Can a social networking site support afterschool group learning of Mandarin?

Schools are often encouraged to facilitate extra-curricular learning within their own premises. This study addresses the potential of social networking sites (SNS) for supporting such out-of-class study. Given concerns that learning on these sites may happen at a surface level, we adopted self-determination theory for designing a social networking experience that aspired to offer a ‘community of inquiry’. A case study of a Mandarin class is reported, in which seven children voluntarily attended afterschool lessons and used a SNS for 12 weeks. Pedagogical strategies to create a sense of relatedness and competence and to offer autonomy support were used in order to steer their informal communication and exploration towards deep and meaningful learning. Our findings show that the online social networking activities are not used simply to extend formal lessons to informal online environment, instead they open up opportunities for students to benefit from informal exploration and thus enrich their experience of learning about the subject.     

The influence of extramural access to mainstream culture social media on ethnic minority students’ motivation for language learning

The educational potentials of social media both in the formal and informal learning contexts have been widely acknowledged. However, how social media use in the informal contexts might influence students’ learning in the formal contexts is still underexplored. Path analysis of 141 survey responses from secondary school ethnic minority students in Hong Kong revealed that voluntary access to Chinese social media in daily life influenced these students’ ideal L2 self and motivated efforts in learning Chinese both directly and indirectly via bicultural integration identity and bicultural competence. The findings confirmed that social media practices in the informal contexts may influence students’ motivated efforts in learning in the formal contexts. The study suggests promoting ethnic minorities’ extramural use of mainstream culture social media to influence their acculturation into the dominant culture and motivation in learning the dominant culture’s language. It further highlights the importance of equipping ethnic minority students with the necessary socio-cultural and communication skills to facilitate positive intercultural engagement on these sites so as to safeguard the positive influences of informal social media use on students’ motivation for learning.     

Academic Twitter and professional learning: myths and realities

Social networking sites provide opportunities for informal and social learning of academic practices in higher education, yet not all academics engage in these spaces. This qualitative study suggests that while Twitter offers informal opportunities for academic development, inhibiting factors prevent staff from establishing their social presence and participating in conversations on academic Twitter. In a pervasively digital era, rethinking academic development practices is required to build digital capacity and digital identity of staff to support participation on social networking sites for academic learning and development.     

大学生网络社交现状与学习方式的变化探索

网络已经融入到大学生生活和学习的方方面面,成为影响当代大学生生活方式的最重要因素。大学生利用网络开展社交既拓展了他的交往空间和社交行为,同样,也改变了他的学习方式。通过采用文献分析法,在梳理归纳已有研究成果的基础上,构建出大学生网络社交方式及社交行为特征分析的研究框架。以扬州大学的学生为调查对象,从社交网站访问情况、好友特征、社交基本属性、社交行为、态度与感受五个维度调查大学生网络社交方式及社交行为特征,归纳总结当代大学生基于社交进行学习的行为特征。旨在指导大学生能正确、积极地使用网络社交进行有效学习。     

Being a Learner Using Social Media in School: The Case of Space2cre8

The aim of this article is to gain knowledge about what it means to be a learner using social media in an educational setting. The article presents an ethnographic study of students in a multiethnic community in Oslo who participate in a social networking site called Space2cre8 (S28). In this article, we set out to explore the kind of space for learning that can be created in a lower secondary classroom by a social networking site. The article provides a detailed study of how two students made use of this social networking site as part of school activities, and it outlines two specific ways in which to be a learner using social media in school. The findings suggest that a social networking site such as S28 can provide different resources for different students with different learner identities, and might represent a space in which everyday knowledge and school knowledge merge to offer a hybrid space for learning.     

