Communication

Web2.0 is essentially an increasing range of software that supports a variety of technologies for open and collaborative communication, learning and creativity. Discuss. The purpose of this article is not merely to explain what Web2.0 is rather it is to analyze, synthesize, evaluate and critique how Web2.0 can be effectively utilized to improve the learning of students. Web 2.0 is a new platform or phase that the internet has undergone and it is highly dependant on collaboration. It is all about communication, showing and sharing. It is no longer a one way access between the user and the internet but now the settings are yours and the information comes to you. A whole new world has been created through Web2.0; this is the world of wikis, blogs and social collaboration sites to name a few. Dreikurs’ Social Discipline Model stressed on the need for belonging. Dreikurs ‘believed that the central motivation of all humans is to belong and be accepted by others’ (Wolfgang, 2001, p. 115). This need for belonging, this need for students to have their own space can be fulfilled by Web2.0 if it is properly utilized. By using for example iGoogle a student is able to have their own space on the web. iGoogle can be personalized so that the student has this sense of belonging in the cyber world. The social web has the potential to make students feel they are part of a group, something bigger than themselves. (Boulos, Wheeler, 2006). Vygotsky’s social constructivism emphasizes the critical importance of culture and the importance of the social context for cognitive development. Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development argues that students can, with help from adults or children who are more advanced, master concepts and ideas that they cannot understand on their own. Into this context of collaborative learning Web2.0 can be used to further develop student’s ideas and concepts. Through a students collaborating on a wiki they can enhance each others understandings and develop each others ideas. Creating a learning environment that fosters higher order thinking and creativity. Howard Gardner in his multiple intelligences theory suggests that learners learn differently. Some of these learning categories include sequential, global, visual and verbal learners. In effect Web2.0 allows for students to learn through these various and different mediums as students are more in control of how they choose to learn. Collaborative learning allows individuals to share ideas in a learning community. Learning is able to advance into higher cognition levels as people draw on each others ideas as they increase their understanding. This enables deeper critical reflection as information is assessed and ‘remixed’. Web2.0 adds a greater dimension to this as collaboration is not only conducted between classmates rather from all over the internet. Through programs like PB Wiki collaborative learning can be done online and publicised in an effective manner. Web 2.0 is an exciting new evolving platform but how can this be utilised as a tool for education? Students are now very computer savvy and for teachers to be effective they must incorporate technology into their pedagogy. The web traditionally has been there so people can access information from it, this is changing as now the web is not just a ‘read only’ medium rather it empowers people to communicate with the world. This has major implications for the classroom as students are now able to use this software to enhance their education. Collaborative learning when done effectively has enormous advantages. However the key word is effectively. What could often result in collaborative learning is that the process of learning can be disfunctional. The key issue that often arises is that people do not contribute evenly. Other issues could be that it is easier to get distracted by doing collaborative learning and the fact that people have different styles and approaches meaning that students will be at different speeds. The fact is that often in collaborative learning some members of the group will contribute more than others. Therefore the common argument is that it is not fair that all in a group to receive the same grades as the level of effort from individuals varies. This is an issue however the advantages far out weigh this disadvantage. An observation from my own study through this education unit demonstrated how even though group work may be disfunctional the overall aims are usually achieved. In a collaborative wiki the majority of the work was done by two main people in the group of four. This however inspired me to contribute more. Their insights and passion worked as a motivational aid for me to try harder to contribute. The question of fairness remains but the clear benefits definitely outweigh any of the negative attributes that collaborative learning may have. Glasser suggests that all human behaviour is driven by six basic needs these are: survival, power, love, belonging, freedom and fun. The theory also suggests that the ultimate aim for a teacher is to help their students function at the fun level as this drives their learning. Students are empowered through Web2.0. They have a central space such as iGoogle