Examination and learning: an activity‐theoretical analysis of the relationship between assessment and educational practice

The backwash effect of assessment on learning is widely acknowledged. This article discusses the impact of assessment on learning in a wider sense, by focusing on how assessment drives not only student learning, but also the teaching practices, the designing of educational programmes and the production of learning material. The focus is on how assessment affects education at a system level and the article conceptualizes the backwash effect of assessment on learning from a systemic perspective. Activity theory, as developed by Engeström (1987 Engeström Y (1987) Learning by expanding. An activity‐theoretical approach to developmental research (Helsinki, Orienta‐Konsultit Oy)  [Google Scholar]), is used as a framework to conceptualize this systemic affect of assessment. The empirical basis for the analysis is an ethnographic study of the compulsory preparatory course in philosophy, logics and philosophy of science at the University of Oslo.     

Learning through boundary‐crossing: further education lecturers learning in both the university and workplace

This paper reports on a research project that sought to gain a deeper understanding of the contribution that universities make to the professional learning of teachers. The particular case studied was a group of learners who were engaged in an in‐service teacher education course for further education (FE) whilst also working as lecturers in FE colleges in Scotland. The paper develops the narrative of learning across boundaries (Saunders 2006 Saunders, M. 2006. From ‘organisms’ to ‘boundaries’: The uneven development of theory narratives in education, learning and work connections.. Journal of Education and Work, 19: 1–27. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]) drawing on the work of Engeström (1987 Engeström, Y. 1987. Learning by expanding: An activity‐theoretical approach to developmental research, Helsinki: Orienta‐Konsultit. [Crossref] [Google Scholar], 2001 Engeström, Y. 2001. Expansive learning at work: Toward an activity theoretical reconceptualisation.. Journal of Education and Work, 14: 133–56. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]). The claim made is that the learning that takes place across the boundary of the workplace and university has the possibility of helping learners to resolve issues that the workplace alone does not provide them with the resources to resolve.

Cet article fait un compte‐rendu sur un projet de recherche dont le but était d'approfondir les connaissances sur la contribution des universités à la formation professionelle des professeurs. Le cas particulier qu'on a étudié était un groupe d'apprenants qui ont suivi un cours de formation d'enseignement professionnelle en travaillent commme professeurs dans des centres d'enseignement professionnel. L'article se déroule la narration d'apprentissage à travers les frontières (Saunders 2006 Saunders, M. 2006. From ‘organisms’ to ‘boundaries’: The uneven development of theory narratives in education, learning and work connections.. Journal of Education and Work, 19: 1–27. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]) et d'après les recherches d'Engstrom (1987 Engeström, Y. 1987. Learning by expanding: An activity‐theoretical approach to developmental research, Helsinki: Orienta‐Konsultit. [Crossref] [Google Scholar], 2001 Engeström, Y. 2001. Expansive learning at work: Toward an activity theoretical reconceptualisation.. Journal of Education and Work, 14: 133–56. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]). On prétend que la connaissance qu'on a produit à travers des frontières du lieu de travail et de l'université pourrait aider les étudiants à résoudre des problèmes qu'ils ne pourraient pas résoudre en travaillant seulement.

Este trabajo presenta un proyecto de investigación que ha buscado una comprensión más detallada sobre la contribución aportada por la universidad al aprendizaje profesional del profesorado. El trabajo ha estudiado un grupo de alumnos que participaron en un curso avanzado de educación mientras trabajaban como profesores en institutos de enseñanza en Escocia. El estudio desarrolla la temática del aprendizaje a través de límites (Saunders 2006 Saunders, M. 2006. From ‘organisms’ to ‘boundaries’: The uneven development of theory narratives in education, learning and work connections.. Journal of Education and Work, 19: 1–27. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]) inspirándose en el trabajo de Engeström (1987 Engeström, Y. 1987. Learning by expanding: An activity‐theoretical approach to developmental research, Helsinki: Orienta‐Konsultit. [Crossref] [Google Scholar], 2001 Engeström, Y. 2001. Expansive learning at work: Toward an activity theoretical reconceptualisation.. Journal of Education and Work, 14: 133–56. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]). La reivindicación hecha es que el aprendizaje que tiene lugar a través del límite del lugar de trabajo y la universidad tiene la posibilidad de ayudar a los alumnos en resolver asuntos en que el lugar de trabajo por si solo no puede proveerles con los recursos para su resolución.

