Archive for June 16th, 2008
Monday, June 16th, 2008
Using social software for learning
I came across a very interesting article while updating my netvibes’ reading this evening. It is called Collectives, Networks and Groups in Social Software for E-Learning by Jon Dron and Terry Anderson. I thought groups and networks were just the same. Collectives is a fantastic word and sends us to a plethora of content and a kaleidoscopic view of learning. After reading the article, I saw that I am part of these three moments of learning. I discovered that groups are cohesive and that members feel a need to meet face to face. One of the features of groups in social software is links updating the activities of others and a certain familiarity among members. I have learned lots in such groups. I have used moodle platforms in courses, used wikis to collaborate in projects and group work, yahoo groups and threaded discussions to have conversations. Groups make you feel comfortable, at home.
Networks, according to the authors:
...are not, of themselves, smart, but the clustering, linking and interaction that occurs within and between networks creates a structure and form that aids functioning and organizing of these distributed entities.
Distributed identity, that is what many of us have. Our identities are distributed through the net in blogs, wikis, podcasts, virtual communities, forums, etc. Networks, the authors point out, have an emerging shape. I like this idea of knowledge having this emerging property. Knowledge emerges from connections. I am not really aware of all those that are part of my networks. I am part of online and face to face networks that contribute for my learning. I have discovered lots of things through facebook, orkut and other networks I am involved in. Each individual is part of several networks that are blended with f2f networks. They are not designed to meet the needs of the collective.
The collective comprises individuals who do not see themselves as part of neither a group nor a network. The shape is emergent and not designed and it provides encounters with the unpredictable. So if I am part of groups and networks, I cannot be part of the collective? For now, I can tell that I have benefited a lot from the encounters with the unpredictable I have had in google, in going to my page on delicious and clicking in all to find posts related to my interests. There are moments that I think some of us are part of this collective. When we decide to collaborate to a larger world beyond our treasured groups and networks we start becoming googled and part of the collective.
