Changing paradigms: managed learning environments and Web 2.0

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand how emerging technologies and Web 2.0 services are transforming the structure of the web and their potential impact on managed learning environments (MLS) and learning content management systems (LCMS). Design/methodology/approach Innovative Web 2.0 applications are reviewed in the paper to explore how they incorporate a new paradigm, reshaping the web as an electronic platform for social networks, where users share, edit and collaborate on the publication of content. Findings The paper finds that, in this rapidly changing environment, educators need to consider the implications of these developments for the current design of the LCMS. An emerging generation of users influenced by social networking experiences and empowered to create, publish, appropriate and redistribute content may find the structures of the LCMS traditional and inflexible in contrast with the user‐centered approach of Web 2.0 services. This fundamental shift in the experience of the digital environment in the social world will require innovative solutions, including broad institution‐wide dialogues on the role of organizations in a Web 2.0 environment, innovative approaches to faculty training, a new emphasis on the role of faculty as learners in a rapidly changing environment, and rethinking the underlying architecture of the LCMS model. Research limitations/implications The recent emergence of these new developments and the essentially fluid nature of these innovations on the web suggest that the conclusions here remain essentially speculative in nature. Originality/value This paper identifies a critical challenge in the integration of technology into the teaching‐learning environment and the re‐evaluation of the role of a vendor‐specific enterprise LCMS in the design of e‐learning facilities.