Predictors of college students’ willingness to use social network services

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine predictors of social network services use among college students at two Turkish universities, with particular emphasis on Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and Instagram. Design/methodology/approach – A written questionnaire was administered to 822 college students from various faculties. The data obtained from the corresponding questionnaire were analyzed using ordered logit analysis and four different models were independently estimated with respect to social network services. Findings – Ordered logit estimation results revealed that frequency of log in to social network sites, time spent on social network sites, and following event alerts were three predictors that had significant impact on the frequency of all four social network sites’ use. Particularly; event participation, information sharing, following on top ranked topics, and purchasing a product through social media were the other additional predictors of college students’ willingness to use the corresponding social network sites. Originality/value – Although a vast literature exists on the use of social network services among college students, relatively little work was published which compares several social network services and predictors of their use. This paper may contribute to the existing literature by presenting the predictors of college students’ use of four different social network services in a specific area of Turkey and providing a comprehensive comparison between them.

Dynamic scaffolding in a cloud-based problem representation system

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to argue for the need to develop pre-service teachers’ problem solving ability, in particular, in the context of real-world complex problems. Design/methodology/approach – To argue for the need to develop pre-service teachers’ problem solving skills, the authors describe a web-based problem representation system that is embedded with levels of scaffolding to support the claim. Findings – The authors’ conceptualisation of this cloud-based environment is also very much aligned with the development of pre-service teachers’ systems thinking. Teacher learning itself is a complex system that involves many processes, mechanisms and interactions of elements, and the outcomes may be highly unpredictable (Opfer and Pedder, 2011). As a result of the complex nature of teacher learning, it would be meaningful to frame teacher learning as a complex system. An approach to enable pre-service teachers to be aware of this complexity is to situate them in a systems thinking context. Originality/value – This paper discusses a system which was developed for problem solving. The levels of adaptive scaffoldings embedded within the system is an innovation which is not found in other similar research projects.

Selecting a suitable Cloud Computing technology deployment model for an academic institute

Purpose – Cloud Computing (CC) technology is getting implemented rapidly in the educational sector to improve learning, research and other administrative process. As evident from the literature review, most of these implementations are happening in the western countries such as USA, UK, while the level of implementation of CC in developing countries such as India is rare. Moreover, implementing CC technology in the educational sector require various decisions to be made by the managers of the Information Technology (IT) department such as selecting suitable deployment model, vendor providing cloud service, etc. in their respective university or institute. The purpose of this paper is to attempt to address one such decision. Since, different types of CC deployment are available; selecting a suitable one plays a key role, as it might have an impact on the requirements of various stakeholders such as students, teachers, administrative staff (especially the staff members in the IT department), etc. apart from affecting the overall performance of the facilities such as a laboratory. Naturally, a proper decision by analysing multiple perspectives has to be made while carrying out such strategic initiatives by any educational institute. Design/methodology/approach – A case study methodology has been chosen as the research methodology to discuss and demonstrate the above decision problem that was faced in real time by one of the educational institutes in India, offering high-quality management education. The IT managers of this institute were planning to switch over to CC technology for the computer laboratory and they have to make a decision of choosing suitable alternative CC deployment models such as private cloud (PRC), public cloud (PUC), community cloud (COC), hybrid cloud (HYC), etc. by analysing and comparing them based on various factors and perspectives such as elasticity, availability, scalability, etc. Since, multiple factors are involved in making such a strategic decision, the most commonly used Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) model – namely, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is used as a decision support during the decision making process. Findings – The team of decision makers, who were planning to implement CC in the case institute, found that PRC is best as they believed that it would provide adequate cost savings, apart from providing necessary security to maintain confidential information such as student's detail, grades, etc. Research limitations/implications – The results obtained are based on a single case study. Hence, they cannot be generalized for institutions across educational sector. However, the decision making situation and understanding its impact on the stakeholders of the educational institute can be common across various educational institute. Practical implications – Using a real-life case study of an educational institute, this paper presented a strategic decision making situation, which needs to be considered by the IT managers of the educational institutes when they decide to switch over to CC technology. Various criteria to be considered during the decision making process was identified from the literature review were identified and enumerated. These factors would useful for the IT managers of the different educational institute and they can suitably add or delete these decision criteria as per their requirements and situation at hand. Moreover, the algorithm of AHP, which was used as a decision support, was presented in a step-by-step manner, which should be beneficial for the practitioners to apply the same for similar decision making situations. Originality/value – It is believed that this paper would be the first to report on a strategic decision of choosing the deployment model for CC technology especially in the educational sector. Similarly, this paper would also contribute to the field of CC, as it lists out the decision criteria that are to be considered for making the above decision, which has not got adequate importance. Lastly, this paper is also unique in the realm of AHP because application for a decision problem in the field of CC especially in the educational sector is least reported.

