The development of an implementation framework to support knowledge construction in online networked learning

Abstract

ABSTRACT A networked learning community (NLC) comprises teachers from different schools engaging collaboratively in purposeful and sustained professional learning. Networked learning entails the construction of knowledge that is new to the members of the group by tapping their collective practitioner knowledge and the public knowledge base. Members can use technology to engage in knowledge construction in a sustained NLC environment even though they may not be able to meet face to face regularly. This paper outlines the development, aided by the design-based research methodology, of an implementation framework to support knowledge construction in online collaboration groups by NLCs in Singapore. Findings from an empirical research on interactions within NLCs’ online collaboration groups and members’ perceptions of online knowledge construction informed the development of the implementation framework. Feedback obtained from a field test of the framework revealed the importance of ensuring members recognise the importance of co-owning and co-leading the knowledge construction in online collaborative environments. The framework can inform the work of NLCs, particularly in the challenging aspect of sustaining technology-supported knowledge construction that is co-led and co-facilitated by teachers.