This paper presents a case study on a particular higher education environment project (INNOV), where teachers use Web 2.0 applications to create online professional communities through an empowering learning strategy. The study focuses on how teachers, with basic knowledge of Web 2.0 tools will experience community building processes, add professional value to their curriculum and participate in the development of the educational quality strategy of the institution. The project is based on “teaching experience” storytelling, a pedagogic approach used in the development of E-Portfolios for teacher training. INNOV provides teachers with a complete range of interactive tools to share their innovative teaching experiences. The formalized storytelling model allows the fast exploitation of knowledge through the production of various multimedia contents. The paper combines a purely pedagogic observation of technology learning processes through community building, response to innovation and acceptation of sharing strategies in a professional competitive environment. The study shows patterns in adoption, individual motivation and voluntary participation in content production. The interdisciplinary approach of Web Science was helpful for this study: the paper gives solutions for designing an educational web application for teacher training that takes into account the particular context of the institution and ensures that the focus is on theory of teaching rather than on technology (Wubbels, 2007). Following propositions made by Halford, Pope and Carr in their Manifesto for Web Science, the study will look critically at the way Web technologies and Web 2.0 business model are used to build communities in the higher education context, in avoiding to create exclusion, rejection or new forms of inequalities.

Stéphane B. Bazan @VideoLectures.net