16. ICT in Education and Training
Paper
Discourses of online identity: A qualitative study with Spanish and Moroccan adolescents in Spain
Pilar Bayona, Verónica C. Cala, Encarnación Soriano-Ayala, Rachida Dalouh
Universidad de Almeria, Spain
Presenting Author: Bayona, Pilar;
C. Cala, Verónica
Identity in the digital age is being transformed through the configuration of new identities in the virtual world. Online identity is defined by Veale (2017) as the representation of a person online, composed of a variety of attributes, characteristics, information and content that can be used to identify a person online. What is characteristic of this identity, as opposed to offline identity, is that it is constructed according to the logics of interaction that govern virtual sociability (Murillejo et al., 2015; Torres, 2016).
Although there is a broad academic consensus that supports the existence of a relationship between online and offline identity, the type and degree of relationship between the two is controversial. For some authors there is a total hybridisation between the two (Martinez, et al., 2021; Espluga, 2021) while others emphasise the differences and the distance between both. There is also a gap in the cultural differences that exist in the constitution of online identities between different groups of diverse socio-cultural backgrounds. Thus, the aim of the research is to find out how young Moroccan immigrants and Spanish immigrants describe their online identities, to identify the main differences between online and offline identities and to understand the socio-cultural factors that are identified in the construction of their online identities.
Among the results obtained, the following stand out:
- Young people report that they spend most of their time online on social networks tik tok, instagram and whatsapp. Their motivations for using them include communicating with other people they know and do not know, keeping up to date with what friends and celebrities are doing and "gossiping". They recognise that they are constantly monitoring and controlling other people's lives.
- Among the positive aspects of their virtual socialisation, they express the ease of communication between distant people. However, they underline numerous negative effects: (1) exhibitionism of intimate life and female hypersexualisation in order to increase their virtual popularity, (2) frustration, decrease of self-esteem due to the underestimation of the perfect life and (3) the feeling of diminishing or wasting time.
- They find difficult to define their online identities because they are not very stable. They recognise they want to show the good side of things, the positive, the perfect, the idyllic. In this sense, they applaud having a greater ability to decide what to show and what to hide about themselves than in the offline world. This idealisation of the virtual self is justified by the need to generate good opinion in others, favouring their social acceptance and admiration- "showing their best version"-. The aspects they value most in the construction of virtual identity are physical beauty, creativity and popularity or sociability.
- When comparing online and offline identities, they most claim to appear natural, while they identify falsehood, deception and imposture in the profiles and avatars of their peers.
- Finally, it is recognised that socio-cultural factors affecting online identity vary according to young people's backgrounds. Although peers are fundamental in the construction of both young's identities (Davis,2014), different cultural patterns are recognised. Spaniards are more active in networks and give more importance to the number of followers. They also do not limit themselves as much when it comes to publishing certain content. On the other hand, Moroccans do not perceive that social networks waste their time; they give priority to enjoying time with family, friends and offline hobbies before being online. They also report giving less importance to appearance. They also reveal less personal and intimate information. In terms of the elaboration, they give more importance to religion and national identity (while spaniards give it to leisure).
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources Used1.Design: is a qualitative research using the semi-structured interview method.
2. Participants: The population selected for this research are boys and girls between the ages of 13 and 19, of Moroccan and Spanish origin, in southeastern Spain. Specifically, the persons investigated are: 6 Spaniards (two boys and four girls) and 6 adolescents of Moroccan origin (4 boys and two girls) currently residing in Spain. The Moroccans have mainly arrived in Spain through family reunification at a very early age, and therefore understand Spanish even better than their parents.
3.Procedure: These participants were chosen by purposive sampling according to the selection criteria: defined by age range and socio-demographic characteristics. For this purpose, an announcement was published on social networks in which the research being carried out and its subject matter were briefly explained. Once the informants had been selected, the individual interviews were carried out in person. All interviews were conducted with the prior consent of the families. The sessions were delivered over two months in 60-minute sessions. All interviews were transcribed and subsequently anonymised.
4. Data analysis: Content analysis of the open-ended interviews was carried out using Atlas.ti.9 software.
5. Ethical aspects: The project was submitted to the Bioethics Commission of the University of Almeria, with reference UALBIO2020/003. All ethical criteria contemplated in human social science studies were met.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsAs a result of the analysis of the interviews conducted, it is confirmed that social networks are a means of communication and identification for adolescents, regardless of their nationality. As a consequence, an online identity is created, which in turn influences the offline identity, observing that the two go hand in hand (Bolander, 2016).
