2. Time (synchronous or asynchronous), the number of people and the location (proximate or distance) all influence the nature of the interaction

3. The types of interactions need to relate to the nature of activities to be supported

5. Cognitive – learning through understanding, building on prior knowledge and often task-orientated

6. Situative – learning as social practice and learning through social interaction in context. Each of these has a number of approaches associated with it, which emphasise different types of learning (Figure 3). For example the associative category includes behaviourism and didactic approaches, the cognitive/constructivist category includes: constructivism (building on prior knowledge) and constructionism (learning by doing). Finally the situative category includes social constructivism and situated learning. At a finer level of detail it is possible to identify a number of approaches within the three perspectives. For example the associative category includes drill and practice, and e-training. The cognitive perspective includes a range of approaches to learning such as problem-based learning, inquiry-based learning and resource-based learning. Finally the situative perspective includes experiential learning, problem-based learning and role play. To these three categories I would like to add a fourth, connectivism ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Siemens</Author><Year>2005</Year><RecNum>319</RecNum><record><rec-number>319</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Siemens, George</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age</title><secondary-title>International journal of instructional technology and distance learning</secondary-title></titles><periodical><full-title>International journal of instructional technology and distance learning</full-title></periodical><pages>3–10</pages><volume>2</volume><number>1</number><dates><year>2005</year></dates><urls><related-urls><url>http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm</url></related-urls></urls></record></Cite><Cite><Author>Downes</Author><Year>2007</Year><RecNum>332</RecNum><record><rec-number>332</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>10</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Downes, S.</author></authors><secondary-authors><author>Hug, Theo</author></secondary-authors></contributors><titles><title>An introduction to connective knowledge</title><secondary-title>Media, Knowledge &amp; Education - Exploring new Spaces, Relations and Dynamics in Digital Media Ecologies</secondary-title></titles><dates><year>2007</year><pub-dates><date>25-26 June 2007</date></pub-dates></dates><pub-location>Vienna</pub-location><urls><related-urls><url>http://www.downes.ca/post/33034</url></related-urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Downes, 2007; Siemens, 2005).<br />Figure 3: The pedagogies of e-learning<br />Conole et al. reviewed learning theories and mapped them against a pedagogical framework (2004). Dyke et al. (2004) built on this work by providing an overview of the main learning theory perspectives along with an indication of the kinds of e-learning practice they most obviously support. Ravenscroft (2003) linked learning-pedagogical theory to specific examples of e-learning innovation. <br />Figure 4 gives some examples of how technologies can be used to promote each of the pedagogical approaches. <br />Figure 4: Mapping different technologies to pedagogical approaches<br />Interactive materials and multimedia have been used since the early days of educational technology to guide learners step by step through a series of concepts and activities. This has been particularly important in the e-training context. These can be packaged and made available as learning objects or open educational resources. McNaught describes the ChemCal online interactive materials developed in the nineties ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>McNaught</Author><Year>2010</Year><RecNum>460</RecNum><record><rec-number>460</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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Conference Proceedingsquot;
>10</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>McNaught, C.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Enduring themes and new horizons for educational technology, keynote presentation</title></titles><dates><year>2010</year></dates><pub-location>Toronto</pub-location><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(McNaught, 2010). It included: interactivity, levels of help, use of visual materials and little in the way of didactic materials. The OpenMark software developed by the Open University, UK provides a sophisticated environment for e-assessment. There are numerous types of questions, ranging from simple multiple-choice questions through to more open ended question types. Further information on OpenMark and examples of how it can be used are available online (http://www.open.ac.uk/openmarkexamples/). Butcher cite the following benefits of OpenMark: there is an emphasis on feedback, it provides the ability for the learner to do multiple attempts, and a breadth of interactions are supported ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Butcher</Author><Year>2008</Year><RecNum>461</RecNum><record><rec-number>461</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>461</key></foreign-keys><ref-type name=quot;
