The Value of Social and Participatory Media in ESL Learning

Social and Participatory Media in the Classrooms

Educational trends are always changing based on social and cultural structures, as well as student needs. Social media has become part of our daily lives in the past decade. As such, a participatory culture has risen. According to Henry Jenkins, the Director of the Comparative Media Studies Program at MIT, participatory culture is groups "with relatively low barriers to artistic expression and civic engagement, strong support for creating and sharing one's creation, and some type of informal mentorship whereby what is known by the most experienced is passed along to novices" (Jenkins, p.3). These kinds of participatory cultures value all types of contributions and create meaningful connections among participants. These groups adhere to inclusivity because people from all walks of life can contribute and pave the way to problem-solving, collaborative learning, creative expression, and various communities' resourceful affiliations.

For students learning a second language opening the doors of social and participatory media into the classroom is an excellent way for them to take more control of their own learning and make the process one of collaboration. In this more informal approach, they interact with peers and bring prior knowledge to their new learning community.

According to a 3 year study conducted by Mimi Ito, Research Director at the Digital Media and Learning Research Hub, she concluded that there is a stigma to giving value in the school setting to "socializing and play" and she makes educators question the inability to not have the "spirit of entertainment and play". Ito's research taps into the connection of how we can further support students prior knowledge into school settings as a way to enjoy learning and for teachers to scaffold acquisition of subject-matter and facilitate teaching practices that are more aligned to students interest.