Virtual identity is described under different logics from offline identity, basically linked to the possibility of showing and hiding information, playing with anonymity or fictionalising and perfecting avatars. This aspect means that it is recognised as a place that can provide enormous quotas of pleasure, recognition and popularity, when virtual capital is maximised, while at the same time generating enormous frustrations, mental health problems and feelings of falseness in links.
The construction of virtual identities is not exactly the same across different background groups, implying that there is offline-online permeability and internal virtual subcultures related to ethno-racial, socio-cultural and religious profiles. This study reflects differences identified between Spanish and Moroccan immigrants.
ReferencesBolander, B. (2017). Language and Identity on Facebook. En Thorne, S. y May, S. (ed.), Language, Education and Technology. Encyclopedia of Language and Education [pp. 143-154] Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02237-6_11
Brittany, D y Adam, J. (2021). Shape Shifting Across Social Media. Social Medial + Society, 7(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305121990632
Davis, K. (2014).Youth Identities in a Digital Age: The Anchoring Role of Friends in Young People’s Approaches to Online Identity Expression, 11-25.
Espluga, E. (2021). No seas tú mismo: Apuntes sobre una generación fatigada. Ediciones Paidós.
Martínez, M.C., Martínez, L.C y Ospina, J.T. (2021). Construcción de la identidad offline y online en la interacción entre los jóvenes y los videojuegos. Trabajo Fin de Grado. Universidad Santo Tomás de Bogotá. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137287021_2
Murillejo, N.C., Cárdenas, G y Rodríguez, H. (2015). Online tourism, virtual identity and sexual exploitation. Revista Latina de comunicación social, 70, 381-402. https://doi.org/10.4185/RLCS-2015-1051.
Torres, C. (2016). La representación virtual del yo en los jóvenes. Realidad: Revista de Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades, (147), 153-168.
Veale, M. (2017). Digital Identity: An Overview. Oxford Internet Institute, Oxford University.
16. ICT in Education and Training
Paper
WHITDRAWN Use of Mobile Phones in Classrooms and Digitalisation of Educational Centres in Barcelona
Pablo Rivera-Vargas, Judith Jacovkis, Diego Calderón, Cristina Alonso
Universidad de Barcelona, Spain
Presenting Author: Rivera-Vargas, Pablo
The evolution of mobile phones in the world has been explosive since the first call was made from the first mobile phone in 1973 [Holguin, 2020]. Today, recent studies on mobile technology show that its use has been actively intensifying [Ally et al., 2014; INE, 2021] and that this phenomenon will continue to grow. The main uses of these mobile devices are far from just making phone calls. Today, this evolution has meant that mobile phones can perform a huge number of simultaneous functions, boosted by the momentum and reach of the Internet, as well as the development of countless applications and the use of social networks.
While this is not a new phenomenon, the truth is that with the Covid-19 pandemic the use of mobile devices has only grown, especially among the younger population. According to the recent report by Common Sense [ 2021], the use of mobile phones by children aged 12 to 18 has increased by 17% since the pandemic began, and much more among adolescents (13 to 18 years). In the case of Spain, the most recent data states that Internet use is practically universal (99.7%) among people aged 16 to 24 and that 68.7% [INE, 2021] of children aged 10 to 15 have a mobile phone.
Unlike other digital technologies, such as personal computers or laptops, which have been introduced and promoted as useful tools for learning and for the personal and professional development of students in the near future, mobile phones today pose a challenge when it comes to integrating them into the classroom [Calderón-Garrido et al., 2022]. While their ubiquity, their socialising function and their role in the development of digital skills are recognised, there is a clear fear that smartphones, due to their individualised and difficult to control usage, generate social inequalities and distractions that undermine the efforts of teachers [Selwyn et al., 2017).
In Spain, the lack of consensus on the issue at hand is also observed in the different political stances of the autonomous communities. Mellado-Moreno et al [2022] refers to the existence of three different discourses. While the communities of Madrid, Castilla-La Mancha and Galicia have opted for prohibition, other autonomous communities have softened their positions, such as the Valencian Community and Aragon. Catalonia, on the other hand, through the mòbils.edu plan is committed to promoting the use of mobile devices as a strategic educational tool for curriculum development, competence work, inclusive education, tutorial action and the management of coexistence and human relations to promote educational success [Mellado-Moreno et al., 2022].
