Multimedia Social Networks and E-Learning

The purpose of this chapter is to investigate Multimedia Social Networks and e-Learning, and the relevant research in these areas. Multimedia Social Networks in e-Learning is an important and evolving study area, since an understanding of the technologies involved as well as an understanding of how the students communicate in online social networks are necessary in order to accurately analyze them. The chapter begins by introducing Multimedia Social Networks and Online Communities. Following this, the key players of e-Learning in Multimedia Social Networks are presented, including a discussion of the different roles that the students take. Furthermore, Social Interaction research is presented concentrating on such important areas as factors that influence social interaction, peer support, student-centered learning, collaboration, and the effect of interaction on learning. The last section of the chapter deals with the various methods and frameworks for analyzing multimedia social networks in e-Learning communities. © 2013, IGI Global

Learner Centred Pedagogy Framing Authentic Identity and Positionality in Higher Education

This chapter examines the interrelationship between the learner and their authentic identity in the context of learning. This necessitates the delineation of where personhood ends and learner identity begins and lends itself to a debate as to whether the two, by virtue of their relationship are irrevocably enmeshed. Being able to explore perspectives in individual learning provides an insight into how learner centred pedagogical approaches open the door to lifelong learning via the empowerment and intrinsic motivation of personhood. It is this personhood, or character, which, once harnessed, can drive cultural transformation, processes of critical reflexivity and epistemic understanding of education as an embedded part of life and individuality, rather than a commodity simply to be acquired. Keywords: Transformation, Authenticity, Professional Identity, Personhood, Contextual, Positionality, Reflexivity, Society, Epistemology, Ontology, Meaning Making, Story Telling Truth, Verisimilitud