This chapter examines how university students use social media for networked learning in school-related contexts, both student and instructor-initiated, as well as for personal and hobby-based learning or professional development. The study draws on interviews with 32 students, including a card-sort activity with think-aloud protocol designed to elicit data on how students engage in and perceive social media tasks. The findings show that participants were more likely to report limited networked learning activities on social media, usually associated with information-seeking to support formal learning. Learning interactions with other people were less frequent despite active social media use for other purposes such as socialization and entertainment. Specific platforms were used strategically and intentionally for different networked knowledge activities. Additionally, there were some networked knowledge activities that were infrequently used by participants. Essentially, the findings show a narrow imagining of social media use among participants, with latent opportunities to develop learning networks and engage in networked learning in the future. These findings have implications for higher education institutions, which might instill the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to fully activate networked knowledge activities in support of professional and lifelong networked learning.

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University Students and Networked Learning on Social Media: Approaches to Networked Knowledge Activities across Contexts

  • Vanessa P. Dennen,
  • Dan He

摘要

This chapter examines how university students use social media for networked learning in school-related contexts, both student and instructor-initiated, as well as for personal and hobby-based learning or professional development. The study draws on interviews with 32 students, including a card-sort activity with think-aloud protocol designed to elicit data on how students engage in and perceive social media tasks. The findings show that participants were more likely to report limited networked learning activities on social media, usually associated with information-seeking to support formal learning. Learning interactions with other people were less frequent despite active social media use for other purposes such as socialization and entertainment. Specific platforms were used strategically and intentionally for different networked knowledge activities. Additionally, there were some networked knowledge activities that were infrequently used by participants. Essentially, the findings show a narrow imagining of social media use among participants, with latent opportunities to develop learning networks and engage in networked learning in the future. These findings have implications for higher education institutions, which might instill the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to fully activate networked knowledge activities in support of professional and lifelong networked learning.