Strengths in Using Social Media Facebook as an Educational Technology

Year 2019, Volume: 2 Issue: 1, 1 - 17, 28.06.2019

Chris Prince Udochukwu Njoku

Abstract

Though the social media Facebook was not originally an educational technology, its innovative use in teaching and learning may be the only e-learning experience students and teachers in resource-poor areas may have. Also it minimizes the extent to which Facebook distracts students, solving this problem that plagues higher education g;obally. Amidst peculiar challenges (poor technology skills, low-speed and unstable Internet connection and treacherous power supply) fifteen lecturers and their 2,019 students were persuaded—through participatory learning and action—and they agreed, learned, implemented, observed and evaluated their academic use of Facebook in four semesters. Data collected through questionnaire and periodic face-to-face and online interviews showed, among others, 56% of students understood course topics more; 92% collaborated more than they did elsewhere; 72% participated more in class discussions;. 70% spent for course activities on Facebook 80% of the time they used to spend on Facebook. Impact on students’ grades needs investigation.

Keywords

Facebook, educational technology, e-learning, social media

References

• Adelakun, L. A. (2018). Trends in using social media as substitute for class interaction in open and distance learning (ODL) education in Nigeria. International Journal of Pedagogy, Policy and ICT in Education, 6(1), 33-42.
• Ajjan, H., & Hartshorne, R. (2008). Investigating faculty decisions to adopt web 2.0 technologies: Theory and empirical tests. The Internet and Higher Education, 11(2), 71-80.
• Al-Rahmi W, & Othman, M. (2013). The impact of social media use on academic performance among university students: A pilot study. Journal of Information Systems Research and Innovation, 4: 1-10.
• Al-Rahmi W, & Zeki, A. M. (2016). A model of using social media for collaborative learning to enhance learners performance on learning. Journal of King Saud University: Computer and Information Sciences, 111. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jksuci.2016.09.002
• Al-Rahmi, W. M., Zeki, A. M., Alias, N., & Ali, A. A. (2017). Social media and its impact on academic performance among university students. Anthropologist, 28(1-2), 52-68. DOI: 10.1080/09720073.2017.1317962.
• Al-Rahmi, W., Othman, M. S., & Yusuf, L. M. (2015b). Social media for collaborative learning and engagement: Adoption framework in higher education institutions in Malaysia. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 6(3 S1), 246-252.
• Al-Rahmi, W., Othman, M., & Musa, M. (2014). The improvement of students’ academic performance by using social media through collaborative learning in Malaysian higher education. Asian Social Science, 10(8), 210-221.
• Andersson, A., Hatakka, M., Grönlund, Å., & Wiklund, M. (2014). Reclaiming the students: Coping with social media in 1:1 schools. Learning, Media and Technology, 39(1), 37-52.
• Bosch, T. E. (2009). Using online social networking for teaching and learning: Facebook use at the University of Cape Town. Communicatio: South African Journal for Communication Theory and Research, 35(2), 185-200.
• Brady, P., Holcomb, B., & Smith, V. (2010). The use of alternative social networking sites in higher educational settings: A case study of the e-learning benefits of Ning in education. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 9(2), 151-170.
• Bransford, J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (Eds). (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience, and school (Expanded ed.). Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
• Bugler, P. (2014). How useful is Facebook as an educational tool at university level? E-Learning Africa News. Retrieved October 20, 2014, from http://ela-newsportal.com/social-media-Facebook-higher-education/.
• Chen, B., & Bryer, T. (2012). Investigating instructional strategies for using social media in formal and informal learning. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 13(1), 87-104.
• Dahlstrom, E., Grunwald, P., Boor, D., & Vockley, M. (2011). ECAR national study of students and information technology in higher education. EDUCUASE Center for Applied Research. From http://www.educause.edu.2011> (Retrieved on 10 October 2016).
• El-Hoby, H. M., Zeki, A. M. (2015). Impersonate affecting users’ attitude toward Facebook in Egypt. In 4th International Conference on Advanced Computer Science Applications and Technologies (ACSAT), 8 10 December, Kuala Lumpur, US: IEEE, pp. 45-49.