Dieser Artikel berichtet die Resultate eines Forschungsprojektes, dass zu verstehen versuchte, was Universitäten zum professionellen Lernen von Lehrern beitragen. Ein Gruppe von Studenten wurder untersucht, die in Schottland an Berufsschulen unterrichteten und gleichzeitig an einem Weiterbildungskurs fuer Lehrkräfte an der Universität teilnahmen. Der Artikel ist auf der Arbeit von Engström basiert und konzentriert sich auf Lernen, das über Grenzen hinweg stattfindet (Saunders) (in unserem Fall Arbeitsplatz und Universität). Wir behaupten, dass das solches Lernen grössere Moeglichkeiten bietet, Probleme zu lösen, als Lernen, welches nur am Arbeitsplatz stattfindet.     

The role of postgraduate students in co-authoring open educational resources to promote social inclusion: a case study at the University of Cape Town

Like many universities worldwide, the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa has joined the open educational resources (OER) movement, making a selection of teaching and learning materials available through its OER directory, UCT OpenContent. However, persuading and then supporting busy academics to share their teaching materials as OER still remains a challenge. In this article, we report on an empirical study of how UCT postgraduate students have assisted in the process of reworking the academics’ teaching materials as OER. Using the concept of contradictions (Engeström, 2001 Engeström, Y. 2001. Expansive learning at work: Toward an activity theoretical reconceptualization. Journal of Education and Work, 14: 133–156. doi:10.1080/713677004[Taylor & Francis Online] , [Google Scholar]), we endeavor to surface the various disturbances or conflicts with which the postgraduate students had to engage to make OER socially inclusive, as well as Engeström’s “layers of causality” (2011, p. 609) to explain postgraduate students’ growing sense of agency as they experienced the OER development process as being socially inclusive.     

Working within and against neoliberal accreditation agendas: opportunities for Professional Experience

Over the past decade in Australia, a neo‐liberal political climate has delivered to universities and schools increasing expectations concerning accountability and conformity within professional standards frameworks. This has contributed to growing pressure around Professional Experience programs within teacher education. In light of such accountability agendas, this paper analyses impacts arising from the emergence of institutions such as the New South Wales Institute of Teachers. In response to an insistent discourse of ‘partnerships’, it draws on the work of Lave and Wegner (1991 Lave, J. and Wegner, E. 1991. Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Crossref] [Google Scholar]), as well as Engeström (1999 Engeström, Y. 1999. “Activity Theory and individual and social transformation.”. In Perspectives on Activity Theory, Edited by: Engeström, Y, Miettinen, R and Punamäki, R.‐L. 19–38. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. [Crossref] [Google Scholar]), to pose a reconceptualised model of Professional Experience based on the concept of Activity Systems. An approach to partnerships that structures Professional Experience in schools around the notion of ‘communities of learning’ is presented. By shifting power relations and roles around Professional Experience, it is claimed a co‐learning environment that more effectively and concurrently attends to the professional learning needs of student teachers, as well as those of practising teachers, can be developed.     

Why use learning outcomes in higher education? Exploring the grounds for academic resistance and reclaiming the value of unexpected learning

Learning outcomes are now mandated in higher education courses across Europe. However, their impact on teaching and student learning is both uncertain and an issue for debate. In this paper, we explore (1) what is meant by learning outcomes in diverse contexts and (2) whether policy and practice governing learning outcomes accord with developments in learning theories, especially regarding sociocultural approaches that have drawn significant interest since the 1990s (Engeström 1987; Lave and Wenger 1991). Shepard’s (Educational Researcher, 29(7), 4–14, 2000) publication is particularly salient to our examination due to her identification of an emerging paradigm to assist in the understanding of the relationships among teaching, learning and assessment. Employing recent work on conceptualisations of learning outcomes and a four-quadrant taxonomy (Prøitz in Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 22(2), 119–137, 2010, 2014), we discuss relevant learning theory approaches. This article is a conceptual investigation exploring the grounds for the assumption that learning can be predefined in terms of (expected) outcomes. Specifically, we discuss this assumption from the perspective of recent developments in learning theories. We argue that introducing learning outcomes predominantly for policy and management purposes may actually weaken the learning outcomes’ potential to direct teaching and learning and to improve the quality of both.     

