Abstract
Everything our research team learned about virtual learning communities (VLCs) from formal learning environments was called into question when we recently shifted our attention to non-formal and informal learning environments. In almost all of the literature we reviewed, what we understood about online learning communities and how they develop, grow, and die away was based on examinations of formal online learning environments—primarily on postsecondary courses managed by institutions of higher learning. Formal environments typically require learners to engage each other online in prescribed, externally defined ways. As effective as formal environments may be, paying exclusive attention to them limits our understanding of the nature of learning in online settings. Non-formal and informal learning environments, by contrast, impose fewer controls on learner activities, and collaboration among participants is not required. This chapter considers what we are beginning to learn about learning communities in formal, non-formal, and informal online environments and speculates about how learners make use of social interaction to enhance learning. We wonder out loud whether “community” is an overused, tired metaphor for understanding dynamic learning phenomena and social interaction evident in non-formal and informal learning environments.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Allen, C. (2004). The Dunbar number as a limit to group sizes. Retrieved from http://www.lifewithalacrity.com/2004/03/the_dunbar_numb.html December 9, 2011.
Anderson, T. (2003). Modes of interaction in distance education: Recent developments and research questions. In M. Moore & G. Anderson (Eds.), Handbook of distance education (pp. 129–144). Mahwah: Erlbaum.
Bernard, R. M., Lou, Y., Abrami, P. C., Wozney, L., Borokhovski, E., Wallet, P. A., Wade, A., & Fiset, M. (2004). How does distance education compare with classroom instruction? A meta-analysis of the empirical literature. Review of Educational Research, 74, 379–439.
Brook, C., & Oliver, R. (2006). Exploring the influence of instructor actions on community development in online settings. In N. Lambropoulos & P. Zaphiris (Eds.), User-centred design of online learning communities (pp. 342–364). Hershey, PA: Idea Group.
Coombs, P. H. (1985). The world crisis in education: The view from the eighties. New York: Oxford.
Couros, A. V. (2009). Open, connected, social: Implications for educational design. Campus-Wide Information Systems, 26(3), 232–239.
Cox, S., & Osguthorpe, R. (2003). Building an online instructional design community: Origin, development, and the future. Educational Technology, 43(5), 44–48.
Daniel, B. K., Schwier, R. A., & Ross, H. M. (2007). Synthesis of the process of learning through discourse in a formal learning community. Journal of Interactive Learning Research, 18(4), 461–477.
Downes, S. (2009). MOOC and mookies: The connectivism & connective knowledge online course. Retrieved from http://www.slideshare.net/Downes/mooc-and-mookiesthe-connectivism-connective-knowledge-online-course-presentation December 9, 2011.
Eraut, M. (2000). Non-formal learning and tacit knowledge in professional work. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 70(1), 113–136.
Fahy, P. J., Crawford, G., & Ally, M. (2001). Patterns of interaction in a computer conference transcript. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 2(1). Retrieved from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/36/74 December 9, 2011.
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2003). A theory of critical inquiry in online distance education. In M. G. Moore & W. G. Anderson (Eds.), Handbook of distance education (pp. 113–127). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Heckscher, C., & Donnellon, A. M. (1994). The post-bureaucratic organization. London: Sage Publications.
Hudson, J. M., & Bruckman, A. S. (2004). The bystander effect: A lens for understanding patterns of participation. The Journal of the Learning Sciences, 13(2), 165–195.
Kirschner, P., Strijbos, J. W., Kreijns, K., & Beers, P. J. (2004). Designing electronic collaborative learning environments. Educational Technology Research and Development, 52(3), 47–66.
Klamma, R., Chatti, M. A., Duval, E., Hummel, H., Hvannberg, E. H., Kravcik, M., Law, E., Naeve, A., & Scott, P. (2007). Social software for life-long learning. Educational Technology & Society, 10(3), 72–83.
Livingstone, D. W. (1999). Exploring the icebergs of adult learning: Findings of the first Canadian survey of informal learning practices. Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education, 13(2), 49–72.
Livingstone, D. W. (2001). Adults’ informal learning: Definitions, findings, gaps and future research. NALL Working Paper No. 21, OISE/UT, Toronto. Retrieved from http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/depts/sese/csew/nall/res/21adultsifnormallearning.htm December 9, 2011.
Luppicini, R. (2007). Trends in distance education: A focus on communities of learning. Greenwich: Information Age Publishing.