• Goodband, J. H., Solomon, Y., Samuels, P. C., Lawson, D., & Bhakta, R. (2012). Limits and potentials of social networking in academia: Case study of the evolution of a Mathematics Facebook community. Learning, Media and Technology, 37(3), 236-252.
• International Telecommunications Union (2014). ITU Yearbook of Statistics 2014. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: International Telecommunications Union.
• Junco, R. (2012). Too much face and not enough books: The relationship between multiple indices of Facebook use and academic performance. Computers in Human Behavior, 28: 187-198.
• Junco, R., & Cotten, R. (2012). No A 4 U: The relationship between multi-tasking and academic performance. Computers and Education, 59(2), 505-514.
• Junco, R., Heiberger, G., & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(2), 119132.
• Kirkwood, A., & Price, L. (2014). Technology-enhanced learning and teaching in higher education - What is ‘enhanced’ and how do we know? A critical literature review. Learning, Media and Technology, 39(1), pp. 6-36.
• Lam, L. (2012). An innovative research on the usage of Facebook in the higher education context of Hong Kong. Electronic Journal of E-Learning, 10(4), 378-386.
• Littlejohn, A., & Pegler, C. (2006). Preparing for blended e-learning: Understanding blended and online learning. London: Routledge.
• Matzat, U., & Vrieling, E. M. (2015). Self-regulated learning and social media: A ‘Natural Alliance’? Evidence on students’ self-regulation of learning, social media use, and student–teacher relationship. Learning, Media and Technology, 40(3).
• Megele, C. (2014). eABLE: Embedding social media in academic curriculum as a learning and assessment strategy to enhance students learning and e-professionalism. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 52(4), 414-425.
• Mitchell, G. (2012). Using Facebook as a tool in higher education. A paper presented in Teaching and Learning Conference, 13 June 2012, at Liverpool. John Moores University, Liverpool.
• Ng, K. (2010, January 5). How will ICT change the future of education? Retrieved November 12, 2012, from http://www.futuregov.asia/articles/2010/jan/05/how-will-ict-change-future-education/2010.
• Olbinger, D. G., & Olbinger, L. J. (2005). Educating the Net Generation. Washington, D.C.: Educause.
• Pilotti, M., Anderson, S., Hardy, P., Murphy, P., & Vincent, P. (2017). Factors related to cognitive, emotional, and behavioral engagement in the online asynchronous Classroom. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 29(1), 145-153.
• Reuben, R. (2008). Use of social media in higher education for marketing and communications: A guide for professionals in higher education. Fullerton: California State University, p. 1.
• Roblyer, D., McDaniel, M., Webb, M., Herman, J., & Witty, V. (2010). Findings on Facebook in higher education: A comparison of college faculty and student uses and perceptions of social networking sites. The Internet and Higher Education, 13(3), 134-140.
• Rockmore, D. (2014, June 6). The case for banning laptops in the classroom. Retrieved July 20, 2014, from http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/the-case-for-banning-laptops-in-the-classroom.
• Schwab, J. J. (1976) Bransford, J. D., Brown, A. L., & Cocking, R. R. (Eds) (2000) Kirkwood, A., & Price, L. (2014) Olbinger, D. G., & L. J. Olbinger, L. J. (2005)
• Schwab, J. J. (1976). Education and the state: Learning community. In Encyclopaedia britannica (pp 234-271). Chicago: Britannica, Inc.
• Sendall, P., Ceccucci, W., & Peslak, A. R. (2008). Web 2.0 matters: An analysis of implementing Web 2.0 in the classroom. Information Systems Education Journal, 6(64), 1-17.
• Social Media Experts (2011). UK Social Media Facts 2011. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ozfr0mbgNI.
• Statista, Inc., Facebook Figures of Monthly Active Users 2014. http://www.statista.com/statistics/264810/number-of-monthly-active-facebook-users-worldwide.
• Tananuraksakul, Noparat (2015). An investigation into the impact of Facebook group usage on students affect in language learning in a Thai context. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 27(2), 235-246.
• Willems, J., & Bateman, D. (2011). The potentials and pitfalls of social networking sites such as Facebook in higher education contexts. In G. Williams, P. Statham, N. Brown, & B. Cleland (Eds.), Changing demands, changing directions: Proceedings Ascilite Hobart 2011 (pp. 1329-1331). Australia: Hobart Tasmania.
• Yang, Y., Crook, C., & O'Malley, C. (2014). Can a social networking site support afterschool group learning of Mandarin? Learning, Media and Technology, 39(3), 267-282.