Manaba is a cloud-based collaborative learning system developed by the Internet service provider ASAHI Net, Inc. Manaba was developed in 2007 in collaboration with two private universities in Japan. Initially, it was designed to connect students and teachers, enable students to accumulate learning evidence and elevate learning outcomes through mutual review. Known for an intuitive interface, meaningful design focused on learning outcomes, and the flexibility and scalability of a cloud application, manaba has been adopted by approximately 200 educational institutions globally (as of December 31, 2013).

Main Features

Course management

manaba provides spaces for teachers to conduct surveys and tests, collect assignments, enable group projects and facilitate online discussions. Students can also review each other's work and develop debates on course materials with each other.

ePortfolio

manaba provides an individual space where each student can accumulate learning evidence over time, share it with others, and reflect back on previous work. Instructors can assess learning outcomes by looking at students’ portfolios collectively.

Communities

manaba creates spaces for groups to engage in community discussions on various topics.

Origin of the name

The name “manaba” comes from two Japanese words: manabu (学) and ba (場). Manabu means learning, and ba is an activity place where events occur.

Unfortunately at present the official English support website is no longer available. It has been archived and I will put those links here, but the information on them may be out-of-date or the site may contain errors.

Support page (Japanese)

Support Page (English) *Archived