Emma Jones – @jones23emma
James Meek – @jamesmeek1
James Hill –
Chris Smith – @cjsmith30
University of Central Lancashire
Background– Different forms of social media are now widely used in higher education for enhancement of the student experience, and particularly for encouragement of socialisation (Aksoy et al., 2013; Zawacki-Richter, Müskens, Krause, Alturki, & Aldraiweesh, 2015). Whilst the practice of using social media is widespread, investigation into the students’ preferences and opinions about how they use social media, and what they find most helpful, remain in short supply.
At UCLan, the College of Health and Wellbeing Social Media Group was established in February 2014 to help develop the use of social media in ways that might be beneficial for students. One area they have focussed upon has been the preparation of health course students for commencing their academic programmes of study. The beginning of university life can be a daunting and anxiety-provoking experience. Previous studies have suggested that use of social media can help with adjustment (DeAndrea, Ellison, LaRose, Steinfield, & Fiore, 2012), but details about how it helps are lacking.
Methodology– The method of choice for this study was a survey of all students on undergraduate healthcare courses (250 students) who enrolled in March 2016. The entire cohort were invited to complete an online questionnaire consisting of both open and closed questions. 52 responses were received.
Analysis– Quantitative data were analysed using Survey Monkey to produce descriptive statistics. Qualitative data were analysed using a stepped process of thematic coding. Three people firstly undertook simple coding of the data before meeting to discuss themes and categories. Some counting was used for common themes.
Results– 52 students completed the online survey. 79% of the students used facebook the most. 50% of the students used university social media ‘every few days’ to ‘every day’, 11% of students ‘never’ used university social media. Having quick access to peers and staff was a common theme when asked what they found the most helpful aspect of the university social media forums. Many commented on how helpful it was ‘meeting’ their peers before starting university. Unhelpful aspects of university social media included other students ‘panicking’ and making them ‘more anxious’, having more of a staff presence would reduce this- ‘It made me less nervous to start the course and I like that the tutors have a visible presence on Facebook, to avoid unnecessary drama and to give practical advice’
Conclusions– with increased staff input in to the use of social media, any barriers to the positive nature of social media use can be reduced and in turn the students’ experiences will be enhanced.
References:
Aksoy, L., van Riel, A., Kandampully, J., Bolton, R. N., Parasuraman, A., Hoefnagels, A., . . . Komarova Loureiro, Y. (2013). Understanding Generation Y and their use of social media: a review and research agenda. Journal of Service Management, 24(3), 245-267.
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Çoklar, A. N. (2012). Evaluations of students on Facebook as an educational environment. Turkish Online Journal of Qualitative Inquiry, 3(2), 42-53.
Junco, R., Heiberger, G., & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(2), 119-132.
van der Riet, P., Rossiter, R., Kirby, D., Dluzewska, T., & Harmon, C. (2015). Piloting a stress management and mindfulness program for undergraduate nursing students: Student feedback and lessons learned. Nurse Education Today, 35(1), 44-49.
Wilson, J. H., & Wilson, S. B. (2015). The first day of class affects student motivation: An experimental study. Teaching of Psychology, 34, 226-230.
Zawacki-Richter, O., Müskens, W., Krause, U., Alturki, U., & Aldraiweesh, A. (2015). Student Media Usage Patterns and Non-Traditional Learning in Higher Education. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 16(2), 136-170.