Group items tagged

Scroll down on this page to download the final report and case studies from a study that "examined the use of social software in the UK further and higher education sectors to collect evidence of the effective use of social software in enhancing student learning and engagement" (p. 9 of final report). For anyone considering boosting engagement through social media, this is a gold mine.

Hi Stephanie - Thanks for this! I just wrote in my mid-semester assignment that I need to find research about engagement through crowd-sourcing and social media in education! I've downloaded the report and can tell that with sentences like, "The results highlight the different pedagogical roles of social software: communication, nurturing creativity and innovation, and collaborative learning," you've definitely found great resources. ~ Leslie

Children who cannot pick up context and facial cues from peers more likely to face social isolation. I wonder if social gaming environments using avatars as virtual selves help or hinder a child's ability to pick up such social cues.

Social media and entertinment figures discuss how social media has changed the nature of consensus building, mass marketing and entertainment.

Hear MIT GAMBIT Lab experts talk about engagement in practical terms--and get some hands-on experience designing a board or video game. The three-hour workshops are part of the Cambridge Science Festival; this event takes place on April 28 and requires a $5 preregistration. Though I'm sure EMF will be touched on one way or another in all of the workshops, I thought the Serious Games for Social Change workshop might be of particular interest to you all: "In this workshop, best practice examples of serious games for social change will be played, discussed and analyzed. Furthermore ideas and sketches for proto-types will be developed and ways of realizing them will be discussed! The workshop gives the participants hands-on experiences and insights into the potential and limits of video games designed for social change. No pre-experiences are needed!"

Social studies teacher using entertainment videogames

This SOB used Facebook to explain his reasons for taking his son's and his own life. Make no mistake this guy has some serious issues. Still, it is noteworthy that Facebook and other social media outlets (youtube, flickr) have been used by the public and authorities to intervene and prosecute people that broadcast their criminal actions and intent. Think about it, George Orwell's vision of the future had the authorities constantly policing and monitoring citezens, but this has not been the case. Instead, we the people, ourselves are the ones monitoring each other via ubiquitous content creation and social media sharing.

Within five years, Yale-designed robots may be helping teach children. A Yale-led team of researchers from across the country received a $10 million grant from the National Science Foundation on April 3 to pursue the creation of "socially assistive robots" to help young children learn basic skills and in some cases overcome cognitive disabilities.

The article pointed out that the concept that the Internet would drive a singular global culture is false. In order to engage people in different countries or cultures with social networks, brands and content producers will need ever more localised strategies.

The Vatican embraces the use of digital media and social networks to promote dialogue among different communities, but cautions against "excessive exposure to the virtual world".

In 3 out of 5 of these games users work on quest-like activities - Wow is #5; Mafia Wars is #4 & Farmville is #1. The other 2 resemble typical socialization when playing a game in person - "bragging rights" and playing a board game. They all seem to touch on at least one of the 3 components from Ryan & Deci - relatedness, competence, and/or autonomy.

This game does a great job of incorporating the social aspect of gaming. In addition, Sokikom uses classroom management techniques to reward postive behavior through "class cash." It would be interesting to look at what behaviors are actually transferred into the classroom.

An hour long video by Ben Bederson on social MOOCs . highly recommended

Two faculty members test out social media (Twitter and Google+) in the classroom. They evaluate the pros/cons of using these technologies, admittedly not knowing if/how it affects learning outcomes yet.

Commentary about the tools we use for our online participation

Children with autism spectrum disorders enjoy screen time, underscoring an opportunity to use interactive devices to encourage social learning. Despite how much children who have autism enjoy the stimulation of a computer or mobile device, few engage in social media pursuits, such as emailing or chatting, researchers found.

Zuckerberg's letter accompanies Facebook's IPO. While there is no explicit mention of education, I think the letter is a must-read as we think about the function and possibilities of social media.

Very fun illustration of social media's impact on journalism

Social networking site for overweight people that breaks users into support teams that assist each other with mental and physical workouts.