An introduction to the potential of social networking sites in education
This paper reviews Social Networking Sites (SNS) that have become available via the Internet in the light of usability for teaching and learning. Membership rules relating to entries for some popular sites, such as “Facebook” and “MySpace” are reviewed. Characteristics of these sites are reviewed and then compared to evaluate the trust and privacy issues of shared information available to any given social group. Trust and privacy plays a critical role when SNS are used for the purpose of teaching and learning. Thus, the negative and positive aspects of SNS are reviewed in detail. This knowledge will form the basis to assist with regulating SNS for teaching and learning. Publication Details This conference paper was originally published as Griffith, S and Liyanage, L, An introduction to the potential of social networking sites in education, Proceedings of the Emerging Technologies Conference, University of Wollongong, 18-21 June 2008. This conference paper is available at Research Online: http://ro.uow.edu.au/etc08/9
Italian Undergraduates Join Facebook, but Keep a Critical Distance: "It is Useless, but I'm Using It"
Facebook is the most popular social network site in Italy, and its usage is particularly spread among younger generations. This paper explores how undergraduate students use Facebook, and what meanings they attach to it. Research was performed in 2008 and in 2009 at a Italian university, with a triangulation of quantitative and qualitative methodology. The authorsâ€™ survey data show the quick adoption of Facebook. In 2008 half of the students were completely unfamiliar with Facebook, while in 2009 59% of them were using it on a regular basis. Evidence coming from semi-structured interviews with randomly selected university students show that the massive adoption of Facebook goes hand in hand with a general critical attitude. Concerns about privacy issues were common, and they can also lead to a kind of detachment from this site. Implications on the perspective use of Facebook as an educational tool are discussed in the paper.
An analysis of teachers' verbal communication within the college classroom: Use of humor, self‐disclosure, and narratives
The purpose of these investigations was to provide normative data regarding the use of certain verbal behaviors manifested by college teachers. Results of Study One indicated that usage of humor, self‐disclosure, and narratives by fifty‐seven college teachers was frequently relevant to course content and utilized to clarify course material. Results of Study Two suggested that award winning teachers utilized these same verbal behaviors also in relation to course content and clarification of course material. Post‐hoc comparative analyses of the results for Study One and Study Two indicated that significant differences in the average use of humor, self‐disclosure, and narratives existed between the two groups. However, results of Aspin‐Welch t‐tests also indicated no significant differences between the two groups of teachers in relation to the purpose in the use of these verbal behaviors (e. g. relevant to course content; clarification of course material). Implications are also discussed.