In this context, the project "US'MOV: Young people and mobiles in the classroom. Discourses and dynamics of prohibition, promotion and indeterminacy" came about, and whose main objective was to identify and analyse the discourses, practices and positions of educational administrations, teachers, young people, families and companies in the sector on the use of mobile phones in compulsory secondary schools in Spain. Ten case studies were conducted in compulsory secondary schools in four autonomous communities in Spain (Catalonia, Valencia, Madrid and Castilla-La Mancha)
In the case of Catalonia, the fieldwork was carried out in three schools in the province of Barcelona and one in the province of Girona. This article presents the results of the three cases developed in secondary schools in the province of Barcelona (two public and one state-subsidised) that, in the first instance, were positioned as centres in favour of the use of mobile phones in the classroom and that had an explicit commitment to include mobile technology to promote learning processes and access to knowledge.
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedThe main research questions addressed in this article are: (1) Is there any promotion of the pedagogical or educational use of mobile phones in the classrooms of the schools analysed in the province of Barcelona? (2) Is there congruence between the schools' policies and regulations on the use of mobile phones (Discourses) and the practices carried out by teachers (Practices)?
This communication is the result of a qualitative research based on the development of three case studies (descriptive-interpretative) carried out in secondary schools in Barcelona, in which, according to [Yin, 2018], a contemporary phenomenon (the “case”) is investigated in depth and within its real-world context, especially when the boundaries between the phenomenon and the context may not be clearly evident.
The process of designing the research instruments was based on collaborative work among the project participants. The starting point was the general research objectives and the specific
objectives of each phase of its development. From there, the initial dimensions of analysis were defined and agreed upon by all members of the team, integrating the various contexts of implementation of policies and regulations (meso/institutional and micro/classroom). Subsequently, indicators were designed for each dimension to account for all the aspects to be investigated in the case studies, and these were specified in a matrix of dimensions and base indicators to elaborate the relevant items for each research instrument.
The design of the instruments contemplated the integration of various sources of information, which allowed us to include the voices of the main educational agents in the case studies (Table 2) in order to subsequently carry out a triangulation of both sources of information and instruments and techniques for collecting information. In this sense, the items of each instrument were designed and adapted for each of the agents or sources of information: management team, teachers and students.
The data analysis was conducted by means of a content analysis understood as the set of techniques of analysis of the communications tending to obtain indicators (quantitative or not) by systematic and objective procedures of description of the content of the messages, allowing the inference of knowledge relative to the conditions of production/reception (social context) of these messages [Andreu, 2002].
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsThe conclusions have been organised in order to answer the two main questions posed in the introduction and which have guided the development of this article.
1)About the first question: We can affirm that even though the schools were initially selected based on their explicit stance in favour of the use of technology and mobile phones, which can be found in their regulations, we can conclude that there is no clear attitude to promote the use of these devices, largely due to the uncertainties generated by their management with the pupils, and because it is considered to be a distracting element in the classroom. In fact, their use is limited to certain sporadic pedagogical actions, which are not systematic and are not reflected in the curriculum or the teachers’ continuous educational planning.
It is also observed that the mobile phone has been losing prominence in the classroom. Schools tend to prohibit the use of mobile phones and prefer computers to work with digital platforms and media.
2) About the second question. In the development of this research, we have been able to appreciate that there is a gap between (1) what is established in the autonomous regulations of Catalonia and in the guidelines of the schools themselves, and (2) what happens concretely in teaching practice. From our initial hypothesis, which stated that there was a promotion of the use of mobile phones in schools supported by regional policies and their regulation, we see that, in reality, what generally exists is a ban on the use of mobile phones. On the other hand, their use is only promoted when a pedagogical objective is defined by the teaching staff, which is something unusual in the development of teaching practices.
ReferencesHolguin, A. Breve historia: Del “Aló” al celular. Cuad. Unimetanos. 2020, 41, 69–76. Available online: https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A686823816/IFME?u=anon~5127ebe1&sid=googleScholar&xid=af597979 (accessed on 23 November 2022).
Ally, M.; Grimus, M.; Ebner, M. Preparing teachers for a mobile world, to improve access to education. Prospects 2014, 44, 43–59.
INE. Encuesta Sobre Equipamiento y Uso de Tecnologías de Información y Comunicación en los Hogares Año 2021. Instituto Nacional de Estadística. 2021. Available online: https://www.ine.es/prensa/tich_2021.pdf (accessed on 23 November 2022).
