Dr Julian Sefton-Green (University of London) - The class: social networking and the changing practices of learning

This is a report on a current research project, The Class, part of the Connected Learning Research Network funded by The MacArthur Foundation as part of its Digital Media Learning program. Working with an 'ordinary' London school, I have been following the 'learning 'networks within and beyond a single class of 13-14 year olds at home, school and elsewhere over the course of an academic year observing social interactions in and between lessons; conducting interviews with children, parents, teachers and relevant others; and mapping out-of-school engagements with digital networking technologies to reveal both patterns of use and the quality and meaning of such engagements as they shape the learning opportunities of young people. In the talk I will reflect on emerging findings to research questions.