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Web 2.0 describes World Wide Web sites that emphasize user-generated content, usability, and interoperability. The term was popularized by Tim O'Reilly and Dale Dougherty at the O'Reilly Media Web 2.0 Conference in late 2004, though it was first coined by Darcy DiNucci in 1999.[1][2][3][4] Although Web 2.0 suggests a new version of the World Wide Web, it does not refer to an update to any technical specification, but rather to cumulative changes in the way Web pages are made and used. A Web 2.0 site may allow users to interact and collaborate with each other in a social media dialogue as creators of user-generated content in a virtual community, in contrast to Web sites where people are limited to the passive viewing of content. Examples of Web 2.0 include social networking sites, blogs, wikis, folksonomies, video sharing sites, hosted services, Web applications, and mashups.[5] Whether Web 2.0 is substantively different from prior Web technologies has been challenged by World Wide Web inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee, who describes the term as jargon.[6] His original vision of the Web was "a collaborative medium, a place where we [could] all meet and read and write".[7][8] On the other hand, the term Semantic Web (sometimes referred to as Web 3.0)[citation needed] was coined by Tim Berners-Lee for a web of data that can be processed by machines.[9]

Uses of Social Bookmarking in School Library Media Centers Here are some ways school library media specialists are using social bookmarks: List web resources by class. Students go to the the bookmarking URL and click on the tag for their classCreate pages of links students need for creating a particular projectTeach about social bookmarking to students and teachersHelp students manage resources for projects and papersHelp teachers organize resources for units, projects and topicsOrganize favorites in different waysAccess bookmarks from home, school, classrooms, or anywhereLinking from library media center webpage to links for different disciplines, classes, teachers, projects, etc.Create RSS feeds of different tags for the school library media center webpage to keep it currentGuide students to most-relevant websites for assignmentsSharing great sites and articles with other library media specialistsSharing sites with teachers by tagging them with their names and/or subjectsStore and organize bookmarksCreate pathfindersCollect and share lesson plan ideasCollect and share new curriculum related websites when the curriculum is changingProvide quick bookmarks for specific teachers for specific research projectsCreate a page of research/report help sitesCreate bibliographies for student researchCheck out sites recommended by others with similar interestsContact others who have similar interests to collaborate on ideas, projects, papers, publications, presentationsAnnotate websites for students and teachersExport bookmarks for handouts or websites for students and teachers

This study analyzed current uses of emerging Web 2.0 technologies in higher education with the intent to better understand which tools teachers are using in the classroom. A total of 189 faculty in higher education from three western US universities were invited to participate, with 54 completing the survey. The survey included open-ended questions as well to offer an alternative analysis approach. In this study, the respondents claimed that the intrinsic factors of a lack of time and training were the main barriers to use, and reported positive views of Web 2.0 use in class, with 75% saying that these tools would benefit students and 83% saying they would benefit teacher-student interactions. In contrast to these results only 44% of the respondents used at least 4 of the 13 listed Web 2.0 tools with students. The reported uses did not match with the reported benefits, and this would support the results that extrinsic factors (time, training, support), instead of intrinsic factors (beliefs, motivation, confidence) are the main barriers to faculty in this study using more Web 2.0 in education. The top five Web 2.0 tools used, in order of preference, follow: (a) video sharing with tools like YouTube; (b) instant messaging; (c) blogs; (d) social communities, such as Facebook; and (e) podcasts or video casts. This data was originally submitted to the Abraham S. Fischler School of Education in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education.

The question persists, Is Web 2.0 going to lead to School 2.0? Is it truly transformative, or just more geek lust and magic tricks for consultants to perform on stage for the applause?"

how they are encumbered by lack of time, high accountability, bloated curriculum, aging computers, and insufficient access to technology. I hear story after story of how teachers can barely keep up with teaching as usual, let alone look for new and innovative ways to prepare students for the future.

That is a question that should be directed to national and district leadership; those who establish the overarching focus educators must follow in their classrooms. If standardized testing, assessment, and a broad curriculum is the main focus of education leadership, it doesnt matter whether or not Web 2.0 has the potential to better prepare students for the 21st century workplace. Until technology is viewed as a mindtool that fosters critical thinking and the implementation of curriculum, it will be seen as being in competition with a districts primary focus, instead of supporting it.