scholarly journals Online adjunct higher education teachers’ perceptions of using social media sites as instructional approaches

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 222-235
Author(s):  
Barbara Case Fedock ◽  
Melissa McCartney ◽  
Douglas Neeley
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Faculty Member ◽  
Adjunct Faculty ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Higher Education Faculty ◽  
Adjunct Instructors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Online Higher Education ◽  
Use Of Social Media

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore how online adjunct higher education faculty members perceive the role of using social media sites as instructional approaches. A purposeful sampling was used, and adjunct online higher education faculty members were invited to participate. An adjunct faculty member was defined as a person who taught part-time higher education courses; therefore, the faculty member was not hired as a full-time faculty member. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative researchers explore phenomena examining the lived experiences and participants behaviors; in this study, online adjunct instructors’ perceptions on classroom instructional social media online approaches were examined. Participants in this study were trained to teach higher education online courses and these teachers were the experts on the topic. The design for this study was an exploratory case study in which the participants were online adjunct instructors who taught at online higher education institutions in the Northeast. The case study approach was the most appropriate. The focus was the external events participants’ lives. Findings Three themes emerged from the analysis of the in-depth interview process. Based on the adjunct online higher education instructors’ perception on the use of social media teaching approaches in the classroom, the themes that emerged were uniformity of purpose vs personal beliefs need for justification importance student engagement and facilitation vs direct instruction. Themes reflected online teaching approaches higher education institutional missions and student learning and engagement outcomes. Research limitations/implications In this study, adjuncts’ perceptions expressed and themes found may not be characteristic of other adjunct instructors’ views. In qualitative studies, participants are asked open-ended interview questions, which may have been a limitation for this study. Quantitative questions, such as the impact of using social media as an instructional approach, were not asked. In this study, adjunct online higher education instructors were invited to share their views on the study topic. Additionally, qualitative researchers are limited by the data collection method and the data analysis process. Therefore, researchers who would like to repeat this study on adjunct online higher education teachers’ perspectives may be unable to duplicate the research. Practical implications The significance of this study is the need for a renewed global initiative in higher education to promote the use of social media training for online adjunct faculty members. Online higher education faculty members’ reflections on using social media tend to be recorded from a personal rather than a professional point of view. Social implications The implication for online higher education leaders is to review mission statements and reevaluate how the use of social media may impact student learning outcomes, student career readiness and student engagement opportunities. Originality/value The need for a renewed global initiative in higher education to promote the use of social media training for online adjunct faculty evolved as the significance of the study. Because inclusion requirements and workshop training for the use of social media in online higher education classrooms vary among higher education institutions, online adjunct faculty social media classroom practices and perceptions widely vary.

A systematic review investigating the use of Twitter and Facebook in university-based healthcare education

2014 ◽  
Vol 114 (5) ◽  
pp. 347-366 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toby Smith ◽  
Rodney Lambert
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Eligibility Criteria ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Education Practice ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Critical Appraisal Skills

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the use, attitudes and perceptions of both teachers and students towards social media platforms (Facebook and Twitter) in healthcare higher education practice. Design/methodology/approach – Systematic literature review. A search of published and unpublished databases was conducted from January 2000 to January 2013. Data were synthesised through a narrative approach. All included studies were critically appraised using Critical Appraisal Skills Programme appraisal tools. Findings – From a total of 876 papers, 16 publications met the eligibility criteria. The review papers were largely of moderate methodological quality. The results indicated that Facebook and Twitter are perceived as potentially useful adjuncts in healthcare higher education practice. Their use as part of a “blended” approach to classroom teaching has been employed to enhance communication and increase accessibility of students to real-world practices and expertise. Whilst students perceive this to be of value, some have reservations regarding the possibility of faculty members spying or infringing on their “virtual” social community. Faculty members expressed some reservations regarding the perceived boundary between student-staff relationships. Originality/value – This is the first paper to systematically review the literature on the use of social media networking sites in health education. This identified both the potential strengths and weaknesses of using this new technology, and highlights areas to expand knowledge with further research and practice.

