Higher Education 2.0

Christopher Barnatt, Nottingham University
DOI:10.3794/ijme.73.250

Received: March 2008
Revised: June 2008
Accepted: September 2008


Abstract
Web 2.0 refers to the emergence of the Internet as an interpersonal resource and a service delivery platform. As defined herein, Higher Education 2.0 (HE 2.0) subsequently concerns the impact of Web 2.0 on how higher education is delivered and managed, as well as on student expectations of their higher education experience.

This article explores the operational and strategic implications of the new tools, stakeholder expectations, development concepts and philosophy of HE 2.0. Within this context, it then discusses the use of Web 2.0 in the teaching of two large undergraduate modules. It also reports on the ongoing development of an online learning environment called “Nexus” used to support teaching in a large UK business school.

At the extreme, HE 2.0 involves a transition from academic broadcasting to collaborative facilitation, from linear to student-directed teaching delivery, and from a tight to a loose coupling of educational resources. Core competencies of successful HE 2.0 institutions are therefore likely to include the effective piggybacking of teaching content on the sites of external Web 2.0 providers in order to most widely facilitate multimodal student experiences.

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