of Teacher as designer, coordinator, moderator, mediator & mentor

IV – Factors influencing Learning 2.0

Res

earc

h E

vide

nce

Recom

mendations


Teachers

Challenges

SC ServicesAdolescent Users

Access & Skills Digital divides: regional, age, social Different eMaturity levels Learners with disabilities, special needs Advanced digital skills & “Participation divide”

Disclosing personal data Self-destructive behaviour Cyberbullying Online grooming

Advertising & Commercial Activities Lack of control: loss of content, end of service (or fees) Copyright issues

Lack of experience & knowledge of SC & ICT No incentives for use, conflict with curriculum & assessment Lack of vision how SC can enhance learning Lack of training programs & policy support


Thank you very much for your attention!

Questions?

Christine Redecker

[email protected](+34) 954 48 84 92

http://is.jrc.ec.europa.eu/pages/Learning-2.0.htmlhttp://is.jrc.ec.europa.eu/

Documents

3 rd IPTS-IS Dissemination Workshop with DG EAC, 16th October 2008 – Learning 2.0: Opportunities and Challenges for Lifelong Learning1 Opportunities &