Common Sense. The Common Sense Census: Media Use by Tweens and Teens. 2021. Available online: https://www.chconline.org/resourcelibrary/the-common-sense-census-media-use-by-tweens-and-teens-downloadable/#:~:text=Between%202019%20and%202021%2C%20the,to%208%3A39%20among%20teens (accessed on 23 November 2022).
Calderón-Garrido, D.; Ramos-Pardo, F.; Suárez-Guerrero, C. The use of mobile phones in classrooms: A systematic review. Int. J. Emerg. Technol. Learn. 2022, 17, 194–210.
Selwyn, N.; Nemorin, S.; Bulfin, S.; Johnson, N.F. Left to their own devices: The everyday realities of one-to-one classrooms. Oxf. Rev. Educ. 2017, 43, 289–310
Mellado-Moreno, P.C.; Patiño-Masó, J.; Ramos-Pardo, F.J.; Estebanell Minguell, M. El debate en redes sociales sobre el uso educativo del móvil. Discursos de promoción y prohibición. Reidocrea 2022, 11, 649–658.
Yin, R. Case Study: Research and Applications; SAGE Publications: Thousand Oaks, CA, USA, 2018.
Andréu, J. Las Técnicas de Análisis de Contenido, Una Revisión Actualizada; Fundación Centro de Estudios Andaluces: Sevilla, Spain, 2002.
16. ICT in Education and Training
Paper
How the Net Generation Changed in the Last Decade: Two Research in Hungary
Peter Feher, Dora Orsolya Aknai
ICT MasterMinds Research Group, Hungary
Presenting Author: Feher, Peter;
Aknai, Dora Orsolya
The aim of this research was to re-investigate, explore and analyze the new characteristics of Hungarian Netgeneration. (In this case, we use this term to labeling students born after 2006.) This paper offers empirical data on several features and characteristics of Hungarian students (13-17 years old).
Overview
There are many debates among educational researchers about the phenomenon 'Digital natives' since Prensky's first article (Prensky, 2001). Many critical studies have been published in the literature, with more founded arguments (Helsper, E. J. & Eynon, R. (2010); Zur, O., & Walker, A. (2011); ).
We are agree with Kischner's statement: "As has been shown, there is quite a large body of evidence showing that the digital native does not exist nor that people, regardless of their age, can multitask. This corpus of research also shows that though learners in this generation have only experienced a digital connected world, they are not capable of dealing with modern technologies in the way which is often ascribed to them (i.e., that they can navigate that world for effective and efficient learning and knowledge construction)." Kirschner, P. A. & De Bruyckere, P. (2017). Several studies have analyzed the learning habits of Digital Natives or so-called Net generation students in recent years (Gallardo-Echenique1, E. E., Marqués-Molías, L., Bullen, M. and Strijbos, J-W. (2015); Cilliers, (2017); Shtepura, A. (2018); Zenios, M. & Ioannou, E. (2018); Dastane & Haba, (2023); Fleury, S. & Richir, S. (2023)), however, few large-scale studies analyze the change during and after the Covid-19 situation.
In our recent research project, we investigate the change in so-called 'Netgeneration' students in comparison to the Netgeneration-2010 study (has been conducted in Hungary, 2010).
The main research questions were the following:
How did ICT and Internet usage habits and skills change for these students (compared to preliminary research Netgeneration 2010)?
How do they relate to new social media applications (Facebook, Tiktok, Instagram etc.)?
How did they feel ourself during online learning (Covid-era)? What is their opinion regarding this type of learning?
Are they reading more digitally than traditional paper-based sources (books etc.?
What type of evidence can be found about the digital creativity of this generation (webpages, blogs, youtube channels etc.)?
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedSamples and methods of the study:
This study is based on data from two large-scale research projects at the end of 2022. The sample of the first one (called Netgeneration 2022A) composed of 1200 respondents (N=1200, 46% is female) was representative (by gender, age and school-type) of Hungarian students between 13-16 in 2022. An email invitation, with the link to the students' questionnaire, was sent to the school principals, whose emails were chosen from the Hungarian schools’ database. The online questionnaire was available from September 2022 to the beginning of November 2022. The second sample (called Netgeneration 2022B) consists of 3447 students (N=3447, 45% is female) between 13-17, with convenience sampling. This online questionnaire was available from the mid-November of 2022 to the end of 2022. (The respondents filled out questionnaires voluntarily and anonymously.) We assumed (one of our hypotheses), that this sample will not differ significantly from the first representative one.