Designing a field experience tracking system in the area of special education

Purpose – To improve the quality of field experience, support field experience cooperation and streamline field experience management, the purpose of this paper is to describe the experience in using Activity Theory to design and develop a web-based field experience tracking system for a special education program. Design/methodology/approach – The authors used Activity Theory to design and develop a web-based field experience tracking system for a special education program. An in-depth evaluation of the developed web-based system including usability testing and actual use of the system was conducted. Findings – The evaluation and data analysis results demonstrate the value of Activity Theory and show that a web-based tracking system is a valuable tool to support the management of pre-service teachers’ field experiences. Originality/value – This is the first paper to discuss the design and development of field experience tracking system using Activity Theory. This paper can be used to motivate other developers to use Activity theory to design campus-wide information system. The system and methodology the authors used in this project has wider applicability and generalizability, and can be applied to the management of other competency and field based professional training in areas such as nursing, social work and medicine.

Most courses are not born digital

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss benefits of and barriers to online learning and describe utilization of the Quality Matters (QM) peer review process as a method to assure the quality of online courses. It outlines the QM higher education rubric, explains how the collaborative QM peer review process facilitates online course design and certification, reports on the development of a statewide consortium in Ohio, and explores future directions in online courses. Design/methodology/approach – This paper offers a brief historical review of the incorporation of technology into teaching and learning. It describes attitudes toward online learning and the creation of the non-profit QM program as a vehicle for improving online course design. It summarizes the eight standards of the QM rubric, describes the QM peer review process, and discusses the implementation of the Ohio QM Consortium (OQMC) as a shared services model. Findings – Given existing barriers to online learning, the QM program can improve learning outcomes by offering best practices in online course design, validating the quality of online courses, encouraging faculty buy-in through a focus on design rather than content, and facilitating degree completion through recognition of quality courses. Practical implications – Institutions that seek to validate online course quality in a cost-effective manner can explore a shared services model such as that developed by the OQMC. Originality/value – This paper introduces to an international audience a program and process, widely implemented in the USA, which encourages inter-institutional cooperation and promotes a supportive culture among online educators.

Using a synchronous online learning environment to promote and enhance transactional engagement beyond the classroom

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to create a synchronous online learning community through the use of Blackboard Collaborate! to promote and enhance transactional engagement outside the classroom. Design/methodology/approach – This paper employs a quantitative and qualitative approach where data were sourced from a third year finance unit across one semester using a survey instrument. SPSS v20 was used to perform basic descriptive analysis. Findings – The study revealed that by providing an online learning community through the use of Blackboard Collaborate! significantly enhances transactional engagement beyond the classroom. In particular the use of Blackboard Collaborate! allowed the teacher to be more accessible, supportive, expect and support high standards and provide challenging activities that generated rich and meaningful interactions and promoted higher order thinking skills. Research limitations/implications – The positive results emanating from this study may encourage other educators and their institutions to adopt a synchronous online learning community to enhance student's engagement levels and increase the quality of student learning and their university experience. This study was conducted at only one university so it may not be feasible to form generalisations resulting from the findings. Originality/value – This study adds new insights towards the scarce amount of literature on engagement in a blended learning environment. In particular the study adds a student perspective to the student engagement literature and to what constitutes quality in higher education and/or improved student experience.

