Thursday, December 17, 2009

Social Networks Not Just for Chatting Anymore

Social-networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter can help community college students become more engaged in their academics, a recent report from the Center for Community College Student Engagement suggests.

Although large numbers of students say they use such tools in their daily lives, many two-year colleges have yet to mine the potential of the technology.

"The uses of social-networking tools are clearly growing in frequency," said Kay McClenney, director of the Texas-based Center for Community College Student Engagement, which released the report. But "colleges are not taking advantage of that particular set of tools for making connections with students to the extent that they could."

Ohio University Lancaster Campus Dean John Furlow said officials at the campus have discussed the possibility of utilizing Facebook and Twitter as a way to recruit new students and more effectively communicate with the students who don't regularly check their campus e-mail accounts.

"If we need to get a message out to all students, we send it through e-mail system; every student is assigned an e-mail address through Ohio University," Furlow said. "But we have a number of nontraditional students who don't use their e-mail, so we're not reaching as many students as we need to."

The report is based on a survey of more than 400,000 students from 663 institutions that assesses how much effort students invest in their studies, whether they interact with faculty and staff and whether they are challenged by their academics. Studies show the more engaged students are in such activities and relationships, the more likely they are to learn.

The survey found higher levels of engagement among students who said they used social media multiple times a day for academic purposes, such as communicating with other students, instructors or college staff about coursework, than students who said they don't use such tools at all.

It also revealed a potential downside for colleges that don't harness the technology: Students who frequently used social-networking tools but not for academic reasons tended to put less effort into their schoolwork.

Among the findings:

  • 95 percent of students ages 18 to 24 use social-networking tools, including instant messages and texting, 64 percent multiple times a day. Yet just 18 percent do so for schoolwork, and 27 percent never do. Just 5 percent never use social networks.
  • Among older students, 68 percent used social networking, 41 percent multiple times a day. But just 10 percent do so for school; 49 percent never used social networking for school.

    The report stops short of suggesting that social networking is the key to engaging all students, but it urges colleges to "find the right match."

    Furlow said OU-L has worked to implement more ways for students to chat about what they've learned in classes and communicate with their professors. For the past five years, the university has utilized a social networking site of sorts called Blackboard.

    "There is a chat element to that blackboard system, where professors can put out a discussion question for students and then students can interact by giving feedback," Furlow said. "Professors also can put up entire syllabus and put up notices about assignments, which can be helpful for students."

    Furlow said the system has gone through numerous upgrades during the past five years and has become easier to use.

    He said social networking avenues such as Twitter and Facebook could only improve that communication process among students and professors -- but there still needs to be some discussion about how to most effectively use the sites.

    "We are aware these sites are out there and we love to talk about tweeting and twittering; it makes us sound up to date," Furlow said with a laugh. "There are so many different sites out there, we want to be sure we find the best one."

    Social networking seems a natural for Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas, based in rural Helena.

    "We're always fighting the tendency of students to go from the parking lot to the classroom and back to the parking lot and into their jobs and homes and their other life," said chancellor Steven Murray. "A lot of our students do not have computers at home, broadband Internet access, but they all have cellphones with the capacity to text, and ... access Twitter and Facebook."

    BY MARY BETH MARKLEIN • USA TODAY • December 6, 2009

  • Eagle-Gazette Education Reporter Michelle George contributed to this article.

    Source: http://www.lancastereaglegazette.com/article/20091206/NEWS01/912060324/1002