Design to support distance teacher education communities: A case study of a student-student e-mentoring initiative
Abstract: This case study investigated how one distance teacher education student e-mentoring community successfully utilized the functions and features available within a blended online environment for e-mentoring purposes. All courses in the university have sites in the university open source Learning Management System ‘Learn’ (a Moodle Hybrid) where this community is housed. In addition, the UC Live portal, introduced in January 2010, uses Microsoft’s live@EDU technology to offer email, file storage and social networking capabilities to University of Canterbury (UC) students. This paper and associated poster present an overview of the UC Live portal environment, and include an analysis of the community’s utilization of the tools, features and resources available through the portal. Recommendations for the successful design of an online environment for e-mentoring are outlined and include the need for clear navigation, access to a range of student support systems, the provision for on-going support for mentors and a comprehensive induction for users.