Sport players' likelihood to fulfil their career expectations is influenced by both technical and non-technical aspects, including self-drive, self-confidence and access to high-quality coaching and to positive learning environments. Among other factors, belonging in the "right" social networks may help players to gain access to critical…

There has been wide academic and research interest in the application of Social Media (SM) modalities, as instructional tools, in contemporary educational settings. Although research on this topic has grown exponentially in recent years a) very little is known about the breadth of research regarding SM in the scholarly literature, and b) few…

Hybrid communities using online and face-to-face communications to construct their practices are increasingly part of everyday life amongst people who have easy access to the internet. Researching these communities raises a number of challenges for researchers in the pursuit of ethical research. The paper begins by exploring what is understood by…

The discourse of social media adoption in higher education has often been funnelled through utopian and dystopian perspectives, which are polarised but determinist theorisations of human engagement with educational technologies. Consequently, these determinist approaches have obscured a broadened grasp of the situated, socially constructed nature…

Community colleges have long been institutions of higher education in the arenas of technical education and training, as well as preparing students for transfer to universities. While students are engaged in their student learning outcomes, projects, research, and community service, how have these students validated their work? One method of…

Although many international students experience transitional issues, most research assumes that these issues will disappear over time with increased interaction. Using principles of social network theory, this study addressed why some students become bridge builders between international and host students, while others primarily interact with…

Extending educational experiences beyond the traditional boundaries of the classroom is an exciting yet challenging prospect. As the classroom context changes, the power structure of the class is also likely to change, shifting from the instructor to students and community members. This article describes how a campus-community partnership has…

This paper uses social network analysis to evaluate how the formation of an interdisciplinary brain research institute affected interaction and collaboration among neuroscientists at one Canadian university. The research institute, formed in 2004, has about 100 members representing ten different departments across the university campus. We…

This hypothesis-generating case study investigates the naturally emerging roles of technology brokers and technology leaders in three independent schools in New York involving 92 school educators. A multiple and mixed method design utilizing Social Network Analysis (SNA) and fuzzy set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (FSQCA) involved gathering…

There are many indications that social mobilization and political participation have been transformed by Information Communication Technologies (ICT), and, more recently, by Social Media. In spite of many studies which have attempted to grapple with their interrelationship, we still know little about the degree and complexity of those…

The article will outline a framework for the use of social networking tools in K-12 education framed around four thought provoking questions: 1) what are the benefits and pitfalls of using social networking tools in P-12 education, 2) how do we plan effectively for the use of social networking tool, 3) what role does professional development play…

A triad is the smallest network form where one can study how a link affects a link or a node affects a link indirectly connected. Through triads, one can glimpse the more complex relational dynamics in larger networks. Studies of various triadic relationships have gained growing interest among OM scholars in recent years as both researchers and…

Effective professional learning for teachers is fundamental for any school system aiming to make transformative and sustainable change to teacher practice. This paper investigates the efficacy of Twitter as a medium for teachers to participate in professional learning by analysing the tweets of 30 influential users of the popular medium. We find…

Learning analytics, the analysis and representation of data about learners in order to improve learning, is a new lens through which teachers can understand education. It is rooted in the dramatic increase in the quantity of data about learners and linked to management approaches that focus on quantitative metrics, which are sometimes antithetical…

While highly cohesive groups are potentially advantageous they are also often correlated with the emergence of knowledge and information silos based around those same functional or occupational clusters. Consequently, an essential challenge for engineering organisations wishing to overcome informational silos is to implement mechanisms that…