'Learning 2.0 for an Inclusive Knowledge Society - Understanding the Picture' (Links-up; www.links-up.eu) is a research project about how 'Web 2.0' technologies – such as social networking software – are changing the face of education and training for normally hard-to-reach people.
This Links-up Learning Dialogue builds upon the results and follows up the successful workshop 'Is it all just Twitter? Can Learning 2.0 deliver the Goods on e-Inclusion?' held at last year's EDEN Annual Conference 2010 in Valencia, Spain.
Background:
The spread of social software in recent years has been phenomenal. In the education sector, much has been made about how social software and other ‘Web 2.0’ applications like weblogs, media-sharing software, interactive games and virtual worlds have the potential to open up more opportunities for better learning for
more people.
In particular, it is claimed that so-called ‘Learning 2.0’ can make education more accessible, more fun and more valued for young people who have dropped out of school, and for older people who perhaps feel they have missed out on learning.
Beyond education, experts argue, Web 2.0 can make a big contribution to a fairer, more equal society. One of the main objectives of Links-up is to look at the evidence for these claims and to identify ‘what works, for whom and under what conditions’ in the use of ‘Learning 2.0’ to support social inclusion.
