Interest-driven digital practices of secondary students: Cases of connected learning

The study examines Chinese students' interest-driven practices outside of the classroom setting, and in particular how such practices are mediated by digital technologies and connected with school-based learning. It reports on the cases of connected learning extracted from a large research project that explored students' engagement with digital technologies. Drawing on the data collected through in-depth interviews and online artifacts, this paper portrays the digital practices of three secondary students in pursuit of their hobbies. The results show that students' interest-driven practices are manifested through four inter-connected dimensions: information consumption, sharing and production, interaction and participation, and problem-solving. Furthermore, their interest-based practices facilitate extra-curricular activities and complement formal in-school learning. There are also indications that teachers can play a guiding and supportive role in bringing together interest-based and school-based learning.