Web 2.0
I must say that this is one of my most favorite topics in distance education. I’ve used most, if not all of these tools either personally, or for assignment-related purposes throughout the MDE program. I find every tool mentioned in this module interesting. However, a question that I did have is: “Why wasn’t Facebook, Linkedin, or Twitter mentioned?” Are these not considered to be web 2.0 technologies in this context? On the subject of costing and web 2.0 technologies, these technologies are beneficial regarding costs because most of these tools are free. There is no charge to the users for using these tools, and they can be easily integrated into various courses, and easily aligned with course goals and objectives to enhance the learning environment.
Wikipedia is a good source to use, as well as to contribute to. The ability to contribute to this source encourages collaboration among a diverse group of individuals. Google is a good search tool, and has additional tools that can enhance the distance education learning environment, such as GoogleDocs. The GoogleDocs tool is a good tool to use to collaborate and edit documents that are being shared in a group setting. The benefit of using this tool to collaborate and edit is that it does not require the users to repeatedly upload the documents to make changes. I’ve never used MySpace as an educational tool, but I’ve read about ways that it can be used to enhance the instructional environment.
I’ve used Second Life for educational purposes, and I find this tool to be interesting and fun. The use of avatars in a real-world like environment can enhance the learning environment as users are provided with ways to engage in practical exercises using simulations that are similar to what they may engage in at their actual workplace. YouTube can be used to present “how to” information, as well as for various reasons in the instructional setting. The advantage of using these tools is that many of these tools can be used with one another. They can be integrated through embedding the items to share, or by the sharing of links to the documents. I believe that web 2.0 tools are one of the most cost effective ways to enhance the distance education learning environment.