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>10</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Butcher, P.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Online assessment at the Open University using open source software: Moodle, OpenMark and More</title><secondary-title>12th International CAA Conference</secondary-title></titles><dates><year>2008</year></dates><pub-location>Loughborough</pub-location><urls><related-urls><url>http://www.open.ac.uk/cetl-workspace/cetlcontent/documents/49e85cfa5d4ea.pdf</url></related-urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Butcher, 2008). The emergence of new mobile technologies such as the iPhone and iPad mean that learners can now study anywhere, anytime. In the last couple of years there has been an explosion of learning applications developed for these platforms. In addition many institutions are now looking at ensuring their learning materials can be displayed on mobile devices. For example at the Open University, the study calendar (which is a core part of all units) can now be displayed on mobile devices. <br />Search engines, like Google, media sharing repositories (such as Flckr, Slideshare and YouTube) and tools for creating user-generated content can all be used to support inquiry-based and resource-based learning. One of the particular benefits of this is that it supports more learner-centred, constructivist approaches. The Personal Inquiry project is concerned with using technologies to help learners adopt inquiry-based learning approaches in Science learning. Following an extensive review of the literature an inquiry-based framework was developed, which articulated the key stages of inquiry-based learning (Figure 5). This was used to underpin an online toolkit, nQuire.<br />Figure 5: The PI Inquiry-based framework<br />In terms of resource-based learning there are now an expansive range of Open Educational Resource repositories (see Chapter 10 for more detailed discussion of OER). Related to this there is also a wealth of learning object repositories, although not all of these are freely available the Reusable Learning Objects project has created a tool (GLO Maker) to help users create learning objects. Finally many institutions are now using podcasts and vidcasts, often making them available in the iTunes U site. <br />There are now many examples of how location aware devices, virtual worlds and online games can be used to support experiential learning, problem-based learning and role play. SecondLife in particular has been used extensively. Examples include virtual archaeological digs, medical wards, art exhibitions, law courts, and virtual language exchange islands. Wills provides a comprehensive review of the use of technology to support role-based learning ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Wills</Author><Year>2010</Year><RecNum>462</RecNum><record><rec-number>462</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Wills, S.</author><author>Leight, E.</author><author>Ip, A.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>The power of role-based e-learning</title></titles><dates><year>2010</year></dates><pub-location>London</pub-location><publisher>Routledge</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Wills, Leight, & Ip, 2010),<br />Reflective and dialogic learning can be supported in a variety of ways. For example through the use of blogs and e-portfolios to support personal reflection and professional practice ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Stefani</Author><Year>2007</Year><RecNum>95</RecNum><record><rec-number>95</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Stefani, L.</author><author>Mason, R.</author><author>Pegler, C.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>The educational potential of e-portfolios: Supporting personal development and reflective learning</title></titles><dates><year>2007</year></dates><publisher>Routledge</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite><Cite><Author>O&apos; Donoghue</Author><Year>2010</Year><RecNum>463</RecNum><record><rec-number>463</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>463</key></foreign-keys><ref-type name=quot;
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>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>O&apos; Donoghue, J.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Technology-supported environments for personalized learning: methods and case studies</title></titles><dates><year>2010</year></dates><pub-location>Hershey, New York</pub-location><publisher>IGI Global Publishers</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(O' Donoghue, 2010; Stefani, Mason, & Pegler, 2007), group-based blogs for shared understanding, use of wikis for collaboration and project-based work, social bookmarking for aggregation of resources, microblogging sites such as Twitter for just-in-time learning. Collectively Web 2.0 tools can be used to connect learners to resources and expertise beyond the confines of formal courses ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Mason</Author><Year>2008</Year><RecNum>467</RecNum><record><rec-number>467</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>467</key></foreign-keys><ref-type name=quot;
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>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Mason, R.</author><author>Rennie, F.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>E-learning and social networking handbook: resources for higher education</title></titles><dates><year>2008</year></dates><pub-location>Abingdon</pub-location><publisher>Routledge</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite><Cite><Author>Hatzipanagos</Author><Year>2009</Year><RecNum>465</RecNum><record><rec-number>465</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>465</key></foreign-keys><ref-type name=quot;
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>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Hatzipanagos, S.</author><author>Warburton, S.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Handbook of research on social software and developing community ontologies</title></titles><dates><year>2009</year></dates><pub-location>Hershey, New Yorl</pub-location><publisher>IGI</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Hatzipanagos & Warburton, 2009; Mason & Rennie, 2008).<br />Sfard’s metaphors of learning<br />This section will introduce Sfard’s ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite ExcludeAuth=quot;
1quot;