The role of the ‘Other’ in reflection,knowledge formation and action in a late modernity

Reflection has long been an aspiration in education, from Aristotle’s Nicamachean Ethics, through Bacon’s (1605 Bacon, F. 1605. The Advancement of Learning, London: Everyman.  [Google Scholar]) Advancement of Learning and later articulated by John Dewey. Schön’s reflective practitioner underpins the ethos in the professional training of teachers in the UK. This paper reviews approaches to reflection in learning and argues that we require a model of learning sensitive to the complex interaction between theory, practice and reflection that take place in social contexts and relationships with others. Following a critical review of the literature it argues for a social model of experiential learning connecting themes in contemporary social theory. The paper considers learning in sociological and philosophical terms rather than as simply a cognitive or psychological process.     

Perceptions of Barriers Concerning Effective Online Teaching and Policies: Florida Community College Faculty

This study's purpose was to examine the perceptions of Florida's full-time community college faculty members who teach by distance learning concerning the ten policy areas set forth by Berge and Muilenburg (2000 Berge , Z. L. & Muilenburg , L. Y. ( June 2000 ). Barriers to distance education as perceived by managers and administrators . In M. Clay (Ed.), Distance Learning Administration Annual 2000 . Callaway Gardens , GA : Routledge . Retrieved May 3, 2001, from http://www.gl.umbc.edu/~berge/man_admin.html  [Google Scholar]). Focus group sessions indicated that faculty members felt certain barriers related to their online experiences. Faculty time and compensation, which deals with how much time faculty members spend and how much they are compensated, seemed to be the greatest barrier while access seemed to cause faculty members the least amount of concern. But factors such as training, size of the institutions, and complexity of the programs seemed to play a role in their perceptions.     

Creating a Teaching and Learning Environment in Criminal Justice Courses that Promotes Higher Order Thinking∗

Active learning techniques have long been shown to increase the extent to which students are able to think critically about problems and solutions to them. The extant research suggests that efforts to engage students in higher order thinking should extend beyond the typical setting in which the more advanced students are introduced to active learning techniques. White and Frederiksen (2000 White, B. Y. and Frederiksen, J. R. 2000. “Metacognitive Facilitation: An Approach To Making Scientific Inquiry Accessible to All.”. In Inquiry into Learning and Teaching in Science, Edited by: Minstrell, J. L. and Van‐Zee, E. H. 331–70. Washington, DC: American Association for the Advancement of Science.  [Google Scholar]) have found that most students, regardless of achievement levels, can reach a higher order thinking level when they are encouraged to do so. This paper explores several issues associated with active learning techniques in the general sense and then uses examples to demonstrate how such techniques can and are being used on the criminal justice classroom. The pros and cons of using active learning techniques are also discussed.     

Student Characteristics That Predict Persistence in Community College Online Courses

Abstract

This study examined the student characteristics of learning style, locus of control, computer experience and access, and online course experience on persistence of community college students in online courses. An online survey instrument based on the Barsch Learning Style Inventory (1996 Barsch, J. 1996. Barsch learning style inventory, Novato, CA: Academic Therapy Publications.  [Google Scholar]), the Abbreviated Measure of Internal–External Locus of Control (1974), and a computer experience scale that was developed by the researchers was completed by 225 students enrolled in online courses at five Florida community colleges. Logistic regression analysis identified a three-variable model (auditory learning style, grade point average, and basic computer skills) that was significant in predicting online student success. Academic and student support interventions are suggested for community college students who may be affected by these predictors.     

