Adopting Social Media In Teaching And Learning Of Library And Information Science In Imo State Unviversity, Owerri

ABSTRACT

The general purpose of the study is to examine the adoption of Social Media in Teaching and Learning of Library and Information Science in Imo State University, Owerri. The Diffusion of innovation theory and Uses and Gratification theory formed the theoretical base of the study. The research design for this study is survey research design. The area of the study is Imo State, Nigeria. The study population is 14 LIS educators in the Library and Information Science Department in Imo State University, Owerri. The sample of this study is 14 LIS educators. Due to the small population, the researcher studied all, hence, the adoption of census enumeration technique. The instrument for data collection was a researcher-structured rating scale. Descriptive statistics of frequency counts, simple percentages, and mean scores was used to analyze data generated by the research questions. Based on the analysis it was found that: LIS educators use many social media with Facebook getting the highest mean score; educators of Library and Information Science use Facebook, WhatsApp and Zoom in teaching and learning to a Very great extent; library and Information Science educators apply social media mostly in the distance learning, conference, assignment, online teaching, research, seminars, resource sharing, workshops and posting results and the challenge of using social media for teaching and learning is mostly information overload and distraction. Others are privacy and security concerns, misinformation and fake news, technological barriers and access inequities, privacy in student-teacher interactions, academic integrity and plagiarism and online harassment and cyber bullying. Based on the findings and conclusions of this study, the following recommendations were made: LIS educators should also utilize other social media platforms aside Facebook, WhatsApp and Zoom in other to fully maximize the full advantages that comes with the use of social media. Each social media platform has its own peculiarity and its distinctive feature that meets different needs; LIS educators and students should highly maximize the benefits of social media. It provides a ready-go platform for communication, collaborative learning, research and some other areas of LIS practices; no social media platform has all features that can guaranty efficient teaching and learning in LIS education, hence it is necessary that LIS educators use variety social media platforms to meet up with the demands of the profession and the students should create a balance between chit-chatting and academic activities. More attention should be directed to research.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUTION

The chapter is the overview of this study. It is presented by the researcher under the following subheadings: background to the study, statement of the problem, scope of the study, purpose of the study, significance of the study and research questions.

Background to the Study

The exchange of thoughts, messages, or information as by speech, signals, writing, or behaviour is called communication. Information and communication technology are added advantages in the hands of library professionals in the current scenario. Information and Commutation Technology (ICTs) has ushered in a histrionic change in the realm of information communication in the recent time. The evolution of internet and World Wide Web has transformed the whole globe and present a new way of communication. The limitless connectivity and potential to create an open social order and system of interaction and collaboration have been made possible only because of information and communication technology. We can see the impact of ICT in every walk of life. As everyone needs  information pin pointedly and timely manner. As organizations worldwide thrive on modern technologies, the application of web 2.0 domain in the field of Library information and communication has no exception. The web 2.0 domain has been introduced as an experimental field to be accepted and implemented for rendering virtual digital library services to patron (Saho & Sharma, 2015).

Social networking which houses social media is going to become not only regional and national but also international in its character as communication facilities become cheaper and widely acceptable. Social networking websites usually have open membership this means that anyone become a member, it’s a process of building relationship among a group of who have a common interest. The ICT has made a possible for the transmission of information to all by using various electronic channels. Social Networking Sites are very popular in the society; it allows users to share ideas, pictures, posts, interests with people in their network. It provides an innovative and effective way of connecting users all over the world. SNSs such as LinkedIn, Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, Blogs set up personal communities allow users to view profiles of their friends which is widely used worldwide and very popular in Nigeria too (Edosomwan, Chu. Samuel Kai-Wah & Du, 2011).

The emergence of social media simplified the hitherto complex process of communication because they are easy to use (Wetzel, 2010). Social media comprise activities that involve socializing and networking online through words, pictures and videos. Kaplan and Haenlein (2020) defined social media as a group of internet-based applications built on the ideological and technological foundations of Web2.0, which allows the creation and exchange of user-generated content. Social media tools have been developed in order to maintain, manage and improve social interactions between people, enable people to access, reuse or comment on contents authored by others. The evolving learning environments allow students to learn anytime and anywhere (Wetzel, 2020).

