Using online social networking for teaching and learning: Facebook use at the University of Cape Town

“Now more and more universities or tutoring using online learning methods or e-learning [27], [50], [51].”

“; (3) To hone affirmative attitude towards learning (Pasek & Hargittai, 2009); (4) To hone communication, cognitive and social competencies (Bosch, 2009;).”

“Bosch [6] studied the use of Facebook among students at the University of Cape Town and found that students and teaching staff used it frequently to exchange information about classes and related topics.”

“On this, Bosch (2009) reports that libraries in South Africa have integrated social media (e.g. Facebook, Wikis, Delicious, YouTube and Podcasts) to support service provisions.”

“McCarthy J. Blended learning environments: using social networking sites to enhance the first year experience.”

“Facebook allows high levels of surveillance, as users can view on others posts, profiles data and other personal information (Bosch, 2009).”

“Bosch, T. E. (2009). Using online social networking for teaching and learning: Facebook use at the University of Cape Town.”

“Facebook is predominantly known as a hub of social networking activity; however, it is quickly being recognised as a reputable and popular e-learning platform (Bosch, 2009; McCarthy, 2012).”

“However, students also use Facebook to gain social benefits,(7) gather information,(8) publicize their romantic relationship status,(9) monitor their romantic partner,(10,11) avoid boredom,(3) play games,(12) and organize events.(13,14) In contrast, students’ use of Facebook for purely academic purposes is relatively…”

“Students’ adoption and positive attitudes toward the use of Facebook for educational purposes was reported in some research studies (Bosch, 2009; Eren, 2012).”

“People use FB to stay connected with friends and family, to discover what’s going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them (Bosch, 2009).”

“According to Bosch (2009), individuals who are considered digital natives may exhibit reluctance towards conventional teaching and learning approaches due to their strong attachment to technology.”

“Australian researchers, having analyzed facebook usage in the university study process, acknowledge this networking website as a proper educational instrument, however express a doubt, that it is still unclear if and how Facebook can enhance student learning outcomes (Irwin, Ball, Desbrow, & Leveritt, 2012).”

“Furthermore, Bosch (2009) studied into the use of Facebook at the University of Cape Town and found out that Facebook is used for connecting members of student societies, student groups and halls of residence.”

“They said that about 60% of students now are students at various universities in the US and several other Commonwealth countries get information about their chosen campus candidate from several social media platforms (Bosch, 2009).”

“There are also studies about the application of social media technologies to e-learning or to learning in general, for example [68] and [69] present studies about the use of Facebook by students and lecturers, and the engagement of the both via that social media.”

“[Bosch, 2009] is another insightful work that reviews early seminal research FB in a learning environment and discusses in more detail the case of students and lecturers at the university of Cape Town.”

“wn to be more prominent in the ego-networks of Facebook users who are more willing to share information with many others, or does not feel a need to consider identity management on the social network [42, 65, 74, 12]. Such “exclusive group participants” may therefore promote the use of Facebook as a genuine social sha…”

“OSN have been integrated within the learning environment and proved to be supportive tools for the various academic activities and tasks (Jaffar 2012; Krauskopf et al. 2012; Moran et al. 2012; Kirschner and Karpinski 2010; Bosch 2009).”

“…of resources and learning materials, develops critical thinking and communicative skills, develops writing skills, provides active participation, and creates a positive attitude towards learning (Ajjan & Harsthone, 2008; Bosch, 2009; Özmen et al., 2011; Ractham & Firpo, 2011; Yuen & Yuen, 2008).”

“Similar positive experiences have been noted in HEIs in South Africa (Bosch, 2009), Australia and the United States: ‘. . .49.”

“…identified for Facebook use among young adults, especially students include maintaining friendship (Ellison, Vitak, Gray, & Lampe, 2014; Hew, 2011), meet new people (Sheldon, 2008), to make oneself popular (Pempek, Yermolayeva, & Calvert, 2009; Lee, 2014) and for educational purposes (Bosch, 2009).”

“…researchers have employed social media to improve transition experiences (Gray et al., 2013) and others have tried to integrate them into learning (Bosch, 2009), there still exists a gap where educational use of social media is used to theorise personal experiences of education environments; how…”

“Although previous studies stated that students use Facebook to support both their academic and social goals (Bosch, 2009; Irwin et al., 2012; Madge et al., 2009; Mazman and Usluel, 2010; Tian et al., 2011), the majority of evidence infers that students’ main drive for using Facebook is for social…”

“Facebook has been focused on the opinions and attitudes that academic institutions, learners and teachers express towards its usage as an educational tool and learning environment [7, 21, 45, 48].”

“Though [17] cited certain challenges such as ICT literacy and uneven access in using online social networking for teaching and learning, the challenge particularly of uneven access is being conquered by the use of mobile phones that are web enabled.”