Ruffling the calm of the ocean floor: merging practice,policy and research in assessment in Scotland

The formative Assessment for Learning proposals outlined by Black and Wiliam (e.g. Black et al., 2002 Black P Harrison C Lee C Marshall B Wiliam D 2002 Working inside the black box: assessment for learning in the classroom (London, King's College)  [Google Scholar]) have been well publicised. Since 2002, in its Assessment is for Learning programme, the Scottish Executive Education Department (SEED) has been exploring ways of bringing research, policy and practice in assessment into closer alignment using research on both assessment and transformational change. This paper focuses on one project within Assessment Is for Learning, in which pilot primary and secondary schools across Scotland were encouraged to develop formative assessment approaches in classrooms. They were supported in this by researchers, curriculum developers and local and national policy‐makers. The paper examines the rationale and methods behind the enactment of formative assessment in these schools. It draws upon evidence provided by the interim and final reports of participating schools to draw conclusions about areas of success within the project and potential barriers to the project's future in its evolution from pilot to national programme.     

‘Revisiting’ the South Pacific approaches to learning: a confirmatory factor analysis study

There has been substantial research evidence concerning the learning approaches of students in Western and non‐Western contexts. Nonetheless, it has been a decade since research in the South Pacific was conducted on the learning approaches of tertiary students. The present research examined the learning approaches of Fijian and other Pacific Islands students enrolling in a professional‐based education course at the University of the South Pacific. Biggs’ (1987 Biggs, J. 1987. Student approaches to learning and studying, Melbourne: Australian Council for Educational Research.  [Google Scholar]) Study Process Questionnaire was revised to suit the social and cultural contexts before it was distributed among 159 undergraduate students. Exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis did not support the theoretical framework of a three‐factor model (Biggs, 1987 Biggs, J. 1987. Student approaches to learning and studying, Melbourne: Australian Council for Educational Research.  [Google Scholar]) and, instead, indicated the existence of a two first‐factor model, emphasising two major types of learning approach – reproducing and meaning (Richardson, 1994 Richardson, J.T.E. 1994. Cultural specificity of approaches to studying in higher education. Higher Education, 27: 449–468. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] [Google Scholar]). The study’s findings suggest that educators should ensure that assessment and other teaching learning components are aligned constructively to promote the appropriate approach of learning.     

Unpacking Legality Through La Facultad and Cultural Citizenship: Critical and Legal Consciousness Formation for Politicized Latinx Undocumented Youth Activists

Over the last ten years, there has been an increasingly growing body of scholarship devoted to undocumented college students in higher education. Prior scholarship has focused on how undocumented students negotiate their political and civic identity within the undocumented youth movement. However, immigration research within higher education has not addressed how undocumented students come to understand their legal consciousness. I intersect legal consciousness with Anzaldúa's (1987 Anzaldúa, G. (1987). Borderlands/La frontera: The new mestiza. San Francisco, CA: Aunt Lute Books. [Google Scholar]) la facultad/nepantla and cultural citizenship theory (Rosaldo, 1987 Rosaldo, R. (1987). Cultural citizenship concept paper, IUP Latino cultural studies working group. Stanford: Stanford University. [Google Scholar]) to frame the process of how politicized Latinx¹1. I use Latinx as an attempt to decolonize the Spanish language, center indigeneity and the African roots of Latinx peoples, and neutralize gender (Villalobos, 2015 Villalobos, J. (2015). Applying White followership in campus organizing: A leadership tool for Latinx students working for racial justice. In A. Lozano (Ed.), Latina/o College Student Leadership: Emerging theory, promising practices. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman &; Littlefield. [Google Scholar]). undocumented students come to hone their critical legal consciousness within the context of higher education and social activism. Using data from 39 individual interviews with 13 undocumented student activists who self-identified as “undocumented and unafraid,” the findings reveal four forms of navigation for how undocumented students come to understand their legal consciousness as they negotiate colonized spaces: (a) reconfiguring legality though migration and family experiences; (b) negotiating contexts and disclosure; (c) critical enactment of cultural citizenship; and (d) disrupting and reclaiming colonized spaces.     

