Engl. transl.: Social media and illegal networks in high school

Th e article describes how diff erent kinds of networks arise in a upper secondary school class. We describe how these networks secretly share results and interact through closed Facebook groups. Further we describe how the teachers try to forbid and sanctions such activities because they understand them mainly as plagiarism and therefore as illegal. Yet, leading Internet researchers describe similar working methods as progressive, desirable and appropriate to the new digital media environ-ment (Bruns, 2009; Jenkins, 2006, 2008, 2013). Drawing on media sociology (Mey-rowitz, 1985; Luhmann, 2000, 1999) we claim that the tension between the teachers and the new network activities stems from the fact that the present educational system has neither developed adequate social structures (especially the formal), nor a mature culture (especially the standards) meeting the new needs, challenges and opportunities of the digital era. Empirically we base our argument on the action research project Social Media Education – in which we have tried to promote new structures and a new more adequate learning culture among teachers and students.

Students are sharing educational information through self-constructed and curated online communities and channels (teaching networks) The students are using these networks to rewrite and write each others homework Being a part of these, often polarized networks can decrease certain student's professional and learning progression The students are being punished for sharing educational content, especially concerning tests and exams and by that effect, the networks are closed even tighter, both for students and teachers The collaboration between teachers and students are inhibited by the secret networks Experimenting with using the network actively in the teaching situation showed that removing punishments and being aware of the existence of the networks is highly necessary (translated by the coder)