Records: 322
Facebook Usage as a Predictor of Retention at a Private 4-year Institution
Jason Morris Jeff Reese Richard Beck Charles Mattis |
APA Citation
Morris, J., Reese, J., Beck, R., & Mattis, C. (2009). Facebook usage as a predictor of retention at a private 4-year institution. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 11(3), 311-322.
Annotation
There has been a positive link between Facebook use and persistence rates. College freshman who returned the following year were found to have more Facebook friends and more wall posts than those students who did not return the following year.
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Factors Influencing Adult Learners’ Decision to Drop Out or Persist in Online Learning
Ji-Hye Park Hee Jun Choi |
APA Citation
Park, J. H., & Choi, H. J. (2009). Factors influencing adult learners’ decision to drop out or persist in online learning. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 12(4).
Annotation
This paper summarizes and builds upon previous theories of persistence among distance education learners, especially those of Rovai (2003), Kember (1989), and Bean & Metzner (1985). Most significantly, Park and Choi modify Rovai’s theory of persistence by questioning validity of the learner skills construct because of a lack of empirical support. They also move the external factors identified by Rovai as influencing persistence only after admission to influencing the persistence decision . . . both before and after admission.
The paper tests this modified theory by surveying 147 students in three distance education classes at a large Mid-western university. The survey asked questions designed to gauge the internal and external factors influencing the persistence decision, specifically dealing with the support the student receives from their family and employer as well as their satisfaction with the course and the course’s perceived relevance. The experiment found that there was a statistically significant difference across each of these four factors between students persisted and those who dropped out. Using a logistic regression, the study also found that employer support and student perceptions of the course’s relevance predicted persistence at statistically significant levels.
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How can Twitter Increase Communication (and Student Satisfaction) in Online Classes?
Tanya Joosten |
APA Citation
Joosten, T. (2009, November 21). How can twitter increase communication (and student satisfaction) in online classes? [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://professorjoosten.blogspot.com/2009/11/how-can-twitter-increase-communication.html
Annotation
This survey found that university students feel they need frequent (90%) and good (67%) communication with their instructor in order to learn. They also believe that they need to have good communication with their classmates (75%) and feel connected (80%) in order to learn. Social media can foster this type of engagement by making it easier for students to stay in touch with instructors and classmates outside of class time and doing so in online communities that students are already involved in.
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On the Rapid Rise of Social Networking Sites: New findings and policy implications
Sonia Livingstone David Brake |
APA Citation
Livingstone, S. & Brake, D. R. (2010). On the rapid rise of social networking sites: New findings and policy implications. Children & Society, 24, 75-83.
Annotation
The purpose of this article is to review the social networking practices of children and teenagers in the UK and identify any implications for further research and public policy. The authors suggest that children and teenagers are constructing different identities through their interaction with others on social networking sites in an effort to express themselves and their many identities. However, SNSs facilitate the quantity and quality of communication among 13-18 year olds in the US where . . . certain factors are important to them, such as maintaining small extensive social ties, overcoming embarrassments of face-to-face communication, and disembedding communication from its traditional anchoring (p. 4).
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The Evolution and Influence of Social Presence Theory on Online Learning
P. R. Lowenthal S. Dasgupta (Ed.) |
APA Citation
Lowenthal, P. R. (2009). The evolution and influence of social presence theory on online learning. In S. Dasgupta (Ed.), Social Computing: Concepts, Methodologies, Tools, and Application, (113-128). Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference.
Annotation
Lowenthal takes a theoretical perspective on examining existing literature on online social presence. Social presence theory is explored both historically and its evolution to how the theory has shaped research on online communities. Lowenthal also takes time to explore how previous researchers have operationalized and measured social presence. The chapter ends with the author noting that while distance learning courses have not grown as quickly as first expected, online courses are enrolling . . . more students each year. As such, Lowenthal argues continued research using social presence theory is vital to understanding how distance students are communicating.
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Tweeting the Night Away: Using Twitter to enhance social presence
Joanna C. Dunlap Patrick R. Lowenthal |
APA Citation
Dunlap, J. C., & Lowenthal, P. R. (2009). Tweeting the night away: Using Twitter to enhance social presence. Journal of Information Systems Education, 20, 129-135.
