ABSTRACT
It is argued that social media has the potential to bridge formal and informal learning through participatory digital cultures. In this chapter, the authors draw on relevant theory and their own research in Europe and the United States to suggest a model that theorizes social media as a space for learning with varying attributes of formality and informality. Using ideas derived from social constructivism and connectivism as promising initial lenses through which to conceptualize social media and learning, they problematize 'learning' and 'teaching' across multiple contexts, illustrating the complex relationships between formal, non-formal, and informal learning. The authors revisit the debate about social media, or 'social software' in education to suggest how the model illuminates current tensions and suggests new opportunities for research and innovation. Research on social media in education suggests that integrating social media in learning and teaching environments may yield new forms of inquiry, communication, collaboration, identity work, or have positive cognitive, social, and emotional impacts.
