The Effects of Knowledge Sources and Learning Styles of the Elders on Their Motivations to Use Weblog Tools for Lifelong Learning

摘要

Recently, many research groups have dedicated their efforts to the development of Weblog (or Blog) tools to facilitate cooperative learning. However, these tools were mainly for young students in regular courses at schools. For adult learners, especially elderly people, lifelong learning is also important in their everyday life. Therefore, it is valuable to study the possible development of these tools for such a user group in the future. The objective of this research is to study the effects of knowledge sources and learning styles of the elders on their motivations to use Weblog tools for lifelong learning. Field studies and questionnaire surveys were conducted to elicit their requirements. The results showed that both knowledge sources and learning styles had significant effects on the willingness to use Blogs as the platform to exchange their knowledge and experience.