Using Web 2.0 Tools in Instruction

As the number of Web 2.0 sites increases almost daily, keeping track of tools that meaningfully improve instruction can be difficult. To help you get some idea of how Web 2.0 can be used in higher education, the links below have been divided into several categories. You should also review some of the concerns that will likely arise as you incorporate new Web 2.0 tools in your instructional practice, especially regarding student privacy, intellectual property rights, and student etiquette.

General:
Blogging:
Podcasting, Vodcasting and Slidecasting:
Wikis:
Social Networking:
Social Bookmarking:
Virtual Worlds:
Open Course Ware:

Concerns

A number of concerns arise when considering how Web 2.0 tools enable students to post content on the internet.

Student Privacy

Protecting the privacy of students’ personal information must be a primary concern of faculty who wish to incorporate Web 2.0 activities in their instructional design. The majority of Web 2.0 services on the internet house data on out-of-country servers. Without consent from students, using these services allows external companies access to any personal information that may be posted, which is a violation of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FOIPOP).

Faculty must ensure that students give their consent to using Web 2.0 applications and are aware of the risks of posting personal information to each application that is used during instruction. To learn more about FOIPOP as well as the considerations faculty should make when selecting a Web 2.0 tool, please see the following resources:

		Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act Vancouver Island University
A description of the act and a list of questions that outline how faculty must protect student information.

		Guidelines for Using External Web 2.0 Services (Draft) The University of Edinburgh
A useful set of checklists to help faculty sellect appropriate Web 2.0 tools and manage any associated risks.

Intellectual Property

The ease of publication that Web 2.0 tools have allowed has blurred traditional definitions of what constitutes intellectual property within academic communities. Vancouver Island University adheres to a strict copyright policy that prohibits the reproduction of copyrighted material. Because Web 2.0 technologies allow students to easily post digital content that may be protected by intellectual property right legislation, it is important that students are aware that they must comply with copyright law.

		Copyright Matters: Dealing with Net-Based Electronic Media VIU Teaching and Learning Centre, Vancouver Island University
A detailed description of Vancouver Island University's policy regarding use of copyrighted digital media.

		Policy 31.02 - Copyright Vancouver Island University
Vancouver Island University's copyright policy.

The protection of the intellectual property of faculty and students may also be of concern. A growing collection of resources is accumulating within the Creative Commons, which has introduced copyright legislation that is much less restrictive than traditional intellectual copyright. Staff and faculty may wish to mark their blogs, wikis and podcasting sites with one or more of the Creative Commons designations so visitors clearly understand how they may use any content that is posted.

		Creative Commons Licenses Creative Commons
A discription of the types of Creative Commons licenses you can attach to published work.

		Before Licensing Creative Commons
Things to consider before licensing using a Creative Commons designation.

		Larry Lessig: How creativity is being strangled by the law TED Conferences
The founder of Creative Commons and Stanford professor Larry Lessig discusses intellectual property law in the context of growing Web 2.0 trends.

Student Etiquette

Students should be aware that any communications using Web 2.0 tools are subject to the same expectations regarding etiquette as those in the classroom. Students should understand that the virtual learning environment that Web 2.0 helps to create is an extension of the learning environment within the classroom. Web 2.0 tools like blogs, wikis and podcasts can present new challenges to how students communicate and collaborate, creating a greater need for explicit expectations about etiquette.