Title: The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades
Abstract: Journal of Computer Assisted LearningVolume 27, Issue 2 p. 119-132 The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades R. Junco, Corresponding Author R. Junco Lock Haven University, Lock Haven, PA 17745, USAReynol Junco, 104 Russell Hall, Lock Haven University, Lock Haven, PA 17745, USA. Email: [email protected] for more papers by this authorG. Heiberger, G. Heiberger South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD 57007, USASearch for more papers by this authorE. Loken, E. Loken The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USASearch for more papers by this author R. Junco, Corresponding Author R. Junco Lock Haven University, Lock Haven, PA 17745, USAReynol Junco, 104 Russell Hall, Lock Haven University, Lock Haven, PA 17745, USA. Email: [email protected] for more papers by this authorG. Heiberger, G. Heiberger South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD 57007, USASearch for more papers by this authorE. Loken, E. Loken The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USASearch for more papers by this author First published: 12 November 2010 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.2010.00387.xCitations: 680Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Abstract Despite the widespread use of social media by students and its increased use by instructors, very little empirical evidence is available concerning the impact of social media use on student learning and engagement. This paper describes our semester-long experimental study to determine if using Twitter – the microblogging and social networking platform most amenable to ongoing, public dialogue – for educationally relevant purposes can impact college student engagement and grades. A total of 125 students taking a first year seminar course for pre-health professional majors participated in this study (70 in the experimental group and 55 in the control group). With the experimental group, Twitter was used for various types of academic and co-curricular discussions. Engagement was quantified by using a 19-item scale based on the National Survey of Student Engagement. To assess differences in engagement and grades, we used mixed effects analysis of variance (ANOVA) models, with class sections nested within treatment groups. We also conducted content analyses of samples of Twitter exchanges. The ANOVA results showed that the experimental group had a significantly greater increase in engagement than the control group, as well as higher semester grade point averages. Analyses of Twitter communications showed that students and faculty were both highly engaged in the learning process in ways that transcended traditional classroom activities. This study provides experimental evidence that Twitter can be used as an educational tool to help engage students and to mobilize faculty into a more active and participatory role. Citing Literature Supporting Information Appendix S1. Engagement instrument. Filename Description JCAL_387_sm_appendixS1.doc29 KB Supporting info item Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article. Volume27, Issue2April 2011Pages 119-132 RelatedInformation
Publication Year: 2010
Publication Date: 2010-11-12
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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Cited By Count: 1416
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