The use of web 2.0 tools to design a conference 2.0: a case study In online higher education

Apresentação de investigação no âmbito de dissertação do mestrado em Pedagogia do eLearningAlthough the submission of papers and participation in academic conferences may be seen as a routine or even a mandatory task, especially when envisioning an academic career, there is little research in the area (de Vries & Pieters, 2007; Jacobs & McFarlane, 2005). Conferences can be an opportunity to learn, through sharing and knowledge construction. Their designed can stimulate the development of communities of practice (Wenger, 1998) and digital habits within communities and networks (Wenger, White, & Smith, 2009) and constitute the ideal vehicle to formal and informal learning and knowledge management (Wenger, McDermott, & Snyder, 2002). Conferences facilitate and enhance the creation of networks, they enable opportunities for informal learning and offer moments of socialization (Siemens, Tittenberger, & Anderson, 2008). Authors like Weller (2011) summarize the functions of a conference as follow: knowledge sharing, validation, networking, recognition and socializing.In this presentation we discuss a case study about the conference myMPeL, an annual conference organized and held from and for the learning community of an online master’s program.