Investigating the Effects of Social Media on Higher Education with a Case Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (01) ◽  
pp. 2040023 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mamoun Masoud Abdulqader ◽  
Yousof Zohair Almunsour
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
The Other ◽  
Media In Education ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Teaching Learning

This research aims to investigate the effects of social media use on higher education teaching and learning as well as the students’ academic performance. A total of 275 students and faculty members from the College of Computer Science and Information Technology at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University took part in the study. The participants answered survey questions to analyse information on their use of social media in education and how that has affected their teaching, learning and grades. A majority of the participants reported that they used social media in training. However, they also stated that social media platforms were beneficial in academic matters. The number of participants who stated that the use of social media in learning helped improve their grades was 43%. The other 57% thought that social media had no impact on their grades or had an adverse effect or were undecided.

It Is Not About the Money

2021 ◽  
pp. 176-190
Author(s):  
Katie Ervin
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Faculty Member ◽  
Adjunct Faculty ◽  
Self Determination Theory ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Job Retention ◽  
Online Programs ◽  
Retention Decisions

This chapter will discuss the motivation of remote adjunct faculty members by utilizing the theoretical framework of self-determination theory. This will assist institutions in understanding why these faculty members teach, and understanding their motivation will assist institutions in recruiting, hiring, developing, and retaining qualified remote adjunct faculty members. As online programs in higher education continue to grow, there is a persistent increase in the usage of remote adjunct faculty. If an organization has strong, qualified adjunct faculty members but does not take care of them, the adjunct faculty member will go elsewhere to teach. People typically make job decisions based on money, but job retention decisions typically rest on autonomy and culture. With the growth in the number of adjunct faculty members, universities may be challenged to find qualified instructors, which makes retention even more critical.

Social media for environmental sustainability awareness in higher education

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 474-491 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suraya Hamid ◽  
Mohamad Taha Ijab ◽  
Hidayah Sulaiman ◽  
Rina Md. Anwar ◽  
Azah Anir Norman
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Keyword Search ◽  
Environmental Awareness ◽  
University Policy ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
The University

Purpose The explosion of social media use such as Facebook among higher education students is deemed to have great potential in widely disseminating environmental sustainability awareness. The paper aims to capture, summarise, synthesise and comment on the role of social media to garner interest of students and staff on environmental sustainability issues. Design/methodology/approach Systematic literature review technique is adopted, and three selected online databases were searched for relevant papers for review. Specific data were extracted from each paper, and the discussion section was based on the developed research questions. Findings Higher education needs to fully leverage the ubiquity of social media to extend how environmental sustainability is viewed by the students and staff. Sustainability practices conducted at the university level such as recycling, reduction of electricity and water consumptions and paper reduction in classroom and used to engage students on environmental matters. For staff, social media can be leveraged as to convey the university policy and assist in their quest to become full-fledged green universities. Research limitations/implications Some of the limitations of this research include the lack of keyword search using synonyms or related terms equivalent to the term “awareness”, lack of forward and backward searches, and the papers were searched until end of 2013 only. Future research needs to take advantage of the current limitations to investigate this topic and be empirically supported by theories using quantitative, qualitative or mixed-method-based research. Future studies could also develop relevant frameworks to propose an effective use of social media for creating environmental sustainability awareness in higher education. Practical implications Propagations of environmental sustainability awareness in higher education would be more effective with the use of social media. Social implications In principle, the increase of environmental awareness level would increase the students’ good behavioural conduct on environmental sustainability. Originality/value While the broad topic of environmental sustainability in higher education is widely discussed, the role of social media in shaping environmental sustainability awareness is still under researched. This situation provides a significant potential for exploration by sustainability researchers to craft their investigation on the effective role of social media in creating environmental awareness in higher education.

scholarly journals Social media as a tool of knowledge sharing in academia: an empirical study using valance, instrumentality and expectancy (VIE) approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (10) ◽  
pp. 2531-2552
Author(s):  
Sheshadri Chatterjee ◽  
Nripendra P. Rana ◽  
Yogesh K. Dwivedi
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Knowledge Sharing ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Knowledge Exchange ◽  
Perceived Usefulness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Indian Higher Education ◽  
Use Of Social Media

