Learning Ecologies and Digital Technologies in Higher Education: Conceptual Foundations and Empirical Evidence

Abstract

The debate on Learning Ecologies has gained relevance as an emerging field that is still in the process of theoretical and conceptual consolidation, aimed at understanding modes of teaching and learning in Digital Culture. In this context, it becomes necessary to critically examine how this concept has been appropriated in the academic literature and which concepts emerge around its definition, especially in Higher Education. To this end, this article aims to map and reflect on the findings of a systematic literature review whose central focus is Learning Ecologies, also incorporating the concept of Learning Ecosystems due to the recurrent interchangeable use of both concepts in academic production. From a methodological perspective, the systematic review was conducted based on a previously defined protocol, including the selection of databases, descriptors, and eligibility criteria, covering a ten-year time span. The results indicate that most studies use the terms Learning Ecology and Learning Ecosystem as synonyms, although the theoretical framework adopted as the basis of this paper highlights fundamental conceptual distinctions. Learning Ecologies emphasize dynamic, open, and contextually situated interactions among subjects, resources, and pedagogical mediations, which are constituted both within and beyond formal teaching and learning spaces (Barron, 2006). In contrast, Learning Ecosystems are configured as more structured networked systems, organized through the interdependence of biotic factors, represented by learning communities such as teachers, students, and content, and abiotic factors, constituted by Digital Technologies that sustain and enable these relationships and interactions (Moreira, 2020).