An online learning community is a public or private destination on the Internet that addresses the learning needs of its members by facilitating peer-to-peer learning. Through social networking and computer-mediated communication, people work as a community to achieve a shared learning objective. Learning objectives may be proposed by the community owner or may arise out of discussions between participants that reflect personal interests. In an online learning community, people share knowledge via textual discussion (synchronous or asynchronous), audio, video, or other Internet-supported mediums. Blogs blend personal journaling with social networking to create environments with opportunities for reflection.
Much literature promotes online learning communities as environments conducive to communities of practice as described by Etienne Wenger. eTwinning is a European online community operated by European schoolnet comprising more than 50,000 registered teachers.
Read more about Online Learning Community: Categories of Online Learning Communities
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