Mimi Ito is a cultural anthropologist, learning scientist, entrepreneur, and an advocate for connected learning—learning that is equity-oriented, centered on youth interest, and socially connected. Her work decodes digital youth culture for parents and educators, offering ways to tap interests and digital media to fuel learning that is engaging, relevant, and social. She is Professor in Residence and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Chair in Digital Media and Learning at the University of California, Irvine, where she directs the Connected Learning Lab. The CLL stewards the Connected Learning Alliance, an expanding network of educators, experts and youth-serving organizations mobilizing new technology in the service of equity, access and opportunity for all young people. Mimi is also co-founder of Connected Camps, a non-profit providing online learning experiences for kids in all walks of life. Her publications include: Algorithmic Rights and Protections for Children (forthcoming June 2023 from MIT Press), Social Media and Youth Wellbeing (2020), The Connected Learning Research Network: Reflections on a Decade of Engaged Scholarship (2020), Affinity Online: How Connection and Shared Interest Fuel Learning (2018), and From Good Intentions to Real Outcomes: Equity by Design in Learning Technologies (2017). http://www.itofisher.com/mito
Mimi Ito
Publications
Articles
October 28, 2019
Announcing the 10th Anniversary Edition of HOMAGO
I’m delighted to announce the publication of a new Tenth Anniversary edition of Hanging Out, Messing Around, and Geeking Out: Kids Living and Learning with New Media -- which came to be...
Category: Connected LearningJuly 22, 2019
UC Irvine’s Connected Learning Lab Recognized as an Organized Research Unit
I’m delighted to share the news that the Connected Learning Lab (CLL) was recently recognized as an “Organized Research Unit (ORU)” — a cross-campus research institute — by UC Irvine. Our founding...
Categories: Connected Learning, ResearchJanuary 22, 2019
Power Up Your Personal Learning Network with Open Online Connected Courses
Are you tapping the power of open online networks to fuel your personal learning network? Have you connected with educators, designers, and researchers who are grappling with how to teach and embody...
Categories: Connected Learning, Digital LearningJanuary 7, 2019
Close the Digital Generation Gap, Unlock the Power of Online Affinity Networks, and Fuel Learning
Fresh into the new year, I’m delighted to announce the publication of Affinity Online: How Connection and Shared Interest Fuel Learning, a book synthesizing research by the Leveling Up team of the...
Categories: Connected Learning, Equity, ResearchNovember 5, 2018
Fond Farewells and New Beginnings—from Digital Media and Learning to Connected Learning
Over the past decade, the Digital Media and Learning (DML) Research Hub at UC Irvine fostered dialog, collaboration, and debate among a diverse group of scholars, designers and educators seeking to leverage...
Category: Connected LearningSeptember 24, 2018
Earlier this month, Common Sense Media released its report, Social Media, Social Life: Teens Reveal Their Experiences. The report describes research conducted by veteran digital youth researcher Victoria Rideout and Common Sense...
Category: Digital CitizenshipOctober 30, 2017
Three Myths About Education Technology and the Points of Light Beyond
Three powerful myths persist in our narratives around education technology. The first is that technology has the capacity to disrupt systems. For all the hope and hype that technologies can enable major...
Categories: Edtech, EquitySeptember 27, 2017
5 Secrets to Creating an Innovative After-school Program
A little over a year ago, Mahad Ibrahim reached out to me about Connected Camps, an organization I’m leading with Katie Salen that offers online learning programs and mentorship in Minecraft. Mahad...
Categories: Connected Learning, Educational PracticeJuly 27, 2017
It’s the Relationships, Stupid: Connected Camps Mid-Summer Report
Two years ago, Connected Camps and Institute of Play launched Minecraft Summer of Learning, piloting a new model for in-game virtual summer camps. We’ve served over two thousand families since then, and...
Categories: Digital Learning, Educational PracticeMarch 30, 2017
Introducing UCI’s Connected Learning Lab
Spring is a fitting season to announce the launch of our new Connected Learning Lab (CLL) at UC Irvine, an interdisciplinary research center dedicated to studying and mobilizing learning technologies in equitable,...
Categories: Connected Learning, Equity