Teaching strategies using social software for

Research, Reflections and Innovations in Integrating ICT in Education

Teaching strategies using social software for developing ICT competences in university students A. Ornellas * , M. Guitert and T. Romeu Open University of Catalonia (UOC). Computer Science, Multimedia and Telecommunications Studies. Rambla de Poble Nou, 156. 08018, Barcelona, Spain. As part of the current European Space of High Education adaptation process, the Open University of Catalonia (created in 1995 to provide learning at distance based on the use of Internet and ICT) endeavored to include in the plans of study of all the new degrees the subject «ICT Competences» (henceforth ICTC). The ICTC subject is based in the project-based collaborative learning methodology that entails a continued and progressive process of acquisition of a set of ICT competences necessary to study and to work in a virtual environment. In this paper we will present a set of teaching strategies used in the ICTC subject supported with social software such as the wikis, the social bookmarks and the video channels on-line, whose overall aim is to provide students with new forms of social construction and representation of the knowledge. Keywords: ICT Competences, Project-based Collaborative Learning, Social Software, Virtual University

1. The ICTC subject in the UOC degrees In the current context of information society, human and professional profiles are more interdisciplinary, and hence students need to be provided with strategies that can be used on the academic, professional, university and personal areas. Equally, it’s necessary to have a cross-curricular vision of competences and of university studies that clears the way for quality education [1]. Within the framework of the European Space for Higher Education and implementation of the new degrees, the Open University of Catalonia (UOC) has defined like a transversal competence common to all degrees «The use and application of ICT in the academic and professional environment»†. This competence reflected in the curricula of the university by offering the subject «ICT Competences» (ICTC), compulsory for the degree and amounting to 6 ECTS credits that students are recommended to take in the first semester within the crosssectional basic credits. Based in the project-based collaborative learning methodology, the ICTC subject involves a continued and progressive process of acquisition of the following generic competences in ICT necessary to study and to work in a virtual environment [6]: • Planning and management of a virtual project • Net-based teamwork • Search for and location of digital information • Analysis and processing of digital information • Presentation and dissemination of digital information • Knowledge of digital technology notions • Communication strategies on the net • Rational and critical use of the ICT To develop and implement the ICT competences described above, we have relied on the methodology of project work because it allowed us to initiate, develop and practice each of the competences in an integrated way and interrelated with each other. For each degree the topic of the virtual project and the tools worked is defined according to the profile and the specific training needs of students in each area of knowledge. The evaluation of the subject is based on continuous assessment model, through the qualitative assessment of a set of activities (Continuous Assessment Practices) linked to different stages of the virtual project. At the end of the subject students have achievement a set of skills in ICT that they will continue working and consolidating on other subjects of the degree. The aim of this paper is to present some teaching strategies used in the ICTC subject supported in the concept of social software [2] and multiliteracies [4-5], that intends to support the development of the virtual project in group, providing students with new forms of construction and social representation of the knowledge. * †

Corresponding author: e-mail: [email protected], Phone: +34 933263540 In addition to the competence in a foreign language.

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2. The use of social software in the ICTC subject The framework of the Web 2.0 [7] and concepts associated to the social software [2] are favoring the emergence of news open virtual learning environments for higher education. The use of open and collaborative tools like blogs, wikis, social bookmarks, podcasts, video channels, etc., is becoming an increasingly feasible alternative to reshape the traditional e-Learning scenario that are currently based on closed, proprietary, institutionalized systems [8]. On the other hand, new forms of construction and knowledge representation based on social tools promotes a change from e-Learning to the c-Learning‡ paradigm [3] on higher education institutions that currently emphasizes the individual learning. Below we describe like the introduction of some social tools like wikis, social bookmaking systems and online channels videos in the subject to support the methodological development of the project virtual group allowing students to develop some of the key competences in the information society such as the collaboration, negotiation, communications strategies on the net, management and sharing the information. 2.1 Wikis as a tool for collaborative construction of the virtual project In the new Humanities degree began in September 2008, Wiki has been introduced as a tool for collaborative construction of the virtual project. For this, a Wiki spaces have been created in the working groups of the virtual campus of the UOC (Fig. 1). The working groups are formed by 4 or 5 people and through the use of the Wiki tool are pretend to facilitate the development of different parts of the virtual collaborative project.

Fig. 1 Wiki space of the virtual Campus

There is a first hand familiarity with the tool and the teacher gives some initial advice on its operation from the reading materials and a guide formed between the team professors and the help of the so-called advice on the Wiki. One of the group who carried out the structuring of the contents of the project through the Wiki as an index in which each point in the index carry out a brief description of the content they want to deal with in the virtual project. This index includes a brief commentary on each item that has been debated and agreed by the group in the same Wiki. Subsequently, working groups will increasingly use the Wiki as a space for collaborative construction of knowledge to develop a first draft and that feedback from the teacher will enable them to develop the final draft. In these two versions emphasize the development of the two competences: the structure of digital content and digital image processing and presentation of information on a website. This final draft, once valued by the teacher, will be presented and defended the other working groups of the virtual classroom.

Fig. 2 Example of a Wiki in the Humanities degree ‡

Owen et al [1] defines c-Learning like community learning, communicative learning or collaborative learning.

