Web 2.0 tools have transformed students’ social interactions. Can tools intended for social use be productively integrated into students’ formal learning?
LTG’s Thema project examines this question, as well as other aspects of students’ technology use, by investigating the learning experiences of students at Oxford University.
- How students’ use of technology changes during their course;
- The “significant moments” in students’ experience – both academic and social – and what part technology plays in them;
- The extent to which students are using the new social software such as Facebook, Flickr and blogs, and whether they feel these tools have a role in the formal curriculum;
- What it means to be an “effective” learner, and whether technology can help students to hone their skills in this respect.
Thema is funded by JISC as part of its Learner Experiences of E-learning programme
An executive summary, specifically targeted at stakeholders within Oxford University, is now on WebLearn at http://tinyurl.com/themasummary
The document contains recommendations for the key groups: academic staff, librarians and IT support staff.
Other project outputs that you might find informative or useful are on the main project website at http://thema.oucs.ox.ac.uk. They include:
- The full report on students’ use of digital technologies
- The online survey questions
- 11 narrative case studies compiled from students’ contributions to the project
- A version of the executive summary for general consumption (i.e. Oxford-specific references removed)
- A report on how we conducted the project (for readers who are into social science research methods)
Enjoy