We have used the online questionnaire (Google Form), mostly the same as 2010 research with updated questions about mobile learning and online learning during Covid19-era. The revised questionnaire was divided into seven sections (45 questions): 1. Demographics: age, gender, school place and type, family background etc. 2. ICT tools used (and owned) by participants. 3. Internet and computer usage habits of students (a five-point likert-scale format questions) 4. Learning habits, favorite subjects in school etc. 5. Using smart devices in learning/mobile learning. 6. Reading habits of participants. (with some open-ended questions) 7. Questions about the leisure time of students. (with some open-ended questions again).
The collected data is processed with the following software: R Statistics and R Programming Environment. Among several statistical methods applied, clustering is planned to classify the students based on their habits regarding the use of ICT, mobile devices, internet sources etc.
At the beginning of 2023, we plan to expand the collected data through personal interviews. The results will be presented in the conference presentation.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsThe results of this study show that Netgeneration students have changed since 2010 in many ways. The most significant change is the decreased usage computer/notebooks, because students prefer smart mobile overall. It has advantages and disadvantages also, the pro is just always online feeling and fast access to the sources; the cons, for example, an inadequate solution for solving problems in many situations.
Here we mention just some results:
99% of respondents have internet access at home, mostly broadband or mobile.
Students' internet usage: 46% more than 5 hours per day, 36% more than 2 hours per day.
More than 60% use the internet by smartphone, in most cases.
About 65% prefer online learning in opposition to traditional face-to-face learning.
The most popular websites/applications for this generation are the following: Instagram, Tiktok, Facebook, Youtube, Netflix, Messenger, Wikipedia.
56% of students answered liked reading. (Girls' result is significantly better: 73%, p<0.05) One of the consequences is that they use primarily online sources in many situations, most uncritically.
We have found some significant differences between boys and girls in several questions.
To finish, our results show that serious re-evaluation of teaching and learning methods are necessary in schools to increase students' performance and well-being. This study provides teachers and researchers a better understanding of this generation and presents empirical evidence that students' requirements for learning have significantly changed.
ReferencesCilliers, E. J. (2017). The challenge of teaching Generation Z, International Journal of Social Sciences, 3(1), pp. 188-198.
Dastane, O., & Haba, H. F. (2023). The Landscape of Digital Natives Research: A Bibliometric and Science Mapping Analysis, FIIB Business Review
David, H. (2022). Digital immigrants, digital natives and digital learners: Where are we now? Journal for the Education of Gifted Young Scientists, 10(2), pp. 159-172.
Fehér, P. & Hornyák, J. (2011). 8 hours of work, 8 hours of relaxation, 8 hours of fun, or the Experiences of the Netgeneration 2010 Research (in Hungarian), Ollé, J. (ed.): III. Education and Information Technology Conference Proceedings. Budapest. pp. 101-109.
Fleury, S. & Richir, S. (2023). The End of The Digital Generation Gap. J Ergonomics Stud Res 2: 101
Gallardo-Echenique1, E. E., Marqués-Molías, L., Bullen, M. and Strijbos, J-W. (2015). Let’s Talk about Digital Learners in the Digital Era, International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning 16(3), pp. 156-187.
Helsper, E. J. & Eynon, R. (2010). Digital Natives: Where Is the Evidence? British Educational Research Journal 36(3), pp. 1-18.
Kirschner, P. A. & De Bruyckere, P. (2017). The myths of the digital native and the multitasker, Teaching and Teacher Education 67, pp. 135-142.
Prensky, M. (2001). Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants, From On the Horizon, MCB University Press, 9(5) pp. 1-6.
Shtepura, A. (2018). The Impact of Digital Technology on Digital Natives’ Learning: American Outlook Comparative Professional Pedagogy 8(2), pp. 128-133.
Zenios, M. & Ioannou, E. (2018). Digital Natives and Digital Immigrants Revisited: A Case of CALL In book: Learning and Collaboration Technologies. Learning and Teaching, pp. 99–110.
Zur, O., & Walker, A. (2011). On Digital Immigrants and Digital Natives: How the Digital Divide Affects Families, Educational Institutions, and the Workplace, Zur Institute - Online Publication. http://www.zurinstitute.com/digital_divide.html
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