LTA Conference 2013 A1 Nikki Daniels Alison Kerr ...

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An online survey tool was used to evaluate the use of this Facebook group. The survey ... It's ok to admit you weren't listening at the time if the tutor isn't around!'.
Social networking – promoting life-long learning and professional development opportunities within health care practice Nikki Daniels and Alison Kerr Senior lecturers, MSc in Occupational Therapy (pre-registration), Faculty of Education, Health and Sciences email: [email protected] phone: 01332 594027 email: [email protected] phone: 01332 594030 Abstract The use of a closed Facebook group by a new cohort of MSc pre-registration occupational therapy students was evaluated by programme tutors. Findings of the evaluation show that this resource has been beneficial for students in gaining peer support and that students are open to tutor involvement to provide additional academic support. Students recognise the potential future benefits of Facebook to facilitate networking to enhance professional development post-graduation. Based on positive reports relating to peer support, tutors will use this tool for future cohorts from the early stages of study to facilitate peer interaction and to assist with the development of social networking skills to promote the use of this or similar tools for professional networking opportunities.

Background Social networking is considered fundamental in both developing professional identity and enhancing professional development (Bodell and Hook 2011). Such forums provide opportunities for health and social care practitioners to develop communities for networking, communicating and providing peer support, all of which promote the development of professional identity, professional development and lifelong learning within practice. Therefore it is essential that graduates are skilled to engage with this activity. Within the education arena, the benefits of social networking in promoting the development of personal and professional identity, motivation for learning and commitment in programmes of study, as well as feeling connected to university are areas of investigation within the literature (Callaghan & Bower 2012, Yan Yu et al 2010). Social networking is increasingly embedded within the experiences and culture of learners (Junco 2012) and its potential contributions to learning are being considered. Brett and Cousin (2011) believe that students should be given choice and ownership of the technologies they use within their learning and that this choice should be made from technologies which are both freely available and well known. According to Caruso (2004) take up and choice of information technologies will be driven by students’ desire for convenience, connection and control.

to use the online resource area managed by programme tutors or email a tutor (37%). Students also reported that the closed group; ‘provides real time moral support... ...nice to have it on in the background when you are stuck at home trying to write an essay. Gives you the option to be in a virtual room with others of the cohort in the same situation’ ‘somebody can answer your question immediately because everyone is online all the time. Sometimes 23 heads are better than one! ‘if anyone is stressed it is a great support’ Membership of Closed Group As Table 1 shows, none of the respondents felt that tutor membership of this closed group would enhance its use. Instead, students felt that an additional group with tutor membership would be useful. Number of Respondents Tutor membership would enhance the use of the group Tutor membership would have a negative effect on the use of the groups

To evaluate the current and future benefits of the use of a social networking site for MSc (pre-registration) occupational therapy students.

4 (21%)

I would like a tutor to be part of the closed group

0

I would like to be a member of 2 closed groups; one with tutor and one without

18 (95%)

Table 1: Student’s opinion on membership of closed group When asked to justify their response to this question, students identified their preference to be able to have discussions with their peers relating to both social and academic topics that would not involve a tutor; ‘it would change the dynamics of the group’ ‘people often use the Facebook group to vent stress which may not be appropriate for the group with the tutor member’ ‘people may be more willing to ask questions of their peers first rather than a tutor’

A number of technologies such as wikis, blogs and discussion forums are hosted by the University of Derby’s online learning platform and used regularly to extend classroom based learning and provide peer support to students. Despite this, students from a campus based MSc (preregistration) occupational therapy programme established a closed Facebook group for their cohort (n=23) in the first term of study to which there was no tutor access.

Aim of the Evaluation

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‘you can ask the really stupid questions on the Facebook group. It’s ok to admit you weren’t listening at the time if the tutor isn’t around!’ ‘we sometimes use the... (Facebook Group) to air and discuss issues within the course which is helpful. I feel that this would be less likely to happen with the presence of a tutor in the group’ Students also reiterated that they felt a second group with tutor access would be beneficial, for example; ‘it would be good as a easy access/informal way of contacting tutors’

Method

One student felt that although it may have benefits it perhaps is not necessary;

An online survey tool was used to evaluate the use of this Facebook group. The survey included a total of 16 questions, a mixture of open and closed, which explored students experiences and opinions of using Facebook since their enrolment on this programme. A request to complete the survey was emailed to each student’s University email account with an explanation of the purpose of the evaluation. The nature of the survey tool meant that all responses were anonymous. The responses to questions were collated using an Excel spread sheet (closed questions) and the responses to open questions were grouped according to themes to identify any commonalities which would inform potential use of this tool by programme tutors for future cohorts.