Annotation
This article focuses on the shortcomings of Learning Management Systems (LMS) when it comes to creating social presence. Though LMSs offer areas that replicate classroom time/space (dropbox, discussions etc.), they don’t provide a space for the informal interactions before/after class, during breaks, and random faculty-student meetings. Based on their experiences using twitter in the classroom, the authors offer 5 guidelines for using twitter in the instructional context, (1) Establish Relevance . . . for Students, (2) Define Clear Expectations for Participation, (3) Model Effective Twitter Use, (4) Build Twitter-derived Results into Assessment, (5) Continue to Actively Participate in Twitter.
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Twitter and status updating, fall 2009
Susannah Fox Kathryn Zickuhr Aaron Smith |
APA Citation
Fox, S., Zickuhr, K., & Smith, A. (2009). Twitter and status updating, fall 2009. Pew Internet & American Life Project, 21(10.2009).
Annotation
About 19% of internet users report that twitter is their primary platform to share life updates. Social network users, mobile device users, and younger internet users (age <44) are responsible for growing internet usage. Social net work users: those who already own other social network accounts (e.g. MySpace, Facebook) are more likely to use Twitter. Mobile Internet users: access to wireless internet makes tweeting easier. Younger Internet users: internet users aged between 18 and 44 use . . . Twitter more than other social network service.
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A Study of the Relationship between Student Social Networks and Sense of Community
Shane Dawson |
APA Citation
Dawson, S. (2008). A study of the relationship between student social networks and sense of community. Educational Technology & Society, 11(3), 224–238.
Annotation
The author argues that communication within a community is essential for the development of the sense of community, the integration of computer-mediated communication (CMC) being an important factor within that. The author uses two domains to characterize sense of community: locality and the sharing of common interests, both of which refer to the idea that people come together and develop social relationships through closeness or shared interest (p.155). Because CMCs alone won’t secure . . . community, there is a need for lead indicators of community for assessment of community development within the learning environment. (p. 154)
464 students enrolled in 25 teaching units at Queensland University of Technology participated in this quantitative study through online class participation and filling out an online survey that measured students’ degree of sense of community. In order to quantify this, Rovai’s Classroom Community Scale (CCS) was adopted, which included 20 question items, ranked according to a 1-5 Likert scale (strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree and strongly disagree). The findings suggest that those students with higher levels of communication interactions possess stronger levels of sense of community (supports the hypothesis). The author suggests that further research is needed to examine the relationship between student online behaviors and other factors influencing student satisfaction.
This (community) can be a shared location, language, purpose, value system, identity, or behavior. What is essential for the development of a sense of community is communication itself. Computer-mediated communication has become an important factor within that. Dawson has used two domains to characterize community: locality and sharing of common interests, both of which refer to the idea that people come together and develop social relationships through closeness or shared interest.
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Analyzing Students’ Perceptions of Their Learning in Online and Hybrid First-Year Composition Courses
Patricia Boyd |
APA Citation
Boyd, P. W. (2008). Analyzing students’ perceptions of their learning in online and hybrid first-year composition courses. Computers and Composition, 25(2), 224-243.
Annotation
Students were asked their perceptions on a variety of issues they were dissatisfied with their interactions with instructors, and felt that instructors did not respond in a timely manner. The results of the survey suggest that students want online courses to include the positive aspects of f2f courses but also want the online environment to be better than f2f. Students also did not seem to understand the goals of discussion board postings and ended up doing the work because it counted towards . . . their grade, not because they saw the value in it.
Three main benefits of online learning emerged from the research: they were introduced to multiple perspectives, they had the space to share opinions and online experiences directly benefited their writing.
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Blending Asynchronous Discussion Groups and Peer Tutoring in Higher Education: An exploratory study of online peer tutoring behaviour
Marijke De Smet Hilde Van Keer Martin Valcke |
APA Citation
De Smet, M., Van Keer, H., & Valcke, M. (2008). Blending asynchronous discussion groups and peer tutoring in higher education: An exploratory study of online peer tutoring behaviour. Computers & Education, 50(1), 207-223.
Annotation
● Setting was Ghent University in Belgium as part of a 5-credit freshman course “Instructional Sciences”
● 39 4th year student tutors were involved in the study, working in 18 pairs and 1 group of 3.
● All tutors moderated discussion boards for 12 weeks, and participated in a tutor training programme.
● Focus groups with the fourth year students were organized regularly.
● Content analysis was used to analyse the complete dataset of 114 transcripts.
● The unit of meaning in a message was . . . chosen as the unit of analysis.
● Results: Most common type of contact that occurs is information exchange.
● Peer tutoring is a dynamic process in which task specificity plays a role
● Building a feeling of community is crucial for success
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