Informal learning with web 2.0 - the experience of 9-11 year olds

Informal learning with Web 2.0 – the experience of 9-11 year olds Rebecca Ferguson Denise Whitelock Dorothy Faulkner Kieron Sheehy Funded by the OU’s Children and Young People Research Network

Informal learning Vavoula, G. (2004), ' KLeOS: A Knowledge and Learning Organisation System in Support of Lifelong Learning. ' PhD Thesis, Birmingham, University of Birmingham.

Shifts in practice Knobel, M., & Lankshear, C. (Eds.). (2007). A New Literacies Sampler . Oxford: Peter Lang. Traditional practice ‘ New’ literacy Publishing Participation Centralised Expertise Distributed Expertise Individual Intelligence Collective Intelligence Individuated Authorship Collaboration Scarcity Dispersion Normalisation Experimentation Stability & Fixity Innovation & Evolution Generic Purity Creative Rule-breaking Information Broadcast Relationships

Web 2.0 possibilities for learning Stimulate new modes of enquiry Engage in collaborative learning activities Engage with new literacies Online publication of content Crook, C., & Harrison, C. (2008). Web 2.0 Technologies for Learning at Key Stages 3 and 4: Summary Report . Coventry: Becta.

Research design Identify tools used by Year Six children (aged 9-11) to support their learning outside school. Examine the ways in which they learn of, about and with these tools. Investigate the constraints and affordances of these tools for learners in this age group. How do young learners make use of the collaborative tools available online to support informal learning?

Analysis: higher mental functions Memory (collective or individual) Problem solving Decision making Reasoning Evaluation ‘ Higher forms of memory, attention, and other functions appear not suddenly and not in a prepared form. They do not drop at a certain moment from above; they have a long history of formation.’ Vygotsky, L. S. (1931). Genesis of higher mental functions

Analysis: themes and differences Themes Connection Control Communication Factors influencing use Economic limitations Rules regulating access Lack of experience Overlooked by family members

Problem solving I wanted to find out from Amazon how much the new book by Stephanie Meyer cost […] depending on what it was, if it was like a book I ’ d probably just look on Amazon because usually it ’ s cheaper there than like shops but if it was like a video game, then I ’ d go onto like Amazon, Game and Play.com. If it was a CD, then I ’ d probably do Amazon, HMV… Connected to many information sources Control of tools / information sources Indirect communication via reviews

Memory Well, I show her a recording what the prices were cos every few days I check for prices. Connected to his extended memories Control of his extended memory, allowing accurate recall and use Direct communication of information retrieved in the past

Reasoning I’d search for it on a search engine called Scour, which is like Google but you get money for the amount of searches that you search on . What happens is every time you search for something you get a point then when you ’ ve got like 1,000 points they send you ten dollars to your house. Control of tools and information

Decision making [My brother] knows that when I go on the computer I need to do it for work so he doesn ’ t really let me. Well this occasion it wasn ’ t really for work but I just told him that […] I put Word on every time I hear him coming up Connected Controls connection Control Acts to take control of network Communication Intentionally restricted I like deleting things cos if there are things I don ’ t want my sister to go on but they allow me on.

Decision making [Gold Seekers] but then I find that I can’t compute it so then I decide to go on YouTube and YouTube isn’t one hundred percent accurate, so then I go on Flickr, and then I managed to win the game, so I decided I should play on the wii. So I played on the wii but the problem is that my Firefox kept on malfunctioning so I couldn’t watch the video clearly. Connected to a range of tools and information Control of tools and information through practical evaluation Indirect communication Tapping into community of gamers

Information seeking I just asked [my brother] but he got really angry and he said ‘No, look yourself’. Connected No – not welcome in the network Control Restricted access to information and tools Direct communication - Unsuccessful

Evaluating You have Windows Messenger you can kind of do a video call and then you can talk to them personally so you get all your stuff down […] Well, it is probably be better to do it on Windows Messenger because you get to see their face and talk personally and stuff. Windows Messenger is better, because you can actually talk to them rather than phone because the phone actually costs money whereas Windows Messenger is absolutely free, you can actually phone them free Connected to a range of tools Control Advice on how to stay in control Direct communication Through a range of tools

Evaluating When you have a question you go on Wiki Answers cos Wiki Answers is quite good because you have other people who have already imported their stuff. But it doesn’t always have the right or good answers but it usually… You can also go on Wikipedia but it’s all long and boring and I can’t be bothered to read it Connected to a range of tools and information Control Of a choice of tools Indirect communication Evaluating the responses

Information seeking Sometimes when we get like free ICT sort of time in the ICT suite we all go on different sites and some people were on, were listening to music asked what that website was and I said we7.com and there’s lots of other really good websites like miniclip. Miniclip and Moshi Monsters and Club Penguin Connected to a range of tools and information Control Outside curriculum time – opportunity to control tools and talk Direct communication About tools

Formal learning I also find it kind of irritating that the teachers don ’ t really teach you a wide range of internet things at school – they teach you Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, how to look up stuff on the internet and then they just, that ’ s all they teach you and everyone has to guess for themselves. it ’ s all banned on the computers at school because like there ’ s not much point at school because we ’ re there to learn and not to chat with your friends kind of thing .

Learning within affinity spaces

Connection, control, communication Rebecca Ferguson Denise Whitelock Dorothy Faulkner Kieron Sheehy

Informal learning with web 2.0 - the experience of 9-11 year olds

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