Is Social Media the Missing Piece in Building a Collaborative Learning Environment?

Authors: Christian Alvarado, Mallory Walker, Shenna Anderson, Patty Cote

Social Media in Education

Social media is a variety of “networked tools or technologies” emphasizing  social aspects of the online world. Social medal creates a virtual community where learners may communicate with peers and educators. According to Dabbagh and Kitsanas (2012) communication, creative expression, and collaboration are key social aspects to a successful learning environment. The indoctrination of social media in educational settings may provide opportunities for teams of collaborators to discuss and interpret information which may improve student engagement (Bayum, 2011). In the twenty-first century classroom, creative expression is also essential so allowing learners to explore and create their own ideas with the integration of social media in learning experiences may increase student engagement. According to Oswaldo (2014) the characteristics of social media tools which include participation, openness, conversation, community, and connectivity create effective collaborative learning environments.

• Participation. Social media encourages contributions and feedback from everyone who is interested. It blurs the line between media and audience.

• Openness. Most social media services are open to feedback and participation. They encourage comments and the sharing of information. There are rarely any barriers to accessing and making use of content-password-protected content is frowned upon.
• Conversation. Whereas traditional media is about “broadcast” (content transmitted or distributed to an audience) social media is seen as a two-way conversation.
• Community. Social media allows communities that share common interests to form quickly and communicate effectively.
• Connectivity. Most kinds of social media thrive on their connectivity by making use of links to other sites, resources, and people.

Learning Theory: Connectivism

Connectivism is a learning theory supporting the integration of social media tools in an educational environment.  Duke, Harper, and Johnston (2013) opined that the nature of collaborative learning changed in the twenty-first century opening the door for social media use inside the classroom. According to Siemens’ (2004) connectivism relies on how learners acquire and gain knowledge through social networking. Connectivism permits educators to create interactive, realistic digital environments for learners online (Duke et. al, 2013). Collaborative learning is an overlooked, yet extremely powerful tool for learners. More specifically, adult learners may flourish in learning environments with connectivist methodologies. According to Daniels and Billingsley (2014) adult learners want to:

• know why they need to learn something,
• learn best when topics hold immediate value,
• learn experientially, and
• approach learning as problem solving.  

All too often in university classrooms and professional learning communities pedagogy designed to support the needs of children are used to instruct adults. Therefore, through the use of social media, adults may stretch beyond the role of passive learners who rely on the educator to provide the learning opportunities and ultimately become autonomous in their learning.

Autonomous Learning and Social Media

The sudden increase of social media, online resources, and educational websites opens new possibilities for autonomous learning.  Twenty-first century educators integrate social media as a pedagogic method to foster autonomous learning. According to Nguyen (2012) a decisive factor contributing to autonomous learning requires creating a collaborative learning environment. Before educators may foster autonomous learning, they must be familiar with the characteristics of an autonomous learner.  The Alpha Omega Academy Blog outlined the characteristics of autonomous learners below:

• Curiosity - They learn from various angles and formats, not just traditional instruction. They are proactive and find ways to access additional lesson supplements on their own.
• Self-motivation - Autonomous learners are motivated by setting internal goals to achieve.
• Self-examination - Autonomous learners know how to evaluate themselves and see their strengths and weaknesses.
• Accountability - Responsibility means knowing what you have to do and doing it without anyone telling you to.
• Critical thinking - Autonomous learners think critically about a situation. They ask "why?" and formulate answers based on real-world observation and intelligent deduction.
• Comprehension with little or no instruction - Autonomous learners have an uncanny ability to read, visualize, or kinesthetically instruct themselves.
• Persistence - Autonomous learners don't give up. They strive to understand a concept as much as possible on their own before asking for help.

During professional development, educators take on the role of adult learners. The majority of educators demonstrate and display the characteristics of autonomous learners. Fort Worth Independent School District (FWISD) is piloting a new approach to professional development for educators in the fall for the 2015-2016 school year to support autonomous learning. This new design will allow principals to identify the learning pathway an educator will take throughout the course of the year that will be determined by the needs of each individual educator. While this design does provide educators with varying degrees of experience and skills to receive differentiated learning experiences, the concern of some FWISD principals is that educators will become even more isolated in their classrooms since opportunities for collaboration with peers during professional development is being decreased.

