Title: Effective innovation or dumbed-down distraction: qualitative content analysis of 10 years of social media and writing research

Authors: Valerie K. Jones; Katherine Robbins

Addresses: University of Nebraska-Lincoln, College of Journalism and Mass Communications, Advertising/Public Relations, 341 Andersen Hall, P.O. Box 880443, Lincoln, NE 68588-0443, USA ' University of Nebraska-Lincoln, College of Education and Human Sciences, Sykes TalentSprout, 500 West Madison Street, Suite 2060, Chicago, IL 60661, USA

Abstract: The ubiquity of social media has stirred debate about how it should be addressed in the classroom. Questions about social media's benefits, affordances, and relevance to education abound, particularly in the area of what it means for teaching, learning, and defining writing. This qualitative content analysis reviews 10 years of studies about using social media in writing education, identifying themes and metanarratives around how and why social networking technologies are used in writing education, and what they achieve. Social media types, curriculum theory, technology paradigm, reasons for use, and outcomes are all explored. This research highlights the breadth and versatility of social media and its applicability in a wide range of contexts.

Keywords: curriculum theory; education technology; innovation; literacy; qualitative content analysis; social media types; social networking; writing pedagogy; writing education; curriculum theory; technology paradigm; reasons for use; outcomes.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIIE.2016.081546

International Journal of Innovation in Education, 2016 Vol.3 No.2/3, pp.91 - 109

Received: 03 May 2016
Accepted: 12 Oct 2016
Published online: 12 Jan 2017 *

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