Digital technology in education has become a staple of many contemporary classrooms. Educational technology offers many benefits, including access to knowledge, mobility, multiple means of engagement, accessibility, distance learning, as well as the ability to connect in unprecedented ways. There is a growing body of research that examines digital…

Blended learning is growing at a tremendous pace transforming higher education. This means that more and more universities integrate online and face-to-face components into their courses. Previous studies have indicated that students may find it hard to be motivated in the blended environment, while the leadership approaches make their way into…

There is a growing prevalence in the use of digital media for education management and international partnerships; however, research continues to reflect the position that the absence of social interaction is a major barrier to a positive on-line learning experience. In 2007, a paper described the application of PESTE (Political, Economic, Social,…

This article investigates the phenomenon of open and participative development (e.g. beta testing, Kickstarter projects)--i.e. extended prototyping--in digital entertainment as a potential source of insights for instructional interventions. Despite the increasing popularity of this practice and the potential implications for educators and…

This article explores how the three aspects of Striphas' notion of algorithmic culture (information, crowds and algorithms) might influence and potentially disrupt established educational practices. We draw on our experience of introducing semantic web and linked data technologies into higher education settings, focussing on extended student…

The value of using social media is being increasingly recognised among the academic community. Blogging has been identified by some researchers as a means of reaching a non-academic audience and in order to increase research citations. However, there is little research exploring this method of communication within specific disciplines. This study,…

While elements of Deleuze's theory, notably the "geophilosophical" concepts of "rhizomes," "smoothness" and "striation" have been applied to educational technologies, his work on time has, to date, been comparatively neglected by educational theorists. This article explores practices and outcomes of…

The human desire to join and participate in communities can be seen as an attempt to satisfy some of our universal human needs. The theory of communities of practice has been widely used to explain how and why humans participate in multiple communities, and a key requirement of a community of practice (CoP) is that members engage in "joint…

This article combines research results from a range of projects with two consistent themes. Firstly, we explore the potential for curation to offer a productive metaphor for the convergence of digital media learning across and between home/lifeworld and formal educational/system-world spaces--or between the public and private spheres. Secondly, we…

The world population is ageing. In the UK alone, it is projected that by 2035 those aged 65 and over will account for 23 per cent of the total population whilst the number of people aged 85 and over will account for 5 per cent of the total population. At the same time, the digital transformations of the last few decades are leaving behind many…

Inconsistency in the use of Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) has led to dissatisfaction amongst students and is an issue across the Higher Education sector. This paper outlines research undertaken in one faculty within one university to ascertain staff and student views on minimum standards within the VLE; how the VLE could reduce student…

This article focuses on learning and identity-related practices of young female fans of a popular British boy band called One Direction. Drawing on qualitative inquiry into a fanfiction community formed around the band, analysis highlights (a) the literate work fans engage in, including writing, reading, critiquing, and collaborating on multimodal…

This article focuses on the legal rules of intellectual property rights (IPR) in networked e-learning. Its purpose is to act as an awareness-raising device about IPR, especially in the public-sector e-learning community in the UK, by describing the relevant aspects of IPR, providing legal guidance on IPR in e-learning, especially on the use of…

This project uses the community of practice metaphor to explore some of the discursive characteristics of learning that take place when a group of United Kingdom-based professional examiners engage in joint-work activity in both face-to-face and remote computer-mediated communication contexts. Professional examiners are all subject experts, and…

The nature of time has been considered in some depth within philosophy and social theory, while theoreticians have also explored interrelationships between temporality, artefacts and social process. However, the notion of time in mainstream educational theory and research has arguably been regarded as fixed, naturalised, undifferentiated…