“An effective […] learning community has the capacity to promote and sustain the learning of all professionals in the school community with the collective purpose of enhancing pupil learning” Bolam  A learning community is an online education platform where teachers and pupils can interact with each other, for example, Fronter. I will now discuss the advantages and disadvantages of learning communities from the perspective of both, pupils and teachers.

Implications of learning communities from the perspective of pupils

Advantages of learning communities for pupils:- 

• Pupils can benefit greatly from learning communities if used properly.
• Learning communities enable pupils to submit work and get feedback on their work. This allows them to use the resources available on the learning community to enhance their learning, making them feel more confident in their learning .
• Pupils can keep up-to-date with lessons and work if they missed a day. This prevents them from falling behind in their work.
• Pupils can communicate with one another, work together and  support each others learning through a safe platform. This relates to Vygotsky’s theory of Zone of proximal Development whereby a child is supported by someone who is more knowledgeable (see picture and video below). 
• Pupils have the ability to contact teachers if necessary.
• Pupils are able to work at their own pace – they are able to go back and fourth from lessons allowing them to feel more confident in the topic before moving on, thus becoming confident learners.

Disadvantages of learning communities for pupils:-

• Pupils with no internet access or lack of technology will not be able to access the content on the learning communities. This may result in the pupil falling behind.
• Some pupils may find it difficult to use learning communities such as fronter and therefore, do not use it.
• Some pupils may surf the web whilst doing set work thus completing their work to a lower standard.

Implications of learning communities from the perspective of teachers

Advantages of learning communities for teachers:- 

• Teachers are able to monitor and track pupils progress. They also have the ability to mark and provide feedback on their student’s work.
• Teachers are able to share and obtain information from other teachers around the world.  This makes it easier for teachers to obtain ideas and plan their lessons.

Disadvantages of learning communities for teachers:- 

• Have to take out extra time to ensure the learning community is up-to-date.
• Might be difficult to use and therefore do not use it.

In conclusion, I believe  learning communities are an excellent tool for both pupils and teachers. It helps pupils to become confident learners and enables pupils and  teachers to stay in contact with one another and as Ernest Boyer’s (1995) research suggested, a successful school is that of connection, where pupils and teachers can communicate with one other. I will leave you with an article (see article linked below)  which discusses the benefits of VLEs both inside and outside of the classroom for both teachers and pupils.

http://www.vles4vet.eu/Benefits_of_VLE.pdf

The article ‘Supporting community cohesion through ICT: The epartners programme in Northern Ireland’ talks about how ICT was successfully used to bring schools together in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. These schools were historically divided by religion (Catholic and Protestants). There were several previous attempts to connect the schools together, such as, ‘integrated schools (opening schools which taught all faiths) and a common curriculum which meant both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland pupils were taught the same topics and taught the need to respect diversity and tolerance. However, these attempts were unsuccessful.

The successful project carried out by University students involved pupils from both sides of Ireland working together via Fronter. It enabled pupils to share their work and discuss and share information taught in class. This ties in with Vygotsky’s theory of Zone Proximal Development whereby children learn from a more able pupil or adult. Although, internet connectivity was an issue, pupils had developed ICT skills, but, more importantly, built strong bonds and accepted one another.

After reading this article, it has highlighted the importance of VLEs being more than just a learning platform but a platform where pupils from different schools can communicate and share ideas.

Reading through ‘Answers for Young People’ by Tim Berners-Lee has helped to me enhance my knowledge, get a better understanding of how the internet was created and allowed me to ponder about my own experiences using the internet.

• 2001 – My first ever experience of being able to use the internet. At this point I never really thought about how the internet worked or how people connected to the internet. All I knew was that I was able to play a variety of games – many of which where educational.  One of the games which I enjoyed playing over and over again was Tweenies.  This game, allowed me to click on a certain icons and then would navigate me to my choice of game.

• 2003 – Learnt to search for things using a search engine. By watching my father and brother use search engines, I had learnt in order to obtain websites, I would have to type something in a search engine and then click on the link. However, I was unable to understand how search engines worked and understand the concept of what happens when I click on a link. This can be said for many children we meet today – they are able to use the internet but do they really know what happens?

• 2007 – Created my first ever email using Hotmail and used Skype. After using MSN messenger and Skype, it had made me realised, the internet is not only used for games, but as Berners-Lee says, the web is used as a means of communicating.

• 2012 – 2016 – At this point, I mainly used the internet for educational purposes and catching up with missed TV shows. I used Youtube to enhance my knowledge and understanding in certain areas and used Ebooks to complete readings for University. Some of the YouTube channels I watched are linked below:-
  • https://www.youtube.com/user/TEDEducation
  • https://www.youtube.com/user/AsapSCIENCE
  • https://www.youtube.com/user/scishow

As we grow technology also becomes better and more complex. The internet is an amazing place and contains a lot of information – more than what our brains can imagine.