Web 2.0: Learning Platform For Higher Education

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Web 2.0: Learning platform for Higher Education

By The Nation

Increasingly advanced technology, in particular the Web 2.0 application, can contribute greatly to the learning/teaching process - and all educators should take advantage of it.

Web 2.0 is commonly associated with web applications that facilitate interactive information sharing, interoperability, usercentred design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web.

A Web 2.0 site allows its users to interact with each other as contributors to the website's content, in contrast to websites where users are limited to the passive viewing of information provided to them.

Webbased communities, hosted services, web applications, socialnetworking sites, videosharing sites, and wikipedia.com all rely on this marvellous technology.

When combined with the Internet, Web 2.0 has the potential to transform how humans live, work, and communicate in higher education.

Most universities have already developed learning platforms (LP) to allow students to access course materials and to communicate with their classmates, lecturers and university staff. Such webbased applications usually include web pages, email, message boards, discussion forum, text and video conference, shared diaries and communication tools. Learning Management System (LMS) or Course Management System (CMS) is also introduced.

However, the use of such platforms within an old teaching frame may not deliver much impact at all.

After experimenting with the Web 2.0based LMS, CMS and LP for many semesters, I have found that students do better if the platforms allow them to selfdirect or personalise their learning. I thus strongly believe that ICT pedagogy should encourage students to interact with each other, asking questions and trying to find answers along the way. Such collaborative learning supports active learning and imaginative inquiry by students

Web 2.0 learning platform, therefore, comes as a perfect tool to help students achieve extraordinary learning results in classrooms, laboratories and beyond.

Thanks to Web 2.0 technology, LMS, CMS or LP can play an active role in promoting interaction, networked communication, discussions, integration, and add to the daily lives of the student community - offering users a range of pathways, modes, and styles of learning. It also offers rich opportunities for the individual empowerment of students within multiple learning modalities, which are the sensory channels or pathways through which individuals give, receive, and store information.

Based on my experience, I can testify that students learn better if they think about what they are learning and have an opportunity to engage with the learning materials, rather than simply get the chance to see it and passively use it.

This is why the read/write properties of Web 2.0 can help.

The Web 2.0 technology allows a twoway communication, something vital to university students. Today, Web 2.0 applications, such as blogs, wikis, podcasts, Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds, social tagging, mashups, Twitter, Facebook and so on are focused on the creation of communities that allow people with common interests to meet, collaborate and learn from each other. Therefore, educators can use such technology for their students' benefit.

However, the educators must realise that the Web 2.0 is just a tool for education. It is not supposed to replace lecturers in classrooms.

PRIYAKORN PUSAWIRO

Learning ScientistComputer Engineering Department, //e-mail removed//

-- The Nation 2010-06-21