Overcoming the “generation Y” perspective KFPE University Exchange Program

Involved Persons and Institutions: NewMinELab & UWIOC

@ New Media in Education Lab

Phd student- jeune chercheur: Emanuele Rapetti

Supervisor: Prof. Lorenzo Cantoni

Co-ideator: Isabella Rega

@ Open Campus – University of West Indies

Responsible: Prof. Stewart Marshall

Period: October 2009 to December 2009

Funding agency: SDC

Website: www.kfpe.ch

Project Goal

The project aims at investigating the actual uses of ICTs in learning experiences at the UWI and how eLearning is provided and perceived at UWIOC.

Two main research fields are concerned: ICT4D (Information and Communication Technologies for Development) thread of studies and the “generation Y” and “digital natives” issues.

UWIOC is a really interesting reality because it provides online courses for the 15 nations of Caribbean which is, for some of them (e.g. Anguilla), the only available access to university.

PICTURE-Priests’ ICT Use in their Religious Experience (Mandate)

Project owner: Lorenzo Cantoni

Project staff: Stefano Tardini, Emanuele Rapetti, Sara Vannini

Period: October 2009 to June 2010

Website: http://www.pictureproject.info/

PICTURE – Priests’ ICT Use in their Religious Experience studies the usages of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), and of the internet in particular, by the priests of Christian Catholic Church.

The Congregation for the Clergy of the Holy See has communicated interest and has endorsed this research project.

PICTURE is run by the NewMinE – New Media in Education Lab of the Università della Svizzera italiana (USI – Lugano, Switzerland) in collaboration with the School of Institutional Social Communications of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (PUSC – Rome, Italy).

E-ethnography (Mandate)

Project owner: Emanuele Rapetti

Project staff: Snjezana Misic, Marina Butti Romanova

Period: October 2008 to June 2009

Funding agency: internal funding

Website

This research aims to study, with qualitative-ethnographic methodology, how people learn, in the knowledge society, observing e-learning experiences and studying ICT use at work.

The main goal is to understand deeply what has been changing in learning experiences ever and ever more technology addicted (at school as well as at job).

All the studies concerning generation of people born after 1980 (so-called “Y”), claim that these person should be really involved in the online world and well-skilled in using any kind of ICT.

We want to observe this dynamics in depth at the University and on the job. At the university, we have proposed the research proposed by JISC consortium aiming to listen and make hear the “learners’ voices”. The main question in “which ICT are used by learners and for which activities?”. The project is structured in two phases: quantitative (an online questionnaire) and qualitative (ethnographic interviews).  On the job, we’re working with Network USIMPRESA companies. The research’s goal is to describe how “gen Y” people learn to work in the knowledge society.

We have customized the LEGO SERIOUS PLAYING methodology ad hoc to discover the technological potential of the HR.

Download a short presentation for companies.

We should provide a customized lego session for HR needs…

Contact us at:

+41 58 666 4609

Theses

The NewMinE lab values the work of students as an opportunity to get new ideas, explore new fields and meet young talents. This page collects ideas and topics for possible bachelor or master theses.

• “New millennial learners” vs “Generation Y”: the US and UE way to be digital natives (contact Emanuele Rapetti)
• How it changes the way we learn, we learn to work, we work in the knowledge society (contact Emanuele Rapetti)
• Web culture(s) at university (contact Emanuele Rapetti)

This list is an ongoing work-in-progress. Check back to see updates!