Blog post 5.1: Reviewing the literature (running behind)

Originally posted to eBridge, 24 February 2013

I'm running late this week, but thought it was better to put up a partial blog post than nothing at all. The primary piece of literature I've identified in my search is a comprehensive review of literature on online communities (Ke & Hoadley, 2009). My immediate thought is that this should save me a great deal of time, but there is a real danger of not being sufficiently cautious about accepting their methods and conclusions. The researchers do clearly set out their review, with criteria for how they chose studies that were suitable for inclusion. They also helpfully set out questions to ask of any study of online learning communities:

• What was the purpose of the study?
• What evaluation approaches were used in the study?
• What indicators or measures of online learning communities were observed in the study?
• How did the study collect and analyse data?

These will be very helpful for considering how to go about collecting my own research data. However I do need to beware that this review is made within the academic world, and likely does not include any kind of workplace learning. Participants in the online communities in question do so out of necessity - they must show that they have learned in order to progress in their studies or receive qualifications, whereas by contrast a workplace learning initiative cannot always count upon such participation from learners.

This actually seems like a good insight for how to move towards greater participation in online communities in the workplace. Having participation in online activities be part of the assessment could dramatically improve participation and uptake of learning, if used wisely, and with stakeholder support. In order to do this, I would have to show that online interactions can add value. Whilst it is unlikely a full collaborative community could be created in the first instance, progressively achieving enhancements to traditional training by provision of online communication tools could be a first step.

References:

• Ke, F. and Hoadley, C. (2009). Evaluating Online Learning Communities. Educational Technology Research and Development, 57(4), pp.487-510.