The adaptation of Chinese international students to online flexible learning: two case studies

The cross‐cultural experiences of Chinese international students in Western countries have been subject to intensive research, but only a very small number of studies have considered how these students adapt to learning in an online flexible delivery environment. Guided by Berry’s acculturation framework (1980 Berry, J.W. 1980. “Acculturation as varieties of adaptation”. In Acculturation, theory, models, and some new findings, Edited by: Padilla, A. 9–25. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.  [Google Scholar], 2005 Berry, J.W. 2005. Acculturation: Living successfully in two cultures. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 29(6): 697–712.  [Google Scholar]), the investigation discussed in this article aimed to address this gap by exploring the adaptation processes of Chinese international students to online learning at an Australian university. This article reports on the challenges perceived by two students from Mainland China, their coping strategies, changes in their opinions of online learning, and their respective patterns of adaptation. By presenting two indicative case studies drawn from a wider study, this article aims to demonstrate the use of Berry’s concepts as a means to frame such studies.     

Multistage Computerized Adaptive Testing With Uniform Item Exposure

This article describes a computerized adaptive test (CAT) based on the uniform item exposure multi-form structure (uMFS). The uMFS is a specialization of the multi-form structure (MFS) idea described by Armstrong, Jones, Berliner, and Pashley (1998 Armstrong, R. D., Jones, D. H., Berliner, N. and Pashley, P. June 1998. Computerized adaptive tests with multiple form structures, June, Champaign-Urbana, IL: Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Psychometric Society.  [Google Scholar]). In an MFS CAT, the examinee first responds to a small fixed block of items. The items comprising that block may be unrelated to each other, or they may comprise a testlet (Wainer and Kiely, 1987 Wainer, H. and Kiely, G. L. 1987. Item clusters and computerized adaptive testing: A case for testlets. Journal of Educational Measurement, 24: 185–201. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) After the first block of items has been administered, adaptation takes place in the choice of the next block to be administered and subsequent blocks. The uMFS design integrates item exposure control, as well as content balancing and other test development needs, into the design of the CAT, instead of placing those activities in the online implementation. We show that it is possible to implement item exposure control, in a very thorough way, in the psychometric specifications of the item blocks.     

Constructing men who teach: research into care and gender as productive of the male primary teacher

This paper argues that in order to begin loosening the ties that bind care and gender in primary education, we need to re-examine the knowledge sought and found by educational research about teachers. The focus is primarily on how we understand men who teach. Through an examination of two scholarly texts – Ashley, M., and J. Lee [2003 Ashley, M., and J. Lee. 2003. Women Teaching Boys: Caring and Working in the Primary School. Stoke-on-Trent: Trentham. [Google Scholar]. Women Teaching Boys: Caring and Working in the Primary School. Stoke-on-Trent: Trentham] and King, J. [1998 King, J. 1998. Uncommon Caring: Learning from Men Who Teach Young Children. New York: TCP. [Google Scholar]. Uncommon Caring: Learning from Men Who Teach Young Children. New York: TCP] – I argue that we must be mindful that our research can effectively produce and reiterate common-sense understandings of men that binds them to the hegemonic masculine ideal. It is argued that mixed-method qualitative research that untangles the layers of context influencing the lives of men who teach is important. The paper also suggests that the study of male teachers' emotions, as at once individual and social, and private and public, can disrupt the rational–emotional binary that cements care to gender and reveal new configurations of the gender order.     

Teaching Reflective Practice: Implementation in the Teacher-Education Setting

Over the past several decades a growing amount of research has considered the role, challenges, and complexities of teaching reflective inquiry to preservice teachers. Generally accepted as a valuable component of a teacher education program, there are persistent levels of ambiguity regarding how reflective inquiry can be intentionally fostered during initial stages of teacher preparation. This qualitative research study seeks to provide one exemplar of this promising practice by exploring the instructional approaches used to promote reflective inquiry in preservice teachers by a veteran teacher educator from Niagara University, NY. Using participant observer research protocols, data were collected and analyzed according to qualitative research methodologies (Spradley, 1980 Spradley, J. A. 1980. Participant observation New York, NY: Holt Rinehart and Winston..  [Google Scholar]). Grounded in the theories of Dewey (1935) and Schön (1983) Schön, D. 1983. The reflective practitioner: How professionals think in action New York, NY: Basic Books..  [Google Scholar], this study examines how the teacher educator studied created opportunities for preservice teachers to develop their reflective inquiry skills in a Methods of Secondary Education course. Advice for other teacher educators and implications for the greater teacher education community will be discussed.     

