Abstract:

In the last decade, urban studies scholars have recognised the potential of using Location Based Social Networks —LBSNs— for assessing city dynamics. This growing body of research underscores the importance of transferring, to the teaching-learning context, the methods, and skills required to make the most of the increasing amount of data available from Voluntary Generated Information (VGI) sources. This research describes a collaborative learning activity involving data from Foursquare and Twitter, related to the city of Barcelona. The in-class activity took place among third year Architecture students with an international profile. Scaffolding strategies were applied in the form of pre-activity training on the technical skills required to work with the QGIS programme, filter the LBSN dataset spreadsheets and use online diagram tools for data visualization. Also, the materials were provided as preprocessed data as would be the case in a research context. The inferences students were able to draw from their analysis of LBSN data went beyond the physical characteristics of urban spaces. For instance, the perception, preferences and spatiotemporal use of urban public spaces surfaced, which would have been difficult to uncover via traditional teaching sources and methods. The findings suggest that working with LBSN data in the classroom setting acted as a leveller in the context of a diverse student profile. Furthermore, the results indicate that students critically reflected on the value of using these sources for the study of the city. The development of their information management skills was also observed, as well as a positive attitude towards working collaboratively to approach a task of this nature.

Keywords:

Collaborative learning, urban planning, social networks, Foursquare, Twitter, Voluntary Generated Information, VGI.