The use of social networking and learning management systems in English language teaching in higher education

Purpose – The use of web-enhanced teaching of the English as a foreign language in higher education in Greece is addressed in this case study which examines the student's perceptions of online instruction using Moodle as a learning management system (LMS), with and without the use of Facebook (FB) as an adjunctive learning platform. The merging of this collaborative and interactive social platform with a LMS is explored, examining the attitudes of higher education foreign language learners toward Moodle as a LMS, and FB as an adjunctive informal learning environment. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – Results are drawn from a pre-FB questionnaire after a term using Moodle only, and a post-FB questionnaire following a term using Moodle and FB. Findings – Results suggest that the use of web-based tools and social media changed the way students viewed the role of internet technology in the development of their English language learning. Most students (76 percent) agreed that the addition of FB to the course helped build a sense of community within a learning environment, while 69 percent suggested it enhanced the learning process. Originality/value – Results suggest FB may reinforce communication skills and engagement in the learning process and may support participation and collaborative learning in the formal learning environment provided by Moodle.

Wadawurrung Dya Baap Ngobeeyt: teaching spatial mapping technologies

Purpose – Aboriginal communities in Australia must have mapping information and technology to effectively and independently administer their land holdings and to define, evidence and thus protect their community and cultural identity. The purpose of this paper is to report on a pilot project that developed a customisable education programme to support Indigenous communities in the uptake of spatial mapping technologies to protect and manage cultural heritage in Victoria, Australia. Design/methodology/approach – A training programme to support Wadawurrung capabilities in spatial mapping technologies was developed, delivered and evaluated. Concurrently, the system's database was indigenised by Wadawurrung cultural heritage workers. Types and numbers of culturally significant sites mapped using the technologies were collated. The impact of the training and technologies for students and the Wadawurrung community was gauged through participation levels and evaluations. The approach to indigenous spatial mapping projects is informed by postcolonial theories interrogating neo-colonialist cartographic practices. Findings – Indigenous communities need to be resourced in the uptake of spatial mapping technologies and if universities are going to be involved in co-developing positive learning experiences that encourage the uptake of the technologies, they must have appropriate and respectful relationships with Aboriginal communities. Training programmes need to accommodate learners with diverse educational experiences and technological wherewithal. Research limitations/implications – Findings from the training evaluations are based on a small number of participants; however, they seem to be supported by literature. Practical implications – The education model developed is customisable for any Indigenous community in Australia. Social implications – The social and political importance of spatial mapping technologies for Indigenous Australians is evident as is the need for educational providers to have appropriate and respectful relationships with Aboriginal communities to co-develop positive learning experiences that encourage the uptake of the technologies. Originality/value – The Wadawurrung Dya Baap Ngobeeyt Cultural Heritage Mapping and Management Project developed practical strategies to build community capacity in Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Management and Protection. The educational programme developed supported learners to use technologies in cultural heritage management. Data were collected using community-developed fields for inclusion and culturally appropriate encryption of data.

A framework for the design of computer-assisted simulation training for complex police situations

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report progress concerning the design of a computer-assisted simulation training (CAST) platform for developing decision-making skills in police students. The overarching aim is to outline a theoretical framework for the design of CAST to facilitate police students’ development of search techniques in complex interactions within the built environment, learning to apply and perform the five “quick peek” techniques for information gathering, and subsequent risk evaluation. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on Luckin's ecology of resources model of learner context informed with perspectives on reflective thinking from John Dewey and Donald Schön. The paper discusses design issues within the ecology of resources model applied on CAST for complex police situations. Findings – It is suggested that Luckin's framework with its focus on the interaction between different elements and filters in the learner's context together with Schön's perspective on reflection challenge educational designers to look beyond the immediate development of specific tools (such as the CAST in this project) and examine how these tools will be effectively embedded in the overall learning experience. Originality/value – This paper has presented two theoretical perspectives, Luckin's ecology of resources model and Schön's perspective on reflective practice as foundations for the educational design of CAST. Applying Luckin's framework as informed by Schön helps focus attention on issues that are important in the design process in order to facilitate educational transfer.