Informal learning through Facebook among Slovenian pupils

Abstract

Since existing research has failed to consider how primary school pupils use Facebook for informal learning and to enhancing social capital, we attempted to fill this research gap by conducting 60 in-depth interviews and think-aloud sessions with Slovenian primary school pupils. Furthermore, we used content analysis to evaluate their Facebook profiles. The results of the study show that Slovenian pupils regularly use Facebook for informal learning. Pupils are aware that they use Facebook for learning and they use it primarily as social support, which is seen as exchanging practical information, learning about technology, evaluation of their own and other people's work, emotional support, organising group work and communicating with teachers. In using Facebook, pupils acquire bridging and bonding social capital; they maintain an extensive network of weak ties that are a source of bridging capital, and deeper relationships that provide them with emotional support and a source of bonding capital. Key differences between the participants were found in the expression of emotional support. Female participants are more likely to use Facebook for this purpose, and more explicitly express their emotions. This study also showed that our participants saw a connection between the use of Facebook and the knowledge and skills they believed their teachers valued in school. RESUMENTeniendo en cuenta que la investigación ha descuidado el estudio de cómo los alumnos de primaria hacen uso de Facebook para el aprendizaje informal y cómo potencia el capital social, el presente trabajo intenta llenar dicho vacío con sesenta entrevistas en profundidad y el protocolo de pensamientos en voz alta con alumnos de escuelas primarias eslovenas. Para analizar el perfil de Facebook también incluimos un análisis de contenido. Los resultados del estudio demuestran que los alumnos eslovenos con frecuencia utilizan Facebook para el aprendizaje informal. El estudio no solo muestra que los estudiantes son conscientes del uso de Facebook para el aprendizaje y lo utilizan en primer lugar como apoyo social, sino también ofrece muestras de intercambio práctico de información, aprendizaje de tecnología, (auto)evaluación, apoyo emocional, organización de grupo de trabajo y comunicación con los profesores. Con el uso de Facebook, los estudiantes adquieren competencias relacionales y vinculación de capital social, pues mantienen una amplia red de lazos débiles, capaz de generar relaciones más profundas con apoyo emocional y fuentes de unión. Las principales diferencias entre los participantes se refieren a la expresión del apoyo emocional. Las participantes femeninas prefieren Facebook para dichos fines y expresan con más habilidad sus emociones. El estudio muestra además que nuestros participantes perciben una conexión entre el uso de Facebook y el conocimiento y destrezas que ellos pensaban que sus profesores valoraban en la escuela.

Is Facebook still a suitable technology‐enhanced learning environment? An updated critical review of the literature from 2012 to 2015

“…Pedagogies of participation also foster distributed and locally based forms of evaluation and assessment (Downes, ). The role of social media and social networking sites in youths' informal learning settings has been thoroughly investigated (Erjavec, ; Greenhow & Robelia, ; Ranieri & Bruni, ; Russo, Watkins, & Groundwater‐Smith, ). According to these studies, social network sites can enhance informal learning in contexts such as museums, libraries and galleries.…”

“…The latter offers young people agency previously unavailable to become active participants in cultural production (Russo et al, ). Erjavec () explored how primary school pupils use Facebook for informal learning primarily as social support. Through an extensive network of ties, relying on bridging and bonding social capital, pupils exchange practical information, learn about technology, evaluate their own and other people's work, gain emotional support, organize group work and communicate with teachers.…”

Analysis of Alienation in Informal Education: Media Skepticism and Spiral of Silence in the Network Society

“…These negative effects are exemplified as creating grounds for sexting and cyberbullying, creating privacy violations, creating internet addiction, causing problems that affect physical and mental health such as depression and concurrent sleep deprivation (O'Keeffe and Clarke-Pearson, 2011), adversely affecting academic performance, decreasing literacy standards and creating threats to social values (Erjavec, 2013). According to Erjavec (2013), among all these positive and negative effects, the most remarkable is the positive effect on cognitive development. Social media networks are an effective learning platform that supports the information production processes of individuals and is based on social constructivism and co-constructivism approaches.…”

“…Facebook is one of the social networks that provide meaningful opportunities in this regard. When the literature is examined, there are studies evaluating Facebook as an informal learning environment (Erjavec, 2013;Madge, Meek, Wellens and Hooley, 2009;Vivian, 2011). When Facebook is viewed as an informal learning tool, it is a platform for learners to gain experience and achievements in their learning activities.…”

Usos, apropiaciones y nuevas prácticas comunicativas de los usuarios adolescentes de facebook

“…Además, las investigaciones relacionadas con las redes sociales, especialmente con el Facebook, a nivel general, se han dirigido principalmente a conocer: los tiempos de uso (Vishwanath, 2015;Zaremohzzabieh et al, 2014;Gadekar, Krishnatray, & Gaur, 2012); las relaciones interpersonales entre usuarios (Sheldon, 2008;Scott, 2014;Utz & Beukeboom, 2011;Ball, Wanzer, & Servoss, 2013;Tang et al, 2014;Hong et al, 2014); los contenidos que publican e intercambian los jóvenes (Di Próspero, 2011) y adicciones que pueden generar (Tang, et al, 2014). Con respecto a las redes sociales y el contexto educativo, se pueden mencionar investigaciones sobre su uso en la escuela (Francois, Hebbani, & Rintel, 2013), en universidades (Piscitelli, Adaime, & Binder, 2010;Erjavec, 2013;Ha, & Shin, 2014); y las relaciones profesor-estudiante (Coffelt, Strayhorn, & Tillson, 2014).…”