Social networking and education – a critical perspective

This presentation explores recent findings on the educational potential of social networking - both in terms of learners' informal uses of social networking, and the application of SNS in formal learning settings. The presentation considers the learning that can accrue from learner use of social networking sites, and asks whether they have a legitimate role to play in extending learning beyond the boundaries of the institution. For instance, do learners welcome the incursion of schools, universities and colleges into ‘TheirSpace’? What impact is this having on their experiences and expectations? Can social networking sites be said to introducing a new element of sociability into twenty-first century learning?

Neil Selwyn is sociologist working at the London Knowledge Lab in the UK. His research and teaching focuses on the place of digital media in everyday life, and the sociology of technology (non)use in educational settings. He has written extensively on a number of issues, including digital exclusion, education technology policymaking and the student experience of technology-based learning.