Moving the social networked learning (the Landing) forward — George Siemens
To foster these types of interactions, programs need to think about social networking tools at a higher level than an individual course (for obvious reasons – a course is a short-term construct whereas social spaces have greater permanence). Designers, deans, and faculty should plan for social interaction at the program-level: design for social interaction between courses much in the same way that social interaction (in Moodle) is often designed into courses).
Most learners tend to the social. They seek interactions, connectedness. Sometimes, however, these interactions require a bit of social lubrication. To this end, a program director (or designer) should plan to include social events and activities in their Landing group: planned conversations, Q & A, recorded tutorials, live interactions (in Elluminate or on Skype), treasure hunts, etc.
Social connectedness needs nurturing. While we are still at the early stages or research on this, my bias is that successful uses of the Landing at a program level will be determined by fostering intentional and planned social activities. But this isn’t really anything new, is it? Any successful community has regular social events and activities – concerts, festivals, and community suppers. Finding out how to best lubricate social interactions is an important area of research.