Here is the citation information:
What Web 2.0 Can Teach Us About Learning, by EDWARD J. MALONEY
http://chronicle.comSection: Information Technology
Volume 53, Issue 18, Page B26
accessed on June 21, 2007
First point that I appreciated very much:
Course-management systems were not created to enhance learning, but to make it easier for a faculty member to deliver materials to students. Even though most of the systems now include basic tools that allow students to turn in assignments, take exams and surveys, and communicate with each other through discussion boards and chat programs, those tools tend to be limited in functionality, generic in form, and based on relatively old technology.
Second point:
What we can see in the Web's evolution [speaking of web 2.0 applications, here] is a new focus on innovation, creation, and collaboration, and an emphasis on collective knowledge over static information delivery, knowledge management over content management, and social interaction over isolated surfing. The jargon-laden stars of the second-generation Web — wikis, blogs, social networking, and so on — all encourage a more active, participatory role for users.
Those new uses mirror much of what we know to be good models of learning, in that they are collaborative and encourage active participation by the user.I think that this community has had quite a few discussions on the practice of using Moodle as an LMS and our desire to use its suite of collaborative features to transcend the limitations of "LMS as content deliverer". I think back to our discussions about the BB patent issue, the discussions revolving around "the LMS is dead", and similar topics. As far as I can tell, the proprietary systems are adding on collaborative tools (such as wiki and probably blogging), but at a price. I think it very interesting that the Moodle dropdown list for "add a resource" is far shorter than the dropdown list for "add an activity".
Dr. Maloney concludes this way:
People are using new technologies to look at problems in many different ways: to make new connections and form relationships between disparate, sometimes apparently contradictory, pieces of information, and ultimately to create something new that can be shared with others. All that is reminiscent of current approaches to learning, including student-centered and active-learning models that encourage students to solve meaningful problems and reflect on their thinking processes. The challenge that we now face is figuring out how to incorporate the paradigm-altering technologies of Web 2.0 into teaching and learning.
I think Moodle has made a good start.
atw