><Author>Sfard</Author><Year>1998</Year><RecNum>160</RecNum><record><rec-number>160</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Sfard, A.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>On two metaphors for learning and the dangers of choosing just one</title><secondary-title>Educational researcher</secondary-title></titles><periodical><full-title>Educational researcher</full-title></periodical><pages>4</pages><volume>27</volume><number>2</number><dates><year>1998</year></dates><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(1998) work on metaphors of learning, considering the ways in which new technologies are supporting these through different types of interaction and community in online environments. She argues that current discourse in learning is caught between two metaphors: acquisition and participation. Definitions of learning usually contain something about the act of gaining knowledge. Concepts are basic units of knowledge that can be gradually accumulated, refined and combined to form richer cognitive structures. Participation is about both taking part and being a part of. The acquisition metaphor stresses the individual, while the participation metaphor shifts the focus to the evolving bonds between the individual and others. Sfard articulates the difference between the two metaphors as outlined in Table 2.<br />Table 2: Sfard's metaphor map<br />Acquisition metaphorParticipation metaphorGoal of learningIndividual enrichmentCommunity buildingLearningAcquisition of somethingBecoming a participantStudentRecipient (consumer), (re)constructorPeripheral participant, apprenticeTeacherProvider, facilitator, mediatorExpert participant, preserve of practice/discourseKnowledge, conceptProperty, possession, commodity (individual, public)Aspect of practice/discourse/activityKnowingHaving, possessingBelonging, participating, communicating<br />She argues that the participation metaphor has the potential to lead to a new, more democratic practice of learning and teaching. This resonates well with the affordances of new social and participatory media, which facilitate new forms of discourse and collaboration, sharing and open practices. Clearly social and participatory media can be used to support both forms of learning, by providing multiple distribution channels for content and enabling learners and teachers to communicate and collaborate in a variety of ways. <br />Frameworks for supporting online communities<br />A number of frameworks have been developed to design, foster and support online communities. Two illustrative examples are given here; Salmon’s five-stage e-moderating framework and Preece’s online community framework. <br />A specific e-learning model that describes the stages of increasing competence in participating in an online learning community is Salmon’s five-stage framework (2003) for supporting effective e-moderating in discussion forums is Salmon’s five-stage framework for supporting effective e-moderating in discussion forums, which emphasises the dialogic aspects of socially situated theoretical perspectives ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Salmon</Author><Year>2003</Year><RecNum>472</RecNum><record><rec-number>472</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Salmon, G.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>E-moderting: the key to teaching and learning online</title></titles><dates><year>2003</year></dates><pub-location>London</pub-location><publisher>Kogan Press</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Salmon, 2003). The five stages are:<br />Access and motivation<br />Online socialisation<br />Information exchange <br />Knowledge construction <br />Development. <br />This can be represented diagrammatically (Figure 6). In addition Salmon has reproduced a range of suggested e-activities to promote effective online communication.<br />Figure 6: The e-moderating model<br />Preece has developed a framework for establishing and supporting online communities, which focuses around two key dimensions – sociability and usability ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Preece</Author><Year>2000</Year><RecNum>470</RecNum><record><rec-number>470</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>6</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Preece, J.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Online communities: designing useability, supporting sociability</title></titles><dates><year>2000</year></dates><pub-location>Chichester</pub-location><publisher>John Wiley and sons</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite><Cite><Author>Preece</Author><Year>2001</Year><RecNum>471</RecNum><record><rec-number>471</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Preece, J.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Sociability and useabiliyt in online communities: determing and measuring success</title><secondary-title>Information Technology Journal</secondary-title></titles><periodical><full-title>Information Technology Journal</full-title></periodical><pages>347-365</pages><volume>20</volume><number>5</number><dates><year>2001</year></dates><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Preece, 2000, 2001). These can then be considered in terms of a number of design criteria and associated determinants of success (Table 3).<br />Table 3: An abridged version of Preece's framework<br />DimensionsDesign CriteriaDeterminants of successSociabilityPurposeTypes of messages and comments; Types of interactivity, quality of contributions?PeopleWho is participating?PolicyWhat policies are in place?UsabilityDialogue and social supportHow long does it take to learn about dialogue and support?Information designHow long does it take to learn to find information?NavigationHow long does it take to navigate around?AccessCan users get access to everything they need?