This paper discusses the educational context of social network sites (SNSs) and the manner in which they are adopted as Europeanization tools to develop the main EU education priorities. The Erasmus + (E+) context, articulated on networks of education bodies, denotes a promising ground to investigate social and digital trends emerging within institutionalized education communities. The research approach counts on a sample of 518 organizations aligned to a set of standards regulated within the institutionalized networking frame of the E+ program. Due to the compliance requirements of E+ guidelines, this work proposes a theoretical juxtaposition of the Community of Inquiry framework and the E+ framework. Final results show an EU educational trend verging to informal affordances and non-formal education features.

This chapter discusses the educational context of social network sites (SNSs) and the manner in which they are adopted as Europeanization tools to develop the main EU education priorities. The Erasmus + (E+) context, articulated on networks of education bodies, denotes a promising ground to investigate social and digital trends emerging within institutionalized education communities. The research approach counts on a sample of 518 organizations aligned to a set of standards regulated within the institutionalized networking frame of the E+ program. Due to the compliance requirements of E+ guidelines, this chapter proposes a theoretical juxtaposition of the community of inquiry framework and the E+ framework. Final results show an EU educational trend verging to informal affordances and non-formal education features.

This chapter deals with the continuous professional development required in the teaching profession with a focus on the European Union, embracing the education sector as a whole socio-anthropological structure with similar needs and expectations. In particular, the topic of professional networking and mobilities, analyzed under the effect of the Erasmus Plus program, emphasizes the need for a new perspective. Social network analysis improves the understanding of particular behavioral patterns promoted by the implementation of European education policies in public education networking. The chapter contributes to policymakers in the field of education and training in the education sector.

This research project aims to take advantage of five annual English as a Second Language (ESL) courses, in two faculties of Sapienza University of Rome, during a three-year period. These courses, embedded in the timeline of the regular academic semesters, are the teaching/learning environments in which the researcher himself works as a language teacher and tutor. Therefore, they will be the ground for this blended education plan complemented by e-learning through CIT ecosystems. The research plan takes shape within the community of inquiry framework (CoI), and this theory encompasses the conceptual boundaries.

Recent investigations show how the pandemic has affected learners' behavioral traits. The results of three semi-structured surveys carried out in a major Italian university: 2020, 1st sem. (n=102); 2022, 1st sem. (n=235); and 2022, 2nd sem. (n=61) under COVID-19 containment measures, manifest deviations in students' perceptions about social patterns, learning routines, and expectations. During the two-year emergency remote learning, students revealed a progressive downsize of social expectancy and increasing self-management behaviors in relation to a higher degree of independence. The Community of Inquiry principles were adopted to observe student motivation and self-direction in a Moodle-based learning environment. Conversely, the focus on English as a Foreign Language as the main subject represents an uncharted perspective in the research contexts around the Community of Inquiry. Future expansions may enlarge the sample to further education bodies and broaden the range of e-learning tools.