The Rise of Non-Traditional Site Use for Online Political Information

This article updates and clarifies what is known about where political information is gathered online. Some studies have found that the online sites of traditional media companies dominate online interest and marginalize non-traditional sites that present independent views, which damages the Internet's ability to provide diverse viewpoints (Blevins, 2001 Blevins , J. L. ( 2001 ). Counter-hegemonic media: Can cyberspace resist corporate colonization? In B. Ebo (Ed.), Cyberimperialism? Global relations in the new electronic frontier (pp. 139 – 151 ). Westport , CT : Praeger . [Google Scholar]; Dahlberg, 2005 Dahlberg , L. ( 2005 ). The corporate colonization of online attention and the marginalization of critical communication? Journal of Communication Inquiry , 29 , 160 – 180 . doi: doi: 10.1177/0196859904272745 [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]; Introna &; Nissenbaum, 2000 Introna , L. D. , &; Nissenbaum , H. F. ( 2000 ). Shaping the Web: Why the politics of search engines matters . Information Society , 16 , 169 – 185 . doi: doi: 10.1080/01972240050133634 [Taylor &; Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Other research shows a trend toward more non-traditional site use (Pew Research Center, 2009 Pew Research Center . ( 2009 , April 15 ). The Internet's role in campaign 2008 . Washington , DC : Pew Internet &; American Life Project . Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/6-The-Internets-Role-in-Campaign-2008.aspx  [Google Scholar]). This study uses survey data from political information gatherers during the 2008 Pew Research Center . ( 2008 , December 28 ). Internet overtakes newspapers as news outlet . Washington , DC : Pew Internet &; American Life Project . Retrieved from http://people-press.org/report/479/internet-overtakes-newspapersas-news-source  [Google Scholar] U.S. presidential campaign to measure how much traditional and non-traditional media sites dominated their attention and whether factors such as demographics, political interest, social ties, and use of offline media limited or contributed to that domination. The survey found that non-traditional sites controlled respondents' online attention as much as traditional media sites in terms of political information, and several factors contributed to accessing traditional and non-traditional media online.     

Categories as Rhetorical Barriers and the Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina

I explore the role of categories as rhetorical barriers in organizations responding to crisis (Veil, 2011 Veil, S. R. (2011). Mindful learning in crisis management. Journal of Business Communication, 48(2), 116–147. doi:10.1177/0021943610382294[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]). I analyze some problematic categories of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the categories’ impact on the organizations’ response to Hurricane Katrina. My analysis shows that unintended and perverse consequences (Giddens, 1984 Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press. [Google Scholar], 1987 Giddens, A. (1987). Social theory and modern sociology. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. [Google Scholar]) reversed the power of a key legitimated category (Orlikowski, 1995 Orlikowski, W. J. (1995). Categories: Concept, content, and context. Computer Supported Cooperative Work, 3, 73–78.[Crossref] , [Google Scholar]; Giddens, 1984 Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press. [Google Scholar]) and exposed a set of reified categories (Giddens, 1984 Giddens, A. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press. [Google Scholar]).     

Negotiating femininities online

Much has been written about the potential for online learning (Fryer, 1997 Fryer R (1997) Learning for the twenty first century (London, DfEE)  [Google Scholar]; www. ngfl.gov.uk/ngfl/index.html www.ngfl.gov.uk/ngfl/index.html  [Google Scholar]). However this literature typically emphasizes not online learning but online education. In this paper I focus on the potential for online learning, specifically learning about issues surrounding femininity in the presence of online peers, originally brought together through the medium of the Mindscape game ‘Babyz’. Members of ‘The Babyz Community’, as participants describe themselves, (www.angelfire.com www.angelfire.com  [Google Scholar]; www.mnBabyz.cjbnet www.mnBabyz.cjbnet  [Google Scholar]; www.Babyzrus.cjb.net www.Babyzrus.cjb.net  [Google Scholar]) gain experience in web site surfing and design, email, as well as opportunities to communicate worldwide. This paper, through an analysis of ‘Babyz’ software, affiliated web sites and forum interactions, provides an account of girls' links with each other and their presentations of multiple identities through the Internet.