Learning with social media: An information literacy driven and technologically mediated experience

Abstract

This paper summarizes the theories, methods, and results of a doctoral research that integrated social media (SM) in a learning experience for students and explored the roles that information literacy, digital literacy, and new literacies played in such a learning experience. Participatory action research was the methodological approach used for two rounds of data collection, resulting in the development of the research framework ‘Doing Online Relearning through Information Skills’ (DORIS). The data collection methods used included students’ reports, diagnostic, and final questionnaires; and semi-structured interviews. Data analysis relied on content analysis, open coding, and constant comparative analysis. This paper provides a summary of the discussion leading to the answers to the research questions, including topics such as issues and challenges of using SM for learning; participants learning experiences in such a technologically mediated environment, their engagement and the mutual shaping of SM, learning experiences, and literacies.