Commercial social media are being increasingly adopted in formal learning settings even though they have not been conceived specifically for education. Whereas highly popular social services like ...Facebook and Twitter have been thoroughly investigated for their benefits for teaching and learning in higher education, other social media platforms which have been gaining considerable attention among youth have been largely overlooked in scholarly literature. The purpose of this study is to fill that vacuum by analyzing whether and how social media platforms like Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat and WhatsApp have become an integral component of teaching and learning in higher education. A total of 46 studies are analyzed in terms of what pedagogical affordances of these four platforms they identify (e.g., mixing information and learning resources, hybridization of expertise, widening of the context of learning) and the benefits for learning that the authors go on to investigate. Results show that although the use of WhatsApp is well documented in a plethora of studies, there is a dearth of research about Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat. While more than half of the studies are carried out in the Middle East and Asian areas and investigate mostly benefits for second and foreign language learning, the overall geographical distribution of studies examining learning via social media reflects the preferences expressed for these services on the part of the general population. Moreover, it is found that the pedagogical affordances of social media are still only being partially implemented and that diverse social media exploit affordances to different degrees.
•Social media research continues to increase and attract growing scholarly interest•Prevalence of the number of WhatsApp studies over the other three services considered•Pinterest and Instagram studies still attract mild scholarly interest•Snapchat is the least investigated of the services considered•Geographical distribution reflects the preferences expressed by the general population in regard to single platforms
Informal online communities and networks offer teachers the possibility of voluntarily engaging in shared learning, reflecting about teaching practice and receiving emotional support. Bottom-up ...online communities and networks are an important source of professional development, although research around these social learning structures mainly consists in describing particular cases using a wide diversity of theoretical and methodological approaches. This review analyses the existing theoretical frameworks and methodological approaches, the main characteristics and practices of online communities and networks, as well as their principal repercussions in teacher professional development. A critical analysis of the emergent themes in the revised articles sheds light on eligible perspectives for further research.
•A variety of theoretical frameworks and methodological approaches have been used.•The communities and networks studied present a wide range of features.•Several social factors affect members' engagement and the evolution of participation.•Informal online communities and networks are a valued source of professional development.
This study provides an updated critical review of the literature on Facebook as a technology‐enhanced learning environment based on papers published between 2012 and 2015. It adopts a revised ...classification of the categories identified in a previous study, which emphasized three main Facebook affordances – mixing information and learning resources, hybridization of expertise and widening context of learning. The aim is to investigate to what extent studies using Facebook as a learning environment exploited these affordances. Literature has been also analysed according to three types of educational use of Facebook – formal use in formal learning settings (FUF), informal use in formal learning settings (IUF) and use in informal learning settings (UI) – to highlight if and how Facebook affordances have been exploited in these learning settings. Literature search identified 147 articles published in peer‐reviewed journals. The results show that most of the articles can be classified as dealing with FUF (N = 69; 46.9%) or as IUF (N = 68; 46.3%); only a minority concerns the UI (N = 10; 6.8%). Overall, the study found that Facebook pedagogical affordances are still partially implemented, although different types of educational use of Facebook exploit these affordances to different degrees. It also provides indications for future research.
Lay description
What is currently known about the subject matter:
Facebook still stands as the most popular social network site
There is an abundant research literature on Facebook
Studies on the educational value of Facebook have grown exponentially in the last years
A review on Facebook as a technology‐enhanced learning environment was published in 2013
What this paper adds:
This study is an update of the critical review published in 2013
It takes into account studies published between 2012 and 2015
It refines the methodology adopted in the 2013 review
It introduces a classification of educational uses of Facebook according to the formal/informal continuum
Implications of study findings for practitioners:
Facebook is still mostly considered as an open alternative to traditional learning management systems
Facebook pedagogical affordances are still partially implemented
Teacher guidance and forms of assessment are claimed according to degrees of formality and informality
Cultural issues in the use of Facebook in education should be further investigated
One side-effect of the COVID-19 pandemic has been increased enrollment in online classes. The paper explores the surge in activity from March through June 2020 in two massive open online classes ...(MOOCs) on Astronomy, offered by Coursera and Udemy. The increase in enrollment in both classes was an order of magnitude over the similar time span in previous years. Learners enrolling during the pandemic were more likely to be younger than thirty and less likely to have advanced degrees. A majority were full-time undergraduate students, and relatively few were professionals working in technical fields. The largest number of new students were from India and overall, the biggest surge in enrollment came from people in developing countries, particularly in Asia. Those who enrolled during the pandemic were more likely to take the course to get a certificate or to further their career goals than because they had intrinsic interest in the subject. Social motivations were important, particularly among full-time students in the course. These results, albeit limited to MOOCs in astronomy, suggest that new audiences have been turning to online classes during the pandemic for gaining credentials or advancing their professional skills.
