"Bonded Design"

In reading Andrew Large's "Finding Information on the Web -- Children as Portal Users and Designers," I was struck by the idea of "bonded design" for internet portal creation. Large asserts that a two-way dialogue between the students for whom the portals were being designed and the designers themselves was essential in developing an easily usable and well used end-product.

While "stakeholder input" is often sought at the outset of a web-based project, it is the continuous bond between user and designer, throughout the design process, that ultimately led to success in this case.

I see this as a (literally) wise project development strategy, but also as metaphor for the potential for Web 2.0 in education: if continual collaboration and real-time consultation are available to today's students via Web 2.0, then the development of their educational projects can only benefit. Here's to social media making for better educational outcomes!