Key facts:

• Development of social Personal Learning Environment
• Freefolio Application based on Wordpress MU.
• Single sign on integration with Semantic MediaWiki design study
• Use of widgets to provide user driven functionality.

Aim is to deliver a Personal Learning & Maturing Environment (PLME) provided to career advisors at KENT Connexions and at Careers Scotland to support them to mature knowledge in-use in the context of career guidance. The PLME is designed to support knowledge development and maturing at three levels – the personal, group and community. The design of a social PLME is intended to enable personal knowledge development through reflection on practice aat an initial level. At a second level, the PLME will support social knowledge construction through sharing of ideas and artefacts through the formation of groups. Groups are seen as corresponding to organisational entities – e.g an enterprise or a geographically based or work role based group within an enterprise. The social networking functionary is designed to support the emergence of communities of practice and the creation and sharing of community based knowledge. Knowledge maturing is based both on the development of common artefacts and of shared practice (and reflection on that practice). The study will also look at whether informal tags can be matured as shared taxonomies.

The design study will support the development of both the PLME and OLME 
 

• PLME: The proposed application is designed to support individual knowledge creation through reflection on practice.
• OLME: The application should support organisational knowledge development through knowledge sharing and collaboration in groups. It should further support knowledge maturing at an organisational level though the development of communities of practice with shared artefacts, through the negotiation shred means and understandings and shared practices.
   

Freefolio already has some level of technical integration between Wordpress MU, (Semantic) Media Wiki and BB Board and provides limited customisation through widgets. The Design Study will explore further extensions for social networking as a means to knowledge sharing and development, further possible technical integration and the potential of widgets for user customisation. This will be carried out through a evaluation method initiated by a guided demonstration and exploration of a software prototype. A scenario will be played out which the end-users should be able to relate to easily. The discussion around this exploration should move quickly beyond software usability issues, and explore the general principles of the approach and its applicability to career guidance practice and knowledge maturing