Social media might provide a solution to this issue. For example, using tools like a closed Facebook account or Google+ community designed for educators at a campus or a cadre of campuses to share ideas and even teaching demonstrations, will provide educators opportunities for collaboration that they might not otherwise have. With this level of collaboration educators become accountable for sharing their knowledge and skills while developing the self-motivation to persevere in their professional learning journey.  The characteristics of an autonomous learner might become highly beneficial for FWISD educators. As a result, social media can encourage autonomous learning utilizing the aforementioned characteristics.

The Missing Social Media Pieces in Building Collaborative Learning Environments

Twitter. In a research study conducted by Junco, Hiebergert, and Loken in 2010, the authors found a relationship between Twitter and student engagement. Their data illustrated how Twitter enhanced student engagement and improved student learning (Junco et al., 2010). Student engagement correlated with student achievement and learning, as shown by the learners who actively participated in their course’s Twitter feed and their increased Grade Point Averages (Junco et al., 2010). The research data confirmed Twitter usage allowed the continuation of class discussions beyond the classroom settings. To illustrate, learners sent an average of 48 tweets throughout the semester during and outside of class time (Junco et al., 2010). Similarly, Twitter may fabricate a low-stress virtual learning community. According to Junco et al (2010) 95% of learners prefer a low-stress learning environment to communicate with their peers. The dynamics of Twitter allowed students to feel more comfortable asking questions of their peers and professors (Junco et al., 2010). 

 Furthermore, Baynum (2011) found the effective use of Twitter’s back channel led to better student engagement. According to Baynum (2011) using Twitter as a back channel facilitated active participation in real time and provided immediate feedback. The authors’ qualitative data demonstrated the content of the tweets pertained to academic questions or clarification on class assignments. As well, Hua, McDonough, and Tarantino (2013) found Twitter enhanced peer interaction and facilitated discussions between learners which created a deeper sense of comprehension on class assignments or course content materials. Building effective collaborative learning communities normally promotes student engagement (Hua et. al, 2013). Hua et. al (2010) claimed social media enhanced learning retention and assisted learners in developing a deeper comprehension of content material. These three studies confirmed Twitter enhanced student engagement and mobilized educators to play a more active and participatory role with student learning.

Facebook. Facebook may fabricate, strengthen, and foster collaborative learning environments (Cerda & Planas, 2011). According to Fewkes and McCabe (2012) Facebook produced opportunities for effective communication among educators and learners. The authors explained the establishment of a learning community assisted learners in becoming more comfortable, which enhanced student collaboration. Likewise, Jennese (2011) affirmed Facebook may help reduce anxiety and facilitate better student engagement during and after class time. For example, Facebook has the ability to support communication in the form of asynchronous discussion boards and group walls (Cerda & Planas, 2011). Additionally, learners can initiate synchronous communication with live chats through back channeling. The asynchronous and synchronous pedagogical techniques may allow learners to connect outside of the classroom for extra academic support from each other and the professor (Jennese, 2011). As a result, Facebook may provide engagement options that motivates and empowers both students and educators.  In essence Facebook provides the opportunity for learners to virtually collaborate.

Youtube. According to Sherer and Shea (2011) technology may allow educators to design work outside of the classroom that engages students in the learning process. YouTube, a video sharing website, provides educators and learners access to millions of videos on a myriad of curriculum subjects. YouTube allows educators to share the responsibility for searching the best content available for students (Sherer & Shea, 2011). YouTube formulates opportunities for online participation, collaboration, and communication to foster the best learning environment. YouTube gives learners access with homework assistance, test preparations, and explanations of topics in video format which provides different types of learners with another way to process content. YouTube engages learners by using interesting videos, music, movement, and words, thus allowing for greater retention of knowledge (Sherer & Shea, 2011).

Conclusion

The overall findings from the studies aforementioned illustrated how social media networks may help create collaborative learning communities which strengthen and enhance student engagement. The use of social media in education is grounded in the work of sociocultural theory and has been demonstrated to support cooperative learning, increase understanding of new content, and the transfer of knowledge in the context of real-life situations (Daniels & Billingsley, 2014). Educators who embrace social media in the classrooms may grasp learners’ attention, open doors to collaborative learning, and increase learners’ willingness to learn. Social media allows educators to connect with learners in a virtual setting they utilize on a daily basis (Bynum, 2011).

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