Web 2.0 for Schools Learning and Social Participation

«Blogs, Flickr, wikis, Second Life, memes - no stone is unturned in Julia Davies and Guy Merchant's roadmap to Web 2.0. From their clear and insightful look at digital epistemologies to the implications of new habits of mind for educational practice, Davies and Merchant have crafted a book that must sit on the bookshelf of every school and university faced with the challenge of twenty-first century literacies. Building on their own and other research and writing, Davies and Merchant provide us with a textured picture of how virtual worlds make us think and act.» (Jennifer Rowsell, Rutgers Graduate School of Education)
«[...] the emergence of digital technologies and forms of online engagement that privilege interaction over information, collectively referred to under the heading of Web 2.0, raises important questions for theory and practice, and the ways in which schools and teachers might respond. This wonderful book draws on the authors' own research and that of others, providing insightful accounts of forms ranging from Flickr to Youtube to Wikis. It considers the nature of these forms, the literacies they entail, and the kinds of engagement they engender, and describes ways in which they have been incorporated into classroom curriculum and pedagogy. The book is clear-sighted, wise, and practical, and is built on a rich and generous vision of young people, classrooms, and new literacies. It provides an invaluable resource for teaching and research and will be widely welcomed.» (Catherine Beavis, Professor of Education, Griffith University)