Journal of Computer Science
and Information Technology

Harnessing Collective Intelligence for the Learning Communities; a Review of Web 2.0 and Social Computing Technologies
R. K. Sungkur, D. Rungen

Abstract
Web 2.0 and Social Computing is based upon the knowledge of connecting people globally using adequate technologies to increase people interaction. Technology has always played a key role for innovation in education, and with the advent of Web 2.0 and social computing, educators have been quick in recognizing the great potential that this represents. There has been a dramatic shift of information power and everything is decentralized, participatory and collaborative. Properly filtering and harnessing ‘user-generated content’ in web 2.0 and social computing can represent a valuable repository of knowledge for the learning communities. Nowadays, the number of people accessing social websites is rising exponentially and educators are seriously contemplating the option of using these social websites to reach the learners, especially youngsters. The Facebook phenomenon is particularly true in this situation where we find many learners sharing notes, uploading learning materials, discussing on a particular topic related to learning and education. So in a way, we find that these social websites are no longer being used only for entertainment but also for learning purposes. This is limited not only to Facebook. So many social websites together with the accompanying web 2.0 tools and features if properly used, can represent an interesting repository of knowledge. This paper outlines some key features of web 2.0 and social computing.

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