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JANE'S ARTICLES & PRESENTATIONS
Creating a Social Learning Environment
LearnTrends Online Conference, November 2009
Notes & Screenshots
Organisations have concerns with use of free
social media tools for INTERNAL use
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personal and organisation data scattered
over Internet
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muddling of personal and organisational data
- which might lead to embarrassment for the organisation or
individual
-
need for different logins - different
interfaces - can prove confusing/overwhelming
-
difficulty in providing tech support for
huge range f tools
Many organisations do recognise
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value of social media for learning - for
millenials and others
-
existing systems don't provide them with the
functionality they need.
They are looking for:
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a coherent strategy - rather than a mishmash
of tools
-
low cost system - doesn't require huge
budget and need to beg for more money
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a strategy/solution that will grow with them
- recognise today's systems in perpetual beta and can't fix
on one system for next few years - but don't want upgrade
costs
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a solution that will support both formal and
informal learning and collaborative working in the
organisation
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a solution that is private and secure
Elgg
www.elgg.org is
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free, open source engine Elgg
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fully customisable, configurable and
extensible – both in terms of functionality and look in feel
- through the core code and plugins produced by Curverider,
a UK company, and through plugins developed in the Elgg
community.
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access to an integrated suite of social
media tools within a seamless interface – with one log in.
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can create a more functional environment
for social and collaborative learning – than say some other
social networking tools, like Ning – which are more about
supporting relationship building and discussion than
collaborative working and learning
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provides a SUPPORTING infrastructure rather
than a PRESCRIPTIVE one - for different users to use AS they
wish – and can be set up to provide a very secure, private
environment.
-
requires a LAMP or WAMP stack, that is Linux
or Windows PLUS Apache, MySQL and PHP.
SoLEARN:
www.c4lpt.net is
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more than social networking - a place
for learning professionals to find out how they could use
Elgg to work and learn collaboratively.
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originally a "Social Learning Network" now
have focused on using it as a place to host both courses and
resources about social learning.
Features
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Dashboard provides an overview of activity
on the site– that is what you have permission to see;
r site announcements, recent members
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Access to a range of social media tools
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to read and write blogs,
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to save, share and view bookmarks ,
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to save and read RSS feeds,
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to upload and share files,
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to create pages and wikis –
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and even to use a Twitter-like service,
called the wire, to keep other site members updated
Here are two examples of social learning
environments I've implemented:
ConnectingUEL
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Social networking site at the University of
East London.
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Pilot groups were set up for different teams
and projects around UEL – including spaces to support formal
class groups, student study groups and other project groups
-
Site further customised by UELConnect
It now supports single sign=on; and has new branding
-
"Connecting UEL is NOT another VLE like
UELPlus (Blackboard). UEL Plus is a structured
learning and teaching environment, whereas Connecting UEL is
an informal system that enables communication and
collaboration.”
-
ConnectingUEL is being used for different
purposes within the university: formal social learning;
social networking and collaborative working
WWF learn2perform
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Currently they have over 350 users worldwide
on the site and have set up a number of different groups -
e.g. for formal social learning, a virtual discussion area
for a face to face event, and a pre-induction group space to
help new WWF staff integrated quickly into the organisation
Lessons learned
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Platform choice – choosing the
most appropriate platform is important for your SLE –
whether it be Facebook, Ning or Elgg. Each has their pros
and cons – consider these carefully, See my
comparison chart of the three platforms according to
different criteria – which you can access at my site.
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Terminology – the name of the site
and its description is important. Do you call it a "social
network", "social environment" or "collaboration platform"?
or even use the term social? Naming of terms like
friends is key – OK for Facebook, but not for business; I’ve
changed this to Contacts and Colleagues in different sites
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Piloting – make sure the size is
right; community projects require numbers; group projects can
be smaller
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Growth - let the site grow naturally
and organically - tend it and nurture it but don’t force it.
Slow steady growth is better than fast use and then
tail-off. Evolution is better than revolution!
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Promotion – when promoting the site,
viral marketing techniques work well – ie don’t force
everyone on it as a user – work with groups that are
enthusiastic– let them talk about it; sooner or later others
will want to join in,
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Usability - bear in mind that
when people that have used other social networking systems
will be influenced by them; new users seem to adapt
faster – they have no preconceived ideas of what it should
look like.
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Success measures - don’t worry about
stats – number of users, number of posts, number of
discussion. Focus on the value that it is bringing to the
different groups. Get groups to say how they will determine
whether their own group space has been successful.
This will probably be in terms of better communication,
easier collaboration, increase in productivity or
performance etc – rather than how many times X or Y made a
blog posting.
Would you like some help in implementing your
own Elgg-powered social learning environment? Find out
more here: Social Learning in a Box
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