Designing curriculum to shape professional social media skills and identity in virtual communities of practice

摘要

A broad range of professional communicators employ social media as a professional practice; however research indicates that it has yet to become a prevalent component in professional writing courses. Additionally, the competencies surrounding social media practices and the pedagogy to incorporate such competencies are not well established. Compounding this shortcoming is the problematized nature of social media technologies for learners as being a source of their personal identity; thus instructors must transform learners' everyday practices that inform their personal identity into professional practices that will inform their professional identity. This article reports on the first iteration of a four-year design-based study exploring the following research questions: