LOS FENOMENOS SOCIALES TECNOLOGICOS

Resumen

Los medios sociales son un fenómeno tecnológico global a consecuencia del rápido desarrollo de las tecnologías de la información y la comunicación. Los medios sociales han abierto las puertas a nuevas formas de participación y han influido en el proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje en muchas universidades del mundo. Este estudio presenta los resultados de un análisis comparativo sobre el uso de los medios sociales como herramientas para el aprendizaje en el marco de instituciones de educación superior a través de un metaanálisis de investigaciones entre México y Corea del Sur, 2004-2013. Según los resultados, los medios sociales tienen un enorme potencial para facilitar actividades de aprendizaje en los estudiantes y como recursos personales más allá del salón de clase. Sin embargo, es importante señalar que sus ventajas no son exclusivamente atribuibles a la gestión en el manejo de nuevas tecnologías, sino en implicaciones pedagógicas que promueven su incorporación. Blended learning, así como el aprendizaje autodirigido, han conducido el uso significativo de los medios sociales mediante el cambio de actitudes y valores propios de los estudiantes en su proceso de aprendizaje y en la construcción de conocimientos. Al final de este trabajo se comparten algunas implicaciones y sugerencas para futuros estudios.

Palabras clave: Aprendizaje social, Educación superior, Medios sociales

Introduction

In recent years, social media has been part of a new culture that facilitates communication and interaction between people through the Internet (Mustonen, 2009; Davis et al. 2012; Kim, 2012; Seamean & Tinti-Kane, 2013). This has been possible due to the development of new Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) which offer a variety of services; they are freely available and in some cases are free. The appearance on the market of new devices —such as smartphones, tablet PCs, etc.— and the development of web applications, accompanies the emergence of new interactive experiences adaptable to users’ requirements.

Mexico is one of the fastest growing Latin American countries on Internet use. In 2012, World Internet Project (WIP) informed that 46% of Mexicans, about 52.3 million, have access to the Internet. Likewise, a study by The Competitive Intelligence Unit (CIU) revealed that the use of social networks is estimated, in 2013, about 85% of Internet users, nearly 34.7 million users. The heyday of social networks lies in the presidential election of 2012; similarly, other social media as thematic blogs and videoblogs have been the main tools in the digital age 2.0 in Mexico. The use of social media is no exception in South Korea. South Korea has attracted attention for its advances in the field of ICTs around the world. Firstly, because they have the fastest Internet and its penetration reached 81.6% of the population. Also, South Korea has better mobile connectivity and they were the creators of the first social network called “Cyworld” in 1999. By 2005 some educational and strategic policies were implemented to expand and enhance the use of ICTs in education and research. Nevertheless, in 2010, South Korea was able to position itself as one of the leading countries in the use of social media, ubiquitous learning and mobile learning through mobile devices.

The vision of the use of ICT in Higher Education in the twenty-first century is associated with the development of lifelong learning, more equity of access, quality improvement of teaching methods, diversification for cooperative-collaborative, autonomous learning, and troubleshooting of the physical environment (UNESCO, 1998). From this perspective, this study seeks to analyze and compare the use of social media in Mexico and South Korea, and thus to understand the features and mechanisms as an educational tool and its effects on learning. A comprehensive qualitative and quantitative synthesis of research on the use of social media in higher education during 2004 to 2013 through a systematic analysis is presented.

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Social media

Social media are web-based technologies such as social networks, wikis, blogs, microblogs and multimedia sharing tools that allow users to connect to the Internet to create and share content with other users (Schwartz, 2012). Social media has emerged with the potential of “social software” to increase dialogue, collaboration, networking and help establish social relationships based on common goals and interests (Mayfield, 2007; Ryberg, 2008; Safko & Brake, 2009; Mustonen, 2009; Joosten, 2012). In educational terms, some authors emphasize the use of social media for better control and efficiency of resources to complement the work inside and outside the classroom in order to improve student learning, facilitate teacher-student and student-students interaction, development of skills and competencies and their level of satisfaction into new learning experiences (Ajjan & Hartshorne, 2008).

Social media gains a special value after the emergence of Web 2.0 The evolution of the Internet helps us understand the emergence of this participatory platform that conceptualizes the importance of producing (or co-producing), distribution and democratization of information. The characteristics of social media are: participation, openness, conversation, community and connectedness (FKII Josayeongu Team, 2006: 53).

Participation. Social media encourages contributions and feedback from everyone who is interested. It blurs the line between media and audience.

Openness. Most social media services are open to feedback and participation. They encourage voting, comments and the sharing of information. There are rarely any barriers to accessing and making use of content-password-protected content is frowned upon.

Conversation. Whereas traditional media is about “broadcast” (content transmitted or distributed to an audience) social media is better seen as a two-way conversation.

Community. Social media allows communities to form quickly and communicate effectively. Communities share common interests.

Connectivity. Most kinds of social media thrive on their connectivity, making use of links to other sites, resources and people.

Giaccardi (2012) highlights social media in a “participatory culture”, that is, it features on encounters with heritage and on the socially produced meanings and values that individuals and communities ascribe to it. The author classifies it around three major themes: social practice, public information, and a sense of place. Social media users have new opportunities to gain experiences when participating in collections and representations, as well as the communication process as curators of content (social practice). The widespread presence

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