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the factors that determine the knowledge exchange intention and behavioural nature of academics by the help of social media tools in the Indian higher education. Design/methodology/approach This study has used valance–instrumentality–expectancy (VIE) theory to determine the knowledge exchange behaviour of academics. The study has considered the effects of knowledge contributor (KC) and knowledge seeker (KS) as moderators. The model has been validated by using a survey with 320 usable respondents. Findings The results highlight that if the stakeholders of higher education institutions feel the deficits of knowledge exchange, they realize importance of knowledge sharing and use social media to increase effect of knowledge exchange. Besides, perceived usefulness impacts on the use of social media for knowledge exchange by the concerned stakeholders. Moreover, it is observed that experience of the use of social media impacts the use of this tool for knowledge exchange. Research limitations/implications The use and application of VIE theory have successfully been able to interpret the factors affecting use of social media for knowledge exchange in higher educational institutes. The use of VIE theory has also been able to explain the proposed model better as the model could achieve a high explanative power (87%). Practical implications This study has provided meaningful insights to the practitioners and policymakers to realize how the stakeholders of the higher education institutions in India can be motivated to feel the need of sharing of knowledge and how they can use social media with ease for this purpose. Originality/value Not much research has been conducted with regard to the usage of social media as a tool for knowledge sharing in higher education sector in India. In that sense, this study is a novel attempt to undertake such research.

Part-Time Faculty Affiliation with the Virtual University

2011 ◽  
pp. 1605-1609
Author(s):  
Leone E. Snyder ◽  
Leonard L. Snyder
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Department Of Education ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Virtual University ◽  
Adjunct Instructors ◽  
Part Time Faculty ◽  
Online Higher Education ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Education Administrators ◽  
Time Faculty

The recent, rapid growth of online higher education is well-documented. For example, Kiernan (August 8, 2003) mentions a U.S. Department of Education finding that there were 754,000 students enrolled in distance education for-credit courses in 1994; by 2000, that number had increased to 2,876,000. The National Center for Education reported that, as of 2002, 57% of U.S. undergraduates had taken an Internet-based course (Palloff and Pratt, 2003). This dramatic increase in enrollment has created a corresponding growth in the demand for faculty members, a demand that is increasingly being met by part-time, adjunct instructors. Grieve (2000) stated at the time of writing that 40% of college instruction was being delivered by part-time faculty, and predicted an increase in that percentage based on the growth in distance learning. As a result, higher education administrators need to know how to hire, train, and retain part-time faculty members. Feldman and Turnley (Fall, 2001) note a lack of research in this area. In response, the purpose of the study that is summarized in this article was to assist administrators by discovering and presenting reasons why prospective faculty members seek parttime, online instruction assignments and why faculty members choose to continue to be affiliated with schools once hired.

Evaluation of higher education services: social media learning

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 147-159
Author(s):  
Gokmen Dagli ◽  
Fahriye Altinay ◽  
Zehra Altinay ◽  
Mehmet Altinay
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
University Students ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Semistructured Interview ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Media Services ◽  
Problems And Solutions ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
The University