In the modern world, digital technology is all around us and our ability to engage with it efficiently and productively has implications for our success as individuals and as a society. The idea that ...children should hone their digital literacy skills through formal schooling has been recognized by educators and policy makers alike. Before children enter schooling, however, there are now an increasing number of ways for children to begin to learn about computers, robots, and coding. In this research, we present a survey of 729 UK parents (approximately 56% Welsh) of children between 0 and 17 years and asked them to report on whether they and their child had experience with different kinds of digital technology, with a particular emphasis on computer coding. We found that children are outpacing their parents in terms of coding experience before they even turn eight-years-old. Children are generally engaged with digital technology and coding earlier than their parents were as children (e.g., over 70% of two-year-olds use smart devices; nearly 40% of 7-year-olds have experience coding). Logistic regression analyses indicate that boys are significantly more likely to have experience coding than girls and children with parents who have experience coding are significantly more likely to have experience coding themselves. Parents who placed a relatively higher value on STEM education were also more likely to report that their children had experience coding. These findings align with literature on science capital suggesting that there are societal discrepancies in children's exposure to and experiences in STEM subjects. We also found that children with reported experience coding are also reported to show more interest in coding and robotics. This makes the fact that we find differences in exposure to coding prior to formal schooling even more problematic, as the discrepancies seen in early childhood may build up in later years in terms of motivation, engagement, and interest. Taken together, the current research shines light on the positive finding that young children are engaging with coding at early ages, but it also identifies potential problem areas regarding the breadth of exposure and experience. It highlights the need to ensure that the divide between those with and without science capital does not widen, allowing all children the freedom to obtain digital literacy that will help foster a more advanced future.
•Modern children often gain their first experiences with computer coding prior to formal schooling.•Experience coding (parent report) is higher for older (vs younger) children and for boys (vs girls).•Experience coding (parent report) is higher for children whose parents have experience coding.•Experience coding (parent report) is higher for children of parents who value STEM more.
Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) have been increasingly used to support museum learning by creating engaging and appealing learning experiences. However, there is a lack of ...meta-analytic reviews of empirical studies in this field. This study reviewed 51 relevant studies to investigate (a) the situations in which AR and VR have been applied in museum learning (RQ1) and (b) how AR and VR are incorporated in museum learning (RQ2), and conducted a meta-analysis of 17 studies to examine the effects of these technologies on learning achievement (RQ3). The results reveal that AR and VR have been mostly used in science, arts, and history museums to support the learning of science and art with a focus on conceptual knowledge. Second, they were often used to superimpose supplementary materials onto physical exhibits, dynamically visualize complex phenomena or concepts, and simulate virtual exhibition and narrative scenarios. Mobile devices were more commonly used than head-mounted displays (HMDs) and others. Third, AR and VR have significant positive effects on academic achievement (ES = 0.45) and perceptions (ES = 0.59) in museum learning. A number of suggestions for future research arose from this review.
•AR/VR is increasingly used to support learning in science, art and history museums.•AR/VR is more often used to superimpose digital materials onto physical exhibits.•AR/VR is used to visualize complex phenomena or abstract concepts.•AR/VR is used to simulate virtual exhibition and narrative scenarios.•AR/VR in museum learning has positive effects on academic achievement and perception.