Consequently, Umoru (2015) categorized social media into seven types each indicating the purpose for which it could be utilized: collaborative projects (Wikipedia); Blogs and Micro blogs (Twitter); social news networking sites (Digg and Leakernet);content communities (YouTube and Daily motion); social networking sites (Facebook); virtual game world; (World of Warcraft); and virtual social world (Second life).There are various categories of social media sites used in education which are also useful in business education for enhancing students‟ skill acquisition and academic performance. These include: Facebook, Myspace, Youtube, Flickr, Blogs, Twitter and Wiki. For the avoidance of doubt, Webber (2014) reported that in October 2012 alone, users of facebook surpassed one billion. Perhaps, this is the reason that lecturers have started thinking differently about the utilization of social media tools, which has necessitated the pace at which teachers should incorporate social media into academic curricula. For success in today‟s world, students require core academic subject knowledge and understanding, in addition to other skills such as communication, creativity and innovation and critical thinking.

Communication can be described as the interaction between peoples conventional communication involving a face-to-face interaction. In social media, communication occurred when someone is responding or commenting on others status or initiating conversation with someone else (Tufekci, 2018). Social media has emerged as one of the basic practice in students‟ life. It has revolutionized the way students think and interact. Students use social media as a platform for doing many activities such as bonding relations, finding lost contacts, for discussing common interests through the existence of smart phones, students have become more attracted to use social media in their daily routines.

Technology and social media are combined in powerful ways, enabling students to produce creative thought, external knowledge, resources, and talents on a scale that was previously impossible (Tapscott & Williams, 2018). Social media give opportunity to reach a vast number of people and engage them in creative action on environmental issues. Creativity is expressed as something that is novel and useful. It is also regarded as combination and rearrangement of knowledge in the minds of people that allows flexible thinking in the creation of the novel ideas that are unexpected but rather useful (Zhang & Dong, 2013). Creativity is a mental process involving the discovery of new ideas or concepts, or new associations of the existing ideas or concepts, fuelled by the process of either conscious or unconscious insight (Vasudevan and Lalanthika, 2018). There might be several agents in helping or hampering creativity of a person and its impact may vary from person to person.

Information and communication technologies and social network can be used as effective tools to improve instructional approaches and enhance critical thinking skills using the online environment (Haghparastet et al., 2013). Critical thinking has been defined as an important educational goal and is understood to mean reasonable reflective thinking that is focused on deciding what to believe or do. Critical thinkers usually raise vital questions and problems, formulate them clearly, gather and assess relevant information, use abstract ideas, think open-mindedly, and communicate effectively with others.

Social media helps lecturers to be connected to their students off campus as well as with their former students. They use social media as a way of teaching by creating groups and accounts for students where the information can be accessed. Lecturers can share ideas with each other and point students to LinkedIn and Facebook. Professors create hashtag  that allow students to tag their academic posts, and view submissions to see what the collective has creatively produced (Devi et al., 2019).

One of the main reasons behind lecturers adapting to social media in classrooms is that they can do marketing via social media. Not only they are able to make the work easy but also are branding themselves professionally, creating a name for them in the community. Facebook pages, twitter accounts, various blog sites and YouTube channels are the examples where you can see professors doing excel in their stream. These platforms are highly accessed and hence can help professors in getting the high reputation. Social Media for Community Building is the missing piece of the puzzle for Admissions departments, Enrollment Management departments, Public Relations and Student Services departments that are seeking to engage their audiences using social media. In every college and university, social media is being integrated in every way possible, including admissions, campus life, alumni relations, and in the classroom. Social media plays a vital role in every bodies life whether the person is businessman/ student/ professor. Through Social Media it became easy for students to ask, search, conversation so that get a proper answer (Ventola, 2014).

Furthermore, David Lee King in Managing Your Library Social Media (2015) says there are some benefits if we use the social media to promote the library. They are: Financially the costs of using social media are perceived to be low;  It requires little training;  It promotes library services and disseminates news quickly, delivering this information more directly to library users; It helps gather feedback to enhance user services;  The promotion of library holdings via social media can help increase usage of content;  It enhances communication both within the library and with other departments; and It can be used for outreach activities through onward sharing, well beyond the institution itself, helping build connections and reputation more broadly. Other benefits include Worldwide Connectivity, Commonality of Interest, Real-Time Information Sharing Free  Advertising, Increased News Cycle Speed, No Geographical Boundaries, Connecting with experts on topics via social media, It helps in Research process and Learners can build social credibility.

Using social media is challenging day by day due to many issues. Many challenges involved using the internet are also related to social media because social media is an internet-based platform. The common challenges involved with social media is hacking, and a threat to security and privacy. In hacking, the most common risks or challenges of using social media is hacking. Hacking is a kind of criminal offense where hacker access to the users account and cease all kind of personal information of those users. For hacking, hackers use different types of traps which include different programs, tiny files, and other attractive contents. However, hacking is a great challenge for users of social media. The most important challenging aspects of using social media is privacy and security issues. Users of social media are now very much worried about the privacy issue of social media. It is very difficult to maintain privacy in social media as social media is public platforms where anyone can easily obtain the personal information of others (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2020). Maintaining ethics in uploading content in social media is also a challenging issue because social media allows it users to upload any content. However, ensuring ethics in an individual level is a great challenge today.