“…current issues related to education Chang et al. (2011) 17 Facebook provides a variety of materials resources Lam (2012), Mazman and Usluel (2010), Bosch (2009), Aydin (2012) 18 Facebook enables students to repeat the lesson content as they want 27 Facebook provides opportunities for learning…”

“This is supported by an argument of Bosch (2009) saying that one possible solution for using Facebook effectively in teaching would be to provide a good internet connection in an educational institution.”

“Some studies have proved that using Facebook in EFL classrooms can support learners to develop their oral production as well as their writing and reading skills (Bosch, 2009; Mills, 2009; Madge et al., 2009).”

“Bosch [17] concluded that establishing educational micro-communities on Facebook has a number of potential benefits for both teaching and learning, as learners can share interests and ideas and take part in collaborative discussions in this context.”

“…influenced the use of FB for Social interaction, supporting the interpretation that for young people this social medium may be an instrument to keep in touch with friends (Bosch, 2009; Ellison, Steinfield, & Lampe, 2007; Lewis & West, 2009; Pempek, Yermolayeva, & Calvert, 2009; Sheldon, 2008).”

“Bosch (2009) showed the potential positive benefits of using Facebook in teaching and learning, particularly for the development of educational micro-communities.”

“%) for educational purposes with a predominance of Facebook, which has become the most popular SNS in the world (Mazman and Usluel, 2010), recognized as a respectable e-learning platform (Bosch, 2009).”

“Like many other SNS’s, Facebook enables users to enhance and develop their network and to join and become a member of different micro communities (Bosch, 2009, 185-186).”

“[4].”

“One study found that Facebook could serve as a learning resource for students to find answers to questions about courses, assignments and to share ideas about projects and lectures (Bosch, 2009).”

“Though, most academic research on the subject is based on North-American case studies (Bosch, 2009).”

“It is a potential application for both teaching and learning [29].”

“This accessibility is often perceived by students as a signi fi cant bene fi t as it can allow increased communication with staff and peers, greater access to course material, connections to industry, and access to collaborative learning partners (Bosch, 2009; Irwin et al., 2012).”

“…through the posting of class announcements); encourage collaboration using the available resources; and allow access to and communication with faculty members (Sisson & Wiley, 2007 Dalsgaard, 2008; Heiberger & Harper, 2008; Bosch, 2009; Hargittai et al, 2009; Martínez-Alemán & Lynk-Wartman, 2009).”

“In another case (Bosch, 2009) students reflected that their use of Facebook for checking class-related material while they were engaging in social communication was also useful.”

“Of importance to this research is the identification of which barriers might affect the uptake of contemporary technological tools in the educational realm (Bosch 2009; Hew 2011; Kosik 2007; Madge et al. 2009).”

“Facebook is one of the most common social media in the world because of its wide use by many of the members of society (Bosch, 2009; Madge, Meek, Wellens, & Hooley, 2009).”

“Numerous studies have explored and analyzed the use of social media, particularly, YouTube [21], [37], [40], [50], blogs such as WordPress and Google [19], [61], [87], [118] and Facebook [13], [31], [57], [60], [20], [119].”

“Scholarship on the use of Facebook in educational environments is growing (Bosch, 2009; Donlan, 2014; Mazman & Usluel, 2010; Wang, Scown, Urquhart, & Hardman, 2014).”

“Social networks have demonstrated their usefulness in education, in some studies that have been carried out [19], [20], improving productivity and encouraging people to continue learning.”

“Research have supported the positive impact of Facebook in educational context (McCarthy, 2015; Shih, 2011; Bosch, 2009).”

“It is not surprising that educators have leveraged the popularity of SNSs, and particularly Facebook, in their teaching and these tools have quickly gained credibility as e-learning tools for the classroom (Bosch, 2009).”

“Recently, this informal use has been complemented by formal use within the classroom (Bosch, 2009; Ractham & Kaewkitipong, 2012; Roblyer et al., 2010).”

“This result is similar to the study of Bosch (2009) found that the samples who exchange learning media about the subject through Facebook social network can more communicate with the instructor.”

“Such participation could make it easier for members to disagree with each other, thus making them more willing to make their attitudes and opinions regarding the learning content and not merely to consume information, which is often the case in formal learning environments (Bosch, 2009; Burbules, 2006; Meishar-Tal et…”

“In the South African context there has been some research conducted that investigated us-ing social media, specifically Facebook, for teaching and learning (Bosch 2009; Ivala and Gacha-go 2012).”

“Both of these are necessary for the improvement of the overall learning process (Bosch 2009; Yu et al. 2010) and support emergent learning, in and out of the LMS (Looi et al.”

“Interactions between students and educators on Facebook can enhance learning relationships, communication, and student engagement (Bosch 2009).”

“Though most of the literature in SNS research concentrates on social applications [9], over the past decade there has been a Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commerci…”