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According to a teacher of the subject “this tool is a step forward in using technology to the network supports, and particularly the Web 2.0 in the sense that facilitate interaction between users and promote growth in content generation”. An analysis of the study groups showed that the Wiki is a tool adaptable to the needs of each group. In this way we highlight some of the views of groups that can be: "The wiki facilitates the use of the work" ... "No need to share documents because it’s accessible for all members of the group. I’is easily editable and allows the group a different and exciting ... "We can add and edit content with a degree of control of who and when it did" In addition to the assessment of students is apparent, from the assessment of the teachers themselves, who give a lot of Wikis agility for the joint development of documents and collection of proposals that make the group members. Allow quick access to see the different stages of the virtual project and to update and to allow Wiki pages to edit from the same browser you are viewing. It can work online on a specific document; it doesn’t require much time to learn its operation although the teachers had already experience. Wikis are ideal for collaborative creation and online asynchronous. Avoid unnecessary proliferation of documents in the file depending on the versions. Teachers value their applications variously utility as the dynamics of the group catalog may be generated as a repository of shared files, publishing tool and a means of building collaborative. They are concluding that the collaboration is much more efficient that other possibilities such as file area because allows for more idea sharing. 2.2. The social bookmarking: a system for managing and sharing the search for information Social bookmarking is a social tool that allows users to store bookmarked links to URLs in a format accessible via the Internet rather than searching bookmarks stored on a specific computer [3]. The social bookmarking in ICTC subject is used as a teamwork tool that allows students to manage, store and share with the other colleagues the search for information (articles, resources, etc) on the net that will serve as reference for the virtual project. The social bookmarking portal used in the ICTC subject, specifically in the Psychology degree, is Mr. Wong (Fig 3) that allows the creation of public or private groups within the management of the ‘Favorites’, with the purpose that all the members in the teamwork can contribute with those bookmarks considerate relevant to the group’s task.

Fig. 3 A social bookmarking of a group in the Psychology degree

When students add a bookmark to their list they also add a tag or keyword to that link. Tags assigned to resources are an excellent way to discover other bookmarks stored using the same tags. This bottom-up process mode of organizing information through user-generated tags has become known as ‘folksonomy’, as opposed to a hierarchical and top-down taxonomy. The use of tags improves management of resources due to the social structure that is created, while also producing new forms of social communication and collaboration. According to Owen et al [3] when tagging is added to the functionality, bookmarking activity becomes social. The principle is that searching by tags assigned by other users means you are searching in a social context. The use of social bookmarking in ICTC subject has shown how successfully this web service can be used within the educational process. Its flexibility, ease of use and system tagging provide new possibilities for gathering and sharing information during the course of the virtual project, as well as contributing to increase collaboration between students. 2.3. The online video channels: a communicative tool for teachers and students Most activities developed in the virtual Campus of the university are focused on textual communication. One of the principal channels of communication is the notice board through which teachers can post messages,

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hypertext guidance and recommendations to students within the Campus virtual classroom. However, with the emergence of audio-visual social software (new application for voice telephony, video channels, podcasting, etc.) we are seeing a shift in the modality of digital communication away from text alone [8]. By considering that video channels “could serve as a replacement for face-to-face presentation, since it is able to convey visible behavior and important non-verbal information” [8, p. 24], in the ICTC subject we have carried out a pilot project in the Communication degree. Video was introduced as a communicative strategy to facilitate the interaction between teacher and students in a virtual environment. Through the notice board of virtual classroom the teacher published video messages posted on Youtube video channel include a recommendations for students. In the first step we had a selection of messages, according with the teachers, that we believe were appropriate for its content to be in video format, such as teacher's presentation, reminder of delivery dates of practices and also resolving a doubts (Fig. 4). On the other hand, YouTube channel video was use by students as a communication tool in order to submit to further promote the creation of small working groups to carry out the virtual project. From his own experience the students have a greater sense of belonging to a community (the classroom), establishing a closer relationship than in a classroom based only in the textual communication. However, some teachers had not received the same impression. They had been fulfilled the objective of facilitating the creation of groups. Maybe because it was the first time that students engaged in an experience like this one subject and they didn’t know how to communicate through video with other members of group. Regarding the use of Youtube as a communication tool the assessments carried out by students who participated in the experience was very positive regarding the use of video by the teacher. It gave them a sense of approach to teaching, humanizes the figure of the virtual teacher. The students expressed the feeling more and better teacher because the messages showed a greater degree of closeness and trust. The students feel more motivated with the use of video format and they express a greater sense of belonging to a community (virtual classroom). They can believe that a more close in the classroom and is based not only through written communication. With regard to the teacher assessment of pilot project, they appreciate that the introduction of video can help to reduce the abandonment of the subject. They also appreciate that the video is difficult to produce. Teachers assumes a more laborious as the production, editing, publication and transmission of video requires more time to writing text messages.

Fig. 4 A video-message of teacher on then notice board of virtual Campus

Views of all we can say that the use of video becomes a valuable complementary tool in textual virtual teaching scenario, since this method provides richer information, favoring the proximity to students. In the scenario analysis it’s seen as a complementary element to the text messages or hypertext, which provide greater and more systematic in the search facility for students, but not a substitute.

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