7. Exploiting Geocollaborative Portals for Designing Collaborative e-Learning Pedagogies: A Model, Applications and Trends

The use of digital maps continuously increases, as more than 80% of the data have geospatial references and social technologies are democratising spatial content. As geodata are the lifeblood of tourism, geovisualisation is becoming very important in e-tourism applications. This implies that geodata management needs to be incorporated into tourism curricula and pedagogies in order to assist graduates with career options. However, although research in geovisualisation has examined the impact of geoportals on team-working and cognitive processes, research in education has not examined the role and impact of geocollaborative portals on collaborative e-learning. This chapter addresses this gap by reviewing the related literature and developing a model showing how to exploit geoportals for designing collaborative e-learning. The applicability of the model is shown by analysing the use of a geocollaborative portal for integrating collaborative e-learning in the teaching of a tourism course. Implications and trends for tourism educators and policy makers are discussed.