PurposeThis research study aims to examine the quality of life and services of higher education through social media in fostering students' learning and environments.Design/methodology/approachQualitative research methods were used in this study. In the study, as a data collection tool, a semistructured interview form was prepared and questions were asked. A study group was formed with a total of 80 participants in order to analyze the opinions of students studying in the University of Kyrenia.FindingsAccording to the findings obtained in the study, it is understood that higher education students generally use Facebook or Instagram especially for following the trainings conducted abroad. It can be said that university students of higher education can follow many educational developments by being members of various educational institutions. In addition to this, university students can be thought to use this tool continuously and intensively in all project or assignment submissions thanks to social media. It is understood that especially university students can communicate with faculty members and access big data when necessary. Again, in this context, thanks to social media, it is understood from the opinions and thoughts received from the participants that they can easily prepare their lessons by making group interviews with each other or with the groups they have formed collectively. It is understood from the findings that the quality can be increased because various trainings can be provided in groups established through social media; thus, the fact that there is an opening to the world and the reason for the exchange of healthy ideas, information and science increases the quality.Research limitations/implicationsResearch is limited to numbers of research participants from the University of Kyrenia, Faculty of Education in northern part of Cyprus. Social media is used as a medium of learning and development in the research.Practical implicationsIt is a study that ensures that if social media services are used correctly in practice, this research will contribute to the continuous development of students.Social implicationsThe research conducted contributes to how social media services can be organized through technology in higher education and measurement of learning can be enriched through social media.Originality/valueWith this research, it has a unique value due to the fact that the problems encountered in the use of social media services in universities reveal the problems and solutions. In this context, it shows the contribution of social media on the value added to the learning and learning environments and the benefit of services in higher education.

scholarly journals Investigating the Impact of Social Media Use on Student’s Perception of Academic Performance in Higher Education: Evidence from Jordan

10.28945/4661 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 953-975
Author(s):  
Ahmad Samed Al-Adwan ◽  
Nour Awni Albelbisi ◽  
Shadia Hasan Aladwan ◽  
Omar Horani ◽  
Amro Al-Madadha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Academic Performance ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Faculty Members ◽  
Education Students ◽  
Social Media Use ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Use Of Social Media

Aim/Purpose: The main objective of this study is to explore students’ beliefs with regard to social media use (SMU) in higher education and the consequences of such use on the perception of their academic performance. Additionally, the study aims to determine the major influential factors with regard to SMU in student learning settings as a means of enhancing their performance. To achieve these objectives, drawing on the literature related to SMU in higher education settings, a research model has been developed. Background: Social media platforms have led to a significant transformation with regard to the communication landscape in higher education in terms of offering enhanced learning and improved teaching experience. Nevertheless, little is known, particularly in developing countries such as Jordan, as to whether or not the use of such platforms by students in higher education increases the perceptions of their academic performance. Therefore, this study has developed a model to examine the perceptions of higher education students with regard to social media use and its effect on their performance. Methodology: The Structural Equation Modelling approach is used to analyze data collected via an online survey in the form of a questionnaire to examine the use of such a model. The study sample is drawn from undergraduate and postgraduate students from three universities (one public and two private) in Jordan. Convenience sampling is used to collect data. Out of 730 sent questionnaire, 513 responses were received, of which 403 were deemed qualified to be part of the data analysis process. Contribution: This study contributes to the literature on social media in higher education by enhancing our understanding of the perceptions of higher education students on the use of social media in their learning. The tested model can be used as a benchmark for other studies that target the impact of social media on student performance in higher education. Findings: The results reveal that perceptions of (1) usefulness, collaborative learning, enhanced communication, enjoyment, and ease of use of social media have a positive effect on the use of such media in student learning; (2) resource sharing has an insignificant effect on social media use in student learning, and (3) social media use has a positive influence on students’ perceptions of their academic performance. Recommendations for Practitioners: Senior management and policy makers in higher education institutions will have to train faculty members on effective strategies and methods in order to effectively integrate social media into education. This would equip faculty members with the necessary digital skills needed to help them to be fully informed regarding the benefits of social media and its tools in learning and teaching activities and would also allow them to avoid any possible drawbacks. Furthermore, faculty members should reconsider their current techniques and strategies, and adopt new methods in their teaching that encourage students to use social media platforms as part of their learning. For example, they can regularly post discussions and assignments on social media platforms to inculcate the habit of using such platforms among students for educational purposes. Students, on the other hand, should be aware of the implications and potential advantageous aspects of SMU in their learning. This could be done by conducting regular workshops and seminars in the various faculties and schools at universities. Recommendation for Researchers: Researchers are encouraged to investigate additional factors that might influence the use of social media by students as well as faculty members. Specially, an emphasis should be given to identify any potential obstacles that might hinder the use of social media in higher education. Impact on Society: Social media is not only useful for socializing, but also it can be an effective educational tool that enhance students’ performance in higher education. Future Research: Although the collected data support the research model, this study is subjected to various limitations that need to be tackled by further studies. This study is based on the principles of quantitative research design. Data for this study was collected via survey questionnaires. Accordingly, future studies may consider a qualitative research design in order to uncover additional factors that may impact the use of social media on the part of higher education students. This would allow researchers to generate in-depth insights and a holistic understanding of SMU by higher education students. A convenience sampling method was employed to select respondents for this study. The respondents who participated in this study were from three universities (one public and two private) in Jordan. Accordingly, future research is deemed to be necessary to achieve a degree of generalizability regarding the findings of this study.

