During the recent years, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have been identified as beneficial tools for the educational system. The
Government of Mauritius has been actively promoting ICT since the last decade. Students are embracing ICTs at an unprecedented rate and given that Internet penetration is increasing within the Mauritian households, more and more young people are getting access to it. The most visited online services among Mauritian youths are Online Social Network (OSN) sites. It has been found that OSNs have tremendous potential for enabling collaborations and social interactions. Harnessing this potential for learning can be the spark to ignite educational transformation in Mauritius. However, no study has been carried out yet in Mauritius on the usage pattern of online social networks among young people and the impact on their education and social life. Therefore, this research project has investigated the roles that online social networks play in teaching and learning at secondary school level. The impact that OSNs has on communication and social needs of students has also been examined. Large scale surveys have been carried out on the use of OSNs among the Mauritian students. In addition, experiments have been carried out on the use of OSNs to conduct classes and observations have been reported. Around 4500 responses were collected from the survey and the findings showed that Mauritian students are using OSN sites extensively on a daily basis. It was found that students are already making use of OSNs to discuss school works and
teachers also are communicating with students through these online sites. The use of OSNs in secondary education is currently done informally. The main reasons are that these sites are blocked in schools due to the privacy and security concerns for the students. The majority of teachers are also reluctant to adopt this new method of teaching and learning. Results from this study have clearly shown the benefits of using OSNs in learning. Students were eager to make use of this new way of learning and therefore this can act as a motivating factor in the learning process. A few negative issues with respect to the use of OSNs have also been pointed out. Policy makers can thus consider the results of this study in order to take decisions regarding the use of OSNs in secondary education. A number of recommendations based on the study have been made on how OSNs can be integrated in formal education.