A critical examination of informal learning spaces

ABSTRACT

Globally, the future of the higher education sector is under increasing scrutiny, and questions are being asked about the relevance of universities as traditional sites of teaching and learning. In an effort to adapt to the complexities that beset the higher education environment, universities are exploring the utility and benefits offered through informal learning spaces. However, the emergence of informal learning spaces raises important questions regarding student behaviours and ‘learning’, including the dichotomous positioning of the categories ‘formal’ and ‘informal’. This article highlights a tendency in the literature to treat informal learning spaces in a romanticised and overdetermined way. It challenges some of the popular imaginaries of these spaces as free, open and democratising in terms of students’ use, technological affordances, and a largely unchallenged emphasis on forms of community and collaboration as if they are unproblematic. Indeed, a persistently undefined ‘social’ quality attributed to informal learning settings, coupled with a focus on design and technology elements, elides the possibility of negative social practices such as exclusion and marginalisation. Moreover, empirical treatments of these spaces are dominated by quantitative methods that rely on deterministic cause and effect models, including normative understandings of academic success, as a measure of effectiveness. If universities are to proceed in better understanding these learning sites and the meanings and practices students bring to them, new perspectives incorporating more critical, interpretive qualitative approaches that give primacy to understanding the ways in which these spaces might reproduce marginalising or exclusionary social practices are required.     

利用“Facebook”发展网络学习社区

当高等教育机构都在宣传远程教育“一站式服务”特点的时候,他们并没有热衷于（至少在现阶段）把Facebook这样的工具加入他们的绑定服务。这些服务现在可以通过诸如Angel和Blackboard的课程管理系统（CMSs）实现。高等教育现在还没有准备好完全接纳CMSs。从理论上说,学生们在CMSs中可以更有效地学习。然而,其他的社会网络工具（如博客、维客和播客）显得要比Facebook更适合在远程教育中使用。要注意的是,对CMSs进行＂整合＂而不是＂代替＂是这一类工具现在唯一的功用。使用这一类网络工具的用户大部分都支持这一事实即Facebook能为大学生们提供一种社会出路。因为,不管它效果如何,社会交往总是人类教育的核心。在这一方面,Facebook会起到作用,但是把这一作用融入到远程教育中却缺少了一股推动力。学生们可以把它作为合作学习中次要的信息交流途径。例如：学生们可以通过在自己的空间中邀请同学来共同完成小组作业。Facebook提供的服务（如聊天、结识新同学、安排社会、学术会议等）可以通过使用CMSs当前的技术来实现,同时避免社会网络中普遍存在的安全漏洞和其他法律问题。目前对于Facebook应用在网络学习社区中的观念很可能一夜之间被颠覆,基于Facebook的新发展,技术融合以及远程教育管理者观念的改变,面对一些学生学习花费时间长的这一情况,Facebook改进了原来在推进学习（如完成任务花费的时间）中的功用。Facebook的引入可能使学习环境很舒适,但是笔者很想深刻的挖掘该技术,并探索将它用于学术领域的可能性,把它作为一种潜在的方式使学生可以远程互相学习而不用挤在一个狭小的空间。     

Students’ experiences of study-related exhaustion,regulation of learning,peer learning and peer support during university studies

The present mixed-method longitudinal study examines students’ experiences of study-related exhaustion, regulation of learning, peer learning and peer support during university studies. At the first measurement point, 188 first-year students completed the questionnaire. At the second measurement point, 91 of the 188 students participated in the follow-up study at their fourth study year and completed the same questionnaire again. Of these, twelve students were interviewed. The results showed that experienced study-related exhaustion and self-regulation of content increased during studies. However, the results also showed a large individual variation in experienced study-related exhaustion. The students whose exhaustion decreased described experiences of peer support that helped them to develop their self-regulation skills. Students whose study-related exhaustion remained low evaluated their self-regulation skills as good. They experienced that they did not need other students’ support in the regulation of learning. The students whose study-related exhaustion increased or remained high described more problems in self-regulation. Most students relied on peer support because of self-regulation problems. However, not all students used other students’ support despite of problems in studying. It can be concluded that regulation skills have a key role in experienced study-related exhaustion during studies.

     

Behavior,perceptions and learning experience of undergraduates using social technologies during internship

Social technologies such as social networking sites, Wikis and blogs have gained popularity not only in social communication but also in other areas, such as in enhancing learning experience among students in tertiary education. This study investigated how blogs and Facebook scaffolded students’ learning during their internships in tertiary education. A mix-method approach was employed to examine students’ perceptions of blogs and Facebook in improving their internship learning experience. The results showed that blogs and Facebook encouraged students and facilitated their engagement in problem solving, information sharing and knowledge construction during their internships. In particular, Facebook showed more promising results, assisting students in reflecting on their experiences. Moreover, students acknowledged that Facebook was a better platform for online interaction and collaborative learning than blogs. This study provides empirical evidence for the use of social media tools in pedagogical scaffolding and collaborative learning during internships.

