Use of Social Networking Media as a pedagogical Tool for Undergraduate Research

1. Use of Social Networking Media as a pedagogical Tool for Undergraduate Research Adele Creer Isle of Man College of Further and Higher education

2. Assessment for Learning In Research Methods • To be addressed: • Traditional assessment • New ways of assessing: New media opportunities • Maintaining systematic and critical ground rules necessary for academic rigour • To be presented: • A range of examples from classroom practice, use of technology for collaboration and assessment, practices of students using computers in a multimodal environment

3. Pilot research • Setting: Teachingresearch methods module to Level 4 Undergraduates. [Degree and Higher National students] • Rationale: Experimentation with different delivery, collaboration and assessment methods • Questions: • How can Web 2.0 and emerging technologies used in everyday literacy practices be acknowledged and built on in the Higher Education Curriculum? • Does the employment of new and emerging technologies impact in a positive way?

4. Web 2.0 practices and Emerging Technologies • Twitter • Blogs • Wikis • Videocast • Web 2.0 practices permit a number of people to read, write and alter the content both at the same time and separately over time. • Web space enables an environment for collaboration with an audience

5. Example of Practice: Delivery • Wiki – collaboration and interactivity • Link to wiki for demonstration to be inserted here

6. examples of practice: Student research • Data collection: Survey Monkey, Facebook • Collaboration: Using Social Media • Blog • Links to sites for demonstration inserted here

7. example of practice: assessment • Videocast • Link to videocast for demonstration inserted here

8. How to assess • Traditional Assessment methods do not account for the many different modes • Not recognising the full nature of multimodal communication used in social media may impact on assessment techniques • Communication can be assessed through different modes (Jewitt, 2009) • What is a mode? • A mode can be defined as a socially shaped semiotic resource used for making meaning for example image, writing, speech, layout, colour and space (Kress, 2010).

9. Multimodal Framework • Creation of Multimodal Transcripts ( Baldry and Thibault (2006): Multimodal Analysis: • Provides tools for analysing and describing the resources used by students. Multimodal frameworks can add justification to using new media opportunities for assessment

10. Multimodal Transcript • Link to multimodal transcript for demonstration here

11. Phenomenological Study • Situated • Hermeneutic • Ideas of ‘Practices’ • Preliminary findings: Is there a need to embrace and include these technologies in the curriculum

12. References • Baldry, A. & Thibault, P. J., 2006. Multimodal Transcription and Text Analysis. London: Equinox Publishing Ltd. • Jewitt, C., 2009. The Routledge Handbook of Multimodal Analysis,. Routledge: Oxon • Kress, G., 2010. Multimodality: a social semiotic approach to contemporary communication. London: Routledge.