It is based on this background that the researcher carried out this study on “adoption of Social Media in Teaching and Learning of Library and Information Science in Imo State University, Owerri”.

Statement of the Problem

The advent of social media has created new opportunities and challenges for teachers and learners alike. Social media has become the driving force in the expansion of distance learning. New concepts like flexible Blended Learning which seek to integrate the internet with traditional teaching techniques have also been introduced to library and information science with perceptible influence on teaching and learning. The use of social media have caused a great infusion of data into lives of adults and have in turn caused them to assume creative roles in their social lives in addition to their personal lives. However, LIS educators might find it difficult to know how to use modern technology facilities in the teaching and learning. This could be as a result of non-availability of internet facilities or lack of knowledge /experience of and familiarity with ICT.

The introduction of social media is similarly having noticeable impact on all strata of society and all segments of societal activities. Facebook, WhatsApps, Instagram, Imo, e-mail have become commonplace in all the nooks and crannies of the planet with great impact on all activities. In the field of education and librarianship in particular, social media are rapidly becoming the instrument of choice for communication between library and information science educators and the students and for interactions among them in areas such as: class and examination schedules, assignment, lecture materials, among others which are frequently posted on social media often engendering extensive creative interactions among the participants (Urhiewhu & Erimieleagbon, 2018). There is no doubt that social media, properly managed can have liberal effect on teaching and learning. However, it  seems that library and information science educators have not fully integrated social media in the teaching and learning. researchers‟ observation suggests that social media may also interfere with students‟ concentration potentially to the detriment of learning. Hence, the study shall assess the adoption of social media in teaching and learning of Library and Information Science in Imo State University, Owerri.

Scope of the Study

The study is exclusively on the adoption of social media in teaching and learning of Library and Information Science in Imo State University, Owerri. The investigation is delimited to only one type of institution library which is the Department of Library and Information Science, Imo State University Owerri. The study also covered the following concepts: Library and Information Science education, social media, types of social media, utilization of social media, areas of teaching and learning and challenges.

Purpose of the Study

The general purpose of the study is to examine the adoption of Social Media in Teaching and Learning of Library and Information Science in Imo State University, Owerri. The specific purposes are as follows;

1. identify the social media used by Library and Information Science educators;
2. find out the extent they use of Social Media in teaching and learning;
3. ascertain the areas of teaching and learning library and information science educators apply social media; and
4. identify the challenges of using social media for teaching and learning.

Significance of the Study

The findings of this study will be beneficial to the following:LIS educators, students, researchers and library professionals.

The study can provide valuable insights to LIS educators by highlighting the benefits and challenges of incorporating social media into teaching and learning practices. It can help them understand the potential of social media as a tool for enhancing student engagement, collaboration, and information literacy skills. The findings can inform pedagogical approaches and curriculum development in Library and Information Science programs.

The study can benefit students by examining how social media can be utilized in their learning process. It can explore how social media platforms can be leveraged to access and share information, collaborate with peers, engage in discussions, and interact with course content. Understanding the effective use of social media can enhance students’ learning experiences and equip them with digital literacy skills that are crucial in today’s information-driven world.

The study can serve as a foundation for further research on the adoption and impact of social media in library and information science education. It can contribute to the existing body of knowledge by providing empirical evidence and insights into the effectiveness of social media tools and strategies. Researchers can build upon the findings to explore specific aspects of social media integration, assess its long-term impact, and identify best practices for successful implementation.

The study’s findings can be valuable for library professionals who are responsible for managing and implementing digital initiatives in libraries. Understanding how social media can be utilized in teaching and learning can inform the development of library services, instructional programs, and outreach activities. It can also assist in leveraging social media platforms for effective communication, engagement, and promotion of library resources and services.

Research Questions

The following researchers are posed for the study:

1. Which social media is used by Library and Information Science educators?
2. To what extent do lecturers of Library & Information Science use Social Media in teaching and learning?
3. What are the areas of teaching and learning library that Information Science educators apply social media?
4. What are the challenges of using social media for teaching and learning?
   

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   Pages:  81

   Category: Project

   Format:  Word & PDF               

   Chapters: 1-5                                          

   Source: Imsuinfo

   Material contains Table of Content, Abstract and References.