Internet and social media platforms such as YouTube are an emblem of information on demand, but, their educative value, especially for conceptually rich domains, such as science, remains unclear. ...Many people perceive YouTube as a good resource for learning about science, yet viewing many of the available videos can be akin to learning through transmission models, which are considered inferior when they are the sole form of instruction. The goal of this study was to examine whether YouTube's embedded feature of posting (post-video) comments could mitigate these limitations, and offer a potential educative added-value by opening opportunities for discussion and deliberation, which have been associated with deeper learning. Focusing on Science as a target domain, we examined 1530 post-video public comments from a corpus of leading science channels. We coded the comments for argumentative and knowledge construction moves, and tested whether particular moves led to higher-level knowledge construction. Our findings reveal that this informal setting reflected comments that went beyond information sharing to argumentative negotiation, reaching a higher level of knowledge construction, and yielding a greater proportion of such comments that have been found in previous studies within formal settings. This study demonstrates that YouTube can offer an informal space for science deliberation and a forum for collaborative interactions that have a potential to support life-long learning. Implications for future research are discussed.
•Web 2.0 and Social media offer productive resources for ongoing science learning.•Shared content on YouTube can be discussed in post-video comments threads.•Post-video comments create an opportunity for argumentative deliberation.•Collaborative deliberation in post-video comments is stimulated by disagreements.•Incorporation of grounds as part of a comment mediates constructive interactions.
Students' digital competencies are important for their academic performance. Although scholars have highlighted the importance of students' digital informal learning in developing their digital ...competence, the mediating role of digital informal learning between digital competence and academic performance have remained unexplored. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the mediating role of digital informal learning between higher education students' digital competence and their academic performance. The data were collected from 319 students from Shiraz University in Iran. Data were analysed using structural equation modeling via AMOS. The result showed a positive effect of the students' digital competence on their digital informal learning and academic performance. Moreover, digital informal learning as the mediator variable had a positive effect on the relationship between digital competence and students' academic performance. In conclusion, to improve students’ academic performance, educators and curriculum designers should consider both their digital competence and their digital informal learning.
•Relations among digital competence (DC), digital informal learning (DIL), and academic performance (AP) are explored.•Structural equation modeling was used to test our hypotheses.•DC directly and indirectly contributed to AP. DIL mediated the relation between DC and AP.•To improve students’ AP, educators and curriculum designers should consider both their DC and DIL.
Learning to code and to develop a range of digital skills has been purported to help nations remain economically competitive. Development of these skills has been touted as a way to prepare workers ...for tech jobs and increase their social mobility. However, this focus is quite narrow and does not recognize the benefits of learning to code beyond the economic benefits. In this paper, we present results from a qualitative study of ‘go_girl: code + create’, a multidisciplinary computing program that places the needs of marginalized young women, aged 16–21, who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) at its centre. This study, based on in-depth, semi-structured open-ended interviews of nine participants at the beginning, mid-point and end of the program, examines changes in the self-concepts of these participants. This study demonstrates the role technology can play in facilitating changes in self-concepts and contributes to studies that examine the identity/self-concept of young underrepresented women participating in computing initiatives. Qualitative content analysis was applied to the interview data which revealed enhanced self-concepts in relation to education, career aspirations and technology use over the duration of the program. Participants' aspirations were either broadened or clarified and they began to view themselves as makers and not merely consumers of technology.
•Coding and creating served as a conduit for strengthening academic self-concept•Technological, social and psychological empowerment facilitated social inclusion•Learning to code and create increased confidence and the capacity to aspire•Seeing the self as a creator (and not just a consumer) of tech was a salient outcome
Online gaming is becoming increasingly social and interconnected. Millions of players learn from each other in game-related communities on platforms like Reddit and Twitch.tv. However, few studies ...have been conducted to examine socially constructed learning in such environments. The purpose of this study was to explore learning in game-related communities using the Game Community of Inquiry Scale (GCoIS). GCoIS is a validated instrument inspired by the community of inquiry framework and developed for measuring constructed learning in these outlets. Over 1000 participants completed an online questionnaire that included the GCoIS and additional variables (e.g. demographics, gaming habits, and gaming metacognition) for measuring possible associations. Results pointed to gender, age, online participation, and metacognition about gaming as significant predictors of GCoIS. Findings suggest that gaming communities can serve as opportunities for meaningful learning when novice members are welcomed and assisted by experts and support is given to older and female gamers.
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