     

Membership,participation and knowledge building in virtual communities for informal learning

This paper reports on a study involving the design of a virtual community for informal learning about Thai herbs. The community relied on social networking tools and a database of expert knowledge as well as community coordinators. One group of coordinators (Community A) concentrated efforts in recruitment of members on those individuals most likely to be interested in Thai herbs. The second group of coordinators (Community B) recruited from among friends, family and acquaintances. Analysis and t‐tests of measurement of membership, participation and knowledge building revealed higher rates for Community A. Results pertaining to the design of the virtual community, which showed that members mostly used the database, provide evidence to support the hypothesis that members' access to expert knowledge positively influences participation and knowledge building in a virtual community for informal learning. Results of the comparison of Community A versus Community B provide evidence to support the hypothesis that interest in the subject of the community positively influences membership, participation and knowledge building in a virtual community for informal learning.     

Facebook group dynamics: an ethnographic study of the teaching and learning potential for secondary school teachers

ABSTRACT

This study examines the role of social networking sites on the learning processes, teaching practices and professional development of secondary school teachers. By conducting observations and in-depth interviews with active participants, we present an ethnographic study of the Facebook group Teaching ideas secondary education [author’s translation], which is hosted and primarily employed by Flemish teachers. By drawing parallels between the study findings and the theory of affinity spaces we aim to gain greater insight into emerging group dynamics and social informal learning processes. According to respondents, the Facebook group has the potential to address teachers’ needs with respect to the exchange of teaching ideas, experiences and materials. The findings point to a number of emerging developments in the educational landscape, highlighting that social media environments present a new source of inspiration, and combined with a collaborative atmosphere are able to stimulate cross-fertilization, social informal learning processes and self-management and -reflection. We hold these findings up to the light of current education discourses.     

Social Networking: Boundaries and Limits Part 1: Ethics

The number of educators, administrators, and institutions that utilize social networking has increased dramatically. Many have adopted social networking in order to be up-to-date and connected with their students’ learning beyond the boundaries of the classroom. However, this increase in the use of social networking in academia presents many potential issues. In this paper, we address the growing prevalence of social networking in education and some of the issues. Next, we use social role theory to explore some pitfalls for educators using social networking. Finally, we suggest that foundational ethical principles from the field of psychology can provide a basis for developing guiding principles for use of social networking in education.     

Educational use of social networking technology in higher education

This study explored how social networking technology can be used to supplement face-to-face courses as a means of enhancing students' sense of community and, thus, to promote classroom communities of practice in the context of higher education. Data were collected from 67 students who enrolled in four face-to-face courses at two public universities in Taiwan. Findings indicated that the majority of participants developed strong feelings of social connectedness and expressed favorable feelings regarding their learning experiences in the classes where social networking sites were used as a supplementary tool. Learner difficulties and concerns of instructors about the educational use of social media are addressed with recommendations for future research and practice.     

Net generation at social software: Challenging assumptions,clarifying relationships and raising implications for learning

This paper takes as its starting point assumptions about use of information and communication technology (ICT) by people born after 1983, the so called net generation. The focus of the paper is on social networking. A questionnaire survey was carried out with 1070 students from schools in Eastern Finland. Data are presented on students’ ICT-skills generally; their access to the Internet; their use of social software; and time spent on the Internet compared to watching television. Results show that whereas there are some general characteristics of ICT use that can be applied to net generation students, when it comes to social networking there are differences in the way they use software. A critique is offered of generalisations about the net generation and some implications for learning arising from the findings are discussed.     