Restaurant social media usage in China

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 251-265 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Ghiselli ◽  
Jing Ma
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Consumer Preferences ◽  
Payment Systems ◽  
Strategic Choices ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Chinese Context ◽  
Media Usage ◽  
Special Events ◽  
Computer Mediated ◽  
Use Of Social Media

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of social media by restaurants in China and the extent to which consumers are using it to obtain information about dining options. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire for consumers was developed and social media usage data were collected from restaurants; the results were compared to determine whether there is a difference between practices and preferences. Findings – Based on the results of this paper, restaurants may want to consider committing resources and efforts to improve their presence on Dianping, Baidu and Meituan, and to utilize WeChat. Also, they may want to send non-personalized updates, especially coupons, discounts and information about special events, through the above-mentioned channels two to three times a month. Additionally, restaurants may want to improve engagement with frequent users so that they will recommend to others. Finally, restaurants may want to evaluate and invest in online ordering and payment systems if they haven’t done so already. Research limitations/implications – Strategic choices should be based on understanding of consumers. Unless the gaps between practices and preferences are identified and understood, restaurant companies may not be able to use social media effectively and efficiently. Originality/value – China’s social media market – the largest in the world – differs considerably from other countries; it presents unique opportunities and challenges. Social media is always a function of the technology, culture and government of a particular country or context; for this reason, it is very important to study social media in its “context”. While the need is pressing, there are limited studies on restaurant consumer preferences in a computer-mediated environment, not to mention in the Chinese context. This study examined consumer preferences and potential gaps between preferences and practices in the Chinese context; the results will help to direct restaurants in China to make better use of social media.

Relationships between research supervisors and students from coursework-based master’s degrees: information usage under social media

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gunnan Dong ◽  
Dickson K.W. Chiu ◽  
Po-Sen Huang ◽  
Kevin K.W. Ho ◽  
Mavis Man-wai Lung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Graduate Students ◽  
Media Environment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Master's Degrees ◽  
Information Usage ◽  
Use Of Social Media ◽  
Research Students ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose Existing studies reflect that traditional teaching–learning relationships between supervisors and graduate students have become disjointed with actuality seriously. In particular, there are practical difficulties in handling many students from coursework-based postgraduate degrees under current university curricula. Therefore, this study aims to explore the relationship between research supervisors and graduate students on social media, which is popular among students. Design/methodology/approach This study surveyed 109 graduate students from two majors (population around 100 each) of a university in Hong Kong to explore their information usage for research on social media, related attitudes and their perceived supervisor relationships. The differences between the two majors were also compared. Findings The authors’ findings indicated that graduate students were active on social media, and social media has successfully provided effective alternate ways for students to communicate with their research supervisors. Social media could improve relationships between supervisors and research students and among fellow students. Besides education purposes, students also discussed their personal affairs on social media with supervisors, demonstrating enhanced trusted relationships. Graduate students also showed confidence in the further application of social media in higher education. Some differences between respondents from the two programs were also found in terms of communication contents, strengths, personal preferences and purposes for using social media. Originality/value Scant studies focus on the relationship between supervisors and graduate students under the current social media environment, especially for students from coursework-based postgraduate degrees. At a deeper level, for the widespread use of social media in the information age, this study explores the specific changes brought about by social media. Therefore, this study is of great theoretical and practical value to graduate education under the current social media environment.

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