from where all their applications can be run. From their they can access their wordpress blog, their collaborative pbwiki, their del.ici.ous account and their facebook site. They have a central place where they belong and have the power to choose how they will approach the task at hand. The teacher’s role changes greatly because of Web2.0. The teacher is no longer the source of information. The information is collaboratively given to the student through a site such as delicious. The teacher is no longer the traditional soul provider of facts rather the students access the internet in a way that suits them. The teacher needs to manage this or no work will be done. The teacher must allow for social interaction and collaboration. The autocratic style is made redundant and the teacher must be flexible. The teacher trying to teach using Web 2.0 must be a facilitator of education. A teacher must be able to open this door of Web2.0 so that the students may go in and discover this world. The use of this amazing technology must be harnessed for use in educating the students. In a typical classroom that is highly collaborative a student might be on facebook for ten minutes rather than on task. A flexible teacher will allow to some extent this sidetrack to occur as the student in effect is mastering this technology. By mastering the technology students become more familiar with the various interfaces. The teacher is not loosing control but underlying all the apparent chaos is a teacher that is inclining the student’s efforts to achieve the goal of the lesson. In Blooms taxonomy the higher order thinking skills incorporate analysis and creativity. Students in Web2.0 collaborative environments must be given every opportunity to further develop their ideas and build on each others concepts. The social constructivist theory is expanded now to include constructivism that is not based in a classroom rather it is developed at a world scale. The education of students has unlimited resources and is personalised. It is personalised in that students can share their ideas, their work, their pictures and even their videos. Students are able to personalise the information they wish to acquire. Information no longer needs to be searched but it can come to the person. An important aspect of all this is the personalisation factor. Students are able to have the freedom and the power to personalise information by editing it on a wiki or by adding a tag on delicious. Constructivist learning can be added by the various aspects of the personal and empowering Web2.0. Web2.0 offers the possibility of an e-classroom with unlimited resources. Facebook can be used to connect whole learning communities. Blogs can be used so that students can express themselves in more than just a written form. In the past homework was done on textbooks and expressive writing was the only way for a student to express themselves. Now a blog can be used for expressive writing but its use is furthered as students can upload youtube videos that they can create themselves or borrow from others to further express their ideas. The collaboration, freedom and fun aspects ultimately mean that students are more motivated to learn and are more capable of providing better quality work as they are encouraged to expand their horizons by being creative. Students are able to communicate, show and share information. Storage is no longer on a memory stick but can be done in cyber space. In effect what Web2.0 does is increase the existing technologies of the internet so that they are personalised no longer empowering organisations but the individuals such as students who are in constant contact with the internet. Web 2.0 increasingly allows for a greater sense of collaboration which in effect increases the learning capability of students as they openly build on each others understanding. In so doing this Web2.0 also enhances the capabilities and encourages students to more creative. Glasser, Dreikurs, Bloom and Vygotsky’s ideas are not redundant but on the contrary are expanded and can be applied effectively through teaching using Web2.0. Bibliography • Alexander, Brian. (2006) http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/erm0621.pdf • Anderson, Paul,(2007). What us Web 2.0? Ideas, technologies and implication for education. Retrieved 25 October 2007 from, http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/techwatch/tsw0701b.pdf. • Bruns, Axel, Cobcroft, Rachel, Smith, Judith, Towers, Stephen, (2006), Towards User-Led Education via Mobile Technology • Brown, John Seely, (2000), Growing up Digital: How the Web Changes work, Education, and the Ways People Learn • Boulos, Maged Kamel, Wheeler, Steven (2006), Mashing, Burning, Mixing and the Destructive Creativity of Web 2.0: Applications for Medical Education • Hauser, Judy. (2007). Media Specialists Can Learn Web 2.0 Tools to Make Schools More Cool, Computers in Libraries, v27 n2 p6-8, 47-48 Feb 2007. • Wikipedia (2007), Web 2.0, (online) Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/web¬_2 • Wolfgang, Charles H. Solving Discipline and Classroom Management Problems: Methods and Models for Today’s Teachers. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 2001.