<br />The Community Indicators Framework<br />We have developed a new Community Indicators Framework for evaluating online interactions and communities ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Galley</Author><Year>2010</Year><RecNum>26</RecNum><record><rec-number>26</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Rebecca Galley</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>A framework of community indicators for online environments </title></titles><dates><year>2010</year></dates><pub-location>Milton Keynes</pub-location><publisher>The Open University</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite><Cite><Author>Galley</Author><Year>Forthcoming</Year><RecNum>443</RecNum><record><rec-number>443</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Galley, R.</author><author>Conole, G.</author><author>Alevizou, P.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Community Indicators: A framework for building and evaluating communiyt activity on Cloudworks</title><secondary-title>Interactive Learning Environments</secondary-title></titles><periodical><full-title>Interactive Learning Environments</full-title></periodical><dates><year>Forthcoming</year></dates><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Rebecca Galley, 2010; R. Galley, Conole, & Alevizou, Forthcoming). Figure 7 shows the main components of the framework. This was developed after undertaking an extensive review of the literature on online interactions and communities. From this review we identified four community indicators, which appear to be common across the various frameworks described above, namely: participation, cohesion, identity and creative capability. Participation, and patterns of participation relates to the fact that communities develop through social and work activity over time. Participants can adopt a legitimate peripheral participation stance or be central to the community in question. Different roles are evident such as leadership, facilitation, support and passive involvement. Cohesion relates to the way in which members of a community support each other through social interaction and reciprocity. Identity relates to the group’s developing self-awareness, and in particular the notion of belonging and connection. Creative capability relates to how far the community is motivated and able in engage in participatory activity. <br />Galley et al. (forthcoming) provide a more detailed account of the rationale for the development of the Framework and a description of its use to evaluation the social networking site, Cloudworks. <br />Figure 7: The Community Indicators Framework<br />The Community Indicators Framework provides a structure to support the design and evaluation of community building and facilitation in social and participatory media. To date we have used it in a series of case study evaluations ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Galley</Author><Year>Forthcoming</Year><RecNum>443</RecNum><record><rec-number>443</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Galley, R.</author><author>Conole, G.</author><author>Alevizou, P.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Community Indicators: A framework for building and evaluating communiyt activity on Cloudworks</title><secondary-title>Interactive Learning Environments</secondary-title></titles><periodical><full-title>Interactive Learning Environments</full-title></periodical><dates><year>Forthcoming</year></dates><urls></urls></record></Cite><Cite><Author>Alevizou</Author><Year>2010</Year><RecNum>444</RecNum><record><rec-number>444</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Alevizou, G.</author><author>Conole, G.</author><author>Galley, R.</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Using Cloudworks to support OER Activities, report for the HE Academy</title></titles><dates><year>2010</year></dates><pub-location>Milton Keynes</pub-location><publisher>The Open University</publisher><urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Alevizou, Conole, & Galley, 2010; R. Galley, et al., Forthcoming). It is being used to inform the design of a series of guidance and support resources on the Cloudworks site (discussed in Chapter X). We hope that the framework will offer a structured way to begin to analyse new and emerging open-participatory practices that may perhaps help us develop insights into future design needs. <br />Conclusion<br />This chapter has considered some of the key challenges in researching new learning contexts through socially mediated environments, namely articulation and understanding of the nature of the interactions among users within these environments and between the users and the tools that form part of the environment. A range of frameworks for describing online interaction and community have been discussed in terms of the light they shed on patterns of user behaviour online spaces. The chapter has demonstrated that these frameworks are indeed useful but only offer a partial solution. None of the frameworks provides a comprehensive holistic description. A new Community Indicators Framework was described which aims to provide a more holistic approach to understanding user behaviour in online spaces. <br />Although not discussed here, the notions of connectivism developed by Siemens ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Siemens</Author><Year>2005</Year><RecNum>319</RecNum><record><rec-number>319</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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>17</ref-type><contributors><authors><author>Siemens, George</author></authors></contributors><titles><title>Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age</title><secondary-title>International journal of instructional technology and distance learning</secondary-title></titles><periodical><full-title>International journal of instructional technology and distance learning</full-title></periodical><pages>3–10</pages><volume>2</volume><number>1</number><dates><year>2005</year></dates><urls><related-urls><url>http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm</url></related-urls></urls></record></Cite></EndNote>(Siemens, 2005) and later critiqued by Downes ADDIN EN.CITE <EndNote><Cite><Author>Downes</Author><Year>2007</Year><RecNum>332</RecNum><record><rec-number>332</rec-number><foreign-keys><key app=quot;
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