Authors:
Beverly Trayner
1
;
John D. Smith
2
and
Marco Bettoni
3
Affiliations:
1
Escola Superior de Ciências Empresariais, Portugal
;
2
Learning Alliances and CPsquare, United States
;
3
Swiss Distance University of Applied Sciences, Switzerland
Keyword(s):
International virtual learning communities, international online communities, identity of participation, communities
of practice, social learning perspective, e-learning, technology wishes.
Related
Ontology
Subjects/Areas/Topics:
Computer-Supported Education
;
e-Learning
;
Information Technologies Supporting Learning
;
Virtual Learning Environments
Abstract:
A promise of new web-based technologies is that they provide learning opportunities for people distributed
across the globe but who can participate across time and space in the same virtual learning community. How
do they do it? In this paper we report on some of the experiences of a virtual learning community which has
members from twenty-five countries across different time-zones and who communicate in English. Through
a communities of practice perspective we focus on the social nature of learning and describe some of the
challenges and design issues raised in this community as it explores and develops practices for learning in
an international online environment. While our focus is on social practices, and on developing an identity of
participation in relation to those practices, we also make some wishes for web-based technologies that
would better support these practices in an international virtual learning community.