As redes sociais na internet e a aprendizagem em contexto universitario

Laburpena

Internet Social Networking is one of the technological and social phenomena of the beginning of the 21st century. Much of the daily life of present societies are guided by these, as they open doors to new worlds and intensify the communication between individuals, whilst they dictate sharing as the new ruling order. The use of these networks presupposes collaboration and cooperation, values that enrich the learning process of individuals. Starting from the current educational and social reality, this work aims to acknowledge and analyze the relationship of social networks on the Internet with higher education, namely with student learning. Its intent is in acknowledging and analyzing ways in which social networks are used in different higher education institutions and their relationship with learning. Since it is a study with an intercultural focus, the field of study consisted of three distinct countries: Cambodia, Spain and Portugal. The research’s content followed a quantitative paradigm and used a questionnaire for data collection. The results show a higher frequency of use oîsocial networks on the internet in the age group of 16 to 19 years, main activity being communication with other users of these platforms, through the messages sending and chat. Despite the ubiquitous availability of the networks, these do not arouse a direct motivation for student learning. However, they allow for the creation of student-centered learning systems and help promote interactive, social, group-based and communication- based learning as well as cooperative learning. Students still essentially play the role of information consumers and viewers in the digital world and still contribute little to content production, but they expect to play a more active role in the future. The particularity of the phenomenon of social networks does not lie in the technology itself, but in the new perspective that opens to a more participative model of education in which learning is promoted by all involved, and where the traditional / formal learning spaces are complemented with new technological means.