Digital Literacies Go to School: A Cross-Case Analysis of the Literacy Practices Used in a Classroom-Based Social Network Site

The authors, working from a new literacies studies perspective, suggest that educators can better teach their students if they develop their own knowledge of the purposes, types, and language conventions students use in their informal out-of-school literacy practices. The purpose of this study was to identify the literacy practices used in a classroom-based social network site and determine how these practices reflect digital literacies. By connecting differences in the literacy practices of three fifth-grade girls to the instructional moves made by classroom teachers, the authors were able to identify and describe how classroom teachers unintentionally marginalized the kinds of digital literacies that are valued in the larger society. Findings point to the importance of creating online identities for establishing relationships in a social networking site and a need for teachers to model ways to shift language use when engaging in different writing contexts.     

Facebook: a potentially valuable educational tool?

This paper is concerned with the educational value of Facebook and specifically how it can be used in formal educational settings. As such, it provides a review of existing literature of how Facebook is used in higher education paying emphasis on the scope of its use and the outcomes achieved. As evident in existing literature, Facebook has been used mainly for social networking purposes through the establishment and collaboration of social groups in educational settings. However, a set of recent studies has exemplified how Facebook can provide an empowering means for achieving educational goals and supporting students develop crucial skills (e.g., writing, networking, collaborating) by serving as members in various learning communities. Concluding, we argue that Facebook can provide a valuable pedagogical tool that enhances student learning. Hence, future research towards further exploring Facebook’s use in educational settings is warranted for the purpose of producing scientific evidence about the ways in which Facebook could be utilized to enhance learning.     

360° Folio Networking: Enhancing Advising Interactions and Expanding Mentoring Opportunities with ePortfolios

This article examines how students can use the ePortfolio tool and platform to facilitate and foster increased opportunities for interactions with formal academic advisors and informal mentors. The learning documented within an ePortfolio can be especially useful as a resource for advisors and mentors who are looking not only to connect with their students in meaningful and relevant ways, but who also seek to understand their advisees' backgrounds and interests in order to better guide and support them along their academic journey. Drawing on theories from advising, mentoring, social networking, and communities of practice, the 360° folio networking framework proposed explains the enhanced advising interactions and expanded mentoring opportunities that result when applied to ePortfolios. Examples from several institutions illustrating how ePortfolios have been integrated into advising and mentoring programs are explored.     

关于在校园网中建立学习型SNS社区的思考

随着网络、社交网络的日益成熟发展,学校教育与网络相结合、师生学习社交关系圈形成的新型教育模式,将是成人学习的新型模式。在校园网中建立学习型SNS社区,可为教师与教师、教师与学生、学生与学生之间的交流提供更好的平台,可以为学生营造出自主、协作的学习氛围,更好地完成学习任务,为教师打造专业平台,快捷知识和观点分享。如何利用学生的网络活跃性和群居性为教学服务,是目前学校网络建设与发展的热点、创新点。在校园网中建立学习型的SNS社区网站就是一个新的探索。     

Using Web 2.0 for learning in the community

This paper describes the use of a range of Web 2.0 technologies to support the development of community for a newly formed Land Trust on the Isle of Lewis, in NW Scotland. The application of social networking tools in text, audio and video has several purposes: informal learning about the area to increase tourism, community interaction, ‘ownership’ of the Trust's website and pride in the local landscape. The paper provides background theory related to informal learning and Web 2.0 technologies and describes an innovative application of them to a sparsely populated rural community.     

Learning and engagement through natural history museums*

This review examines how natural history museums (NHMs) can enhance learning and engagement in science, particularly for school-age students. First, we describe the learning potential of informal science learning institutions in general, then we focus on NHMs. We review the possible benefits of interactions between schools and NHMs, and the potential for NHMs to teach about challenging issues such as evolution and climate change and to use digital technologies to augment more traditional artefacts. We conclude that NHMs can provide students with new knowledge and perspectives, with impacts that can last for years. Through visits and their on-line presence, NHMs can help students see science in ways that the school classroom rarely can, with opportunities to meet scientists, explore whole topic exhibitions, engage with interactive displays and employ digital technologies both in situ and to support learning in the school science classroom. Although these interactions have the potential to foster positive cognitive, affective and social outcomes for students, there is a lack of reliable measures of the impact of NHM experiences for students. Opportunities to foster relationships between NHM staff and teachers through professional development can help articulate shared goals to support students’ learning and engagement.