MacGillivray, A. (2010). Respected leaders’ work with boundaries. Retrieved from http://boundaryspanner.wordpress.com/2010/04/21/respected-leaders-work-with-boundaries/December 9, 2011.
Milheim, W. D. (2006). Strategies for the design and delivery of blended learning courses. Educational Technology, 46(6), 44–47.
Murphy, E., & Coleman, E. (2004). Graduate students’ experiences of challenges in online asynchronous discussions. Canadian Journal of Learning and Technology, 30(2), 29–46.
Piezon, S. L., & Donaldson, R. L. (2005). Online groups and social loafing: Understanding student-group interactions. Online Journal of Distance Learning Administration, 8(4). Retrieved from http://www.westga.edu/∼distance/ojdla/winter84/piezon84.htm December 9, 2011.
Reeves, T. C., Herrington, J., & Oliver, R. (2004). A development research agenda for online collaborative learning. Educational Technology Research and Development, 52(4), 53–65.
Rovai, A. P., & Jordan, H. M. (2004). Blended learning and sense of community: A comparative analysis with traditional and fully online graduate courses. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 5(2). Retrieved from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/192/274 December 9, 2011.
Schwier, R. A. (2007). A typology of catalysts, emphases and elements of virtual learning communities. In R. Luppicini (Ed.), Trends in distance education: A focus on communities of learning (pp. 17–40). Greenwich: Information Age Publishing.
Schwier, R. A. (2009). The elusive metaphor of community in virtual learning environments. In Proceedings of ED-media 09. Honolulu, Hawaii: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education.
Schwier, R. A., & Daniel, B. K. (2007). Did we become a community? Multiple methods for identifying community and its constituent elements in formal online learning environments. In N. Lambropoulos & P. Zaphiris (Eds.), User- evaluation and online communities (pp. 29–53). Hershey: Idea Group Publishing.
Schwier, R. A., & Dykes, M. E. (2004). The struggle for community and content in virtual learning communities. In Proceedings of Ed-Media 2004 (pp. 2976–2982). Lugano, Switzerland.
Schwier, R. A., & Dykes, M. E. (2007). The continuing struggle for community and content in blended technology courses in higher education. In M. Bullen & D. Janes (Eds.), Making the transition to e-learning: Issues and strategies (pp. 157–172). Hershey: Information Science Publishing.
Selman, G., Cooke, M., Selman, M., & Dampier, P. (1998). The foundations of adult education in Canada (2nd ed.). Toronto: Thompson Educational Publishing.
Selznick, P. (1996). In search of community. In W. Vitek & W. Jackson (Eds.), Rooted in the land (pp. 195–203). New Haven: Yale University Press.
Siemens, G. (2005). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. Elearnspace. Retrieved from http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/connectivism.htm December 9, 2011.
Siemens, G. (2008). What is connectivism (and theory comparison table). Retrieved from http://docs.google.com/View?docid=anw8wkk6fjc_14gpbqc2dt
Siemens, G. (2010). What is the unique idea in connectivism? Retrieved from http://www.connectivism.ca/?p=116 December 9, 2011.
Tough, A. (1971). The adult’s learning projects: A fresh approach to theory and practice in adult learning. Toronto: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.
Virtual Learning Communities Research Laboratory. (2009). Virtual learning communities research laboratory. Retrieved March 18, 2009, from http://www.vlcresearch.ca December 9, 2011.
Wiley, D. (2010). Thinking out loud about connectivism. Retrieved from http://opencontent.org/blog/archives/1408#axzz0lgUZpK3N December 9, 2011.
Zengeström, J. (2005). Why some social network services work and others don’t—or: The case for object-centered sociality. Retrieved from http://www.zengestrom.com/blog/2005/04/why-some-social-network-services-work-and-others-dont-or-the-case-for-object-centered-sociality.htmlDecember 9, 2011.
Acknowledgments
The author gratefully acknowledges the contributions of research team members in the Virtual Learning Communities Research Laboratory at the College of Education, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon to the research and ideas expressed in this chapter, including Ben Kei Daniel, Kirk Kezema, Jaymie Koroluk, Dirk Morrison, Heather Ross, Greg Soden, Craig Wall, and Xing Xu. This research is supported by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Schwier, R.A. (2012). Comparing Formal, Non-formal, and Informal Online Learning Environments. In: Moller, L., Huett, J. (eds) The Next Generation of Distance Education. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1785-9_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-1785-9_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-1784-2
Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-1785-9
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and LawEducation (R0)