Findings Frequency of Use: Nineteen out of 23 students responded to the survey (83%). All identified that they have a Facebook account and all are members of the closed Facebook group set up by this cohort in the first term of their studies. Of these students, the majority (n=17; 89%) interact with their Facebook account at least once a day with 11 (58%) sent update notifications via a mobile device and 6 (32%) checking Facebook a minimum of once per day. Reasons for Using Closed Group:

‘I do find that the tutors are readily available on email and that I’m not sure another avenue of communication such as Facebook would be needed’ Future Use of the Closed Group All on the respondents (n=19) stated that they anticipate continuing membership of the closed group after completion of their programme of study. As Figure 2 shows, multiple reasons were given for this by the majority. 18

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20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 To continue to maintain social contact with peers

To continue to share professional resources with peers

To develop/maintain professional networks

To share experiences and/or reflect on practice

The majority of respondents (95%) also expressed interest in also becoming a member of a graduate closed Facebook group which would be open to all graduates from the programme on a continuing basis.

19 18

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18 17 17

16 Socialise with peers

Ask peers for advice on module practicalities (eg room numbers)

Share references and other academic resources

Discuss assignments with my peers

‘(students) who have left previously will have more experience of job searching/work/any other issues, but also lots of shared experiences and links from having been through the same programme’

Preference for using Facebook for advice was also shown when students responded that they were more likely to use the Facebook closed group to seek guidance on module or assignment queries (58%) than they were

This current closed group could be considered a high density network (Bodell and Hook 2011) whilst students study within the same academic institute. However the introduction of a ‘graduate’ closed group could facilitate a low density network as more students graduate from the programme each year and widely disperse once in employment, gaining experience and knowledge from a variety of different organisations and wide geographical spread. In addition, the development of skills in using this type of technology and recognising the networking opportunities it can provide from their student experiences, may encourage graduates to establish additional networks within the profession and wider.

Conclusion As is also the opinion of other academics in the field of occupational therapy (Bodell and Hook, 2011), with a developed understanding of this tool, Facebook can be used to collaborate with others and develop professional networks. The findings of this evaluation can now be used to progress the use of this tool for future cohorts. As the involvement of tutors in a separate closed group would be valued, this can be introduced at acceptance onto a programme, instilling the use of collaborative networks from an early stage and promoting peer support networks and an effective and convenient communication system before students arrive on campus. Students cannot only use this to maximise peer and tutor support and therefore promote connectiveness but also develop a skill base in using this technology for future networking 18 and hence professional development opportunities.

To source job and/or training opportunities

Brett P and Cousin G (2011) Students as Partners in Blended Learning Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, (3) pp. 2-19 Callaghan N, Bower M (2012) Learning through social networking sites- the critical role of the teacher Education Media International 49 (1) pp. 1-17

Caruso, J. B. (2004). ECAR study of students and information technology, 2004: Convenience, connection, and control. EDUCAUSE. http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ERS0405/ekf0405.pdf [Last Accessed 10/05/2013] Guardian (2013) http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/ 2013/apr/28/facebook-loses-users-biggest-markets [Last accessed 09/05/2013] Junco R. (2012). The relationship between frequency of Facebook use, participation in Facebook activities, and student engagement Computers and Education, 58(1) pp.162-171.

‘it would be a good resource to establish social contact, access resources, job and training opportunities, keep abreast of new developments and to share experiences’

Miller R (2003) Networking and Communication for Nurses Pennsylvanian Nurse Nov/Dec p.12

‘build a professional network and share ideas, especially with relation to emerging practice’

Russell J, Greenhalgh T, Boynton T, Rigby M (2004) Soft networks for bridging the gap between research and practice: illuminative evaluation of CHAIN British Medical Journal 328 pp.1174-1180

‘to notify each other of vacancies... ...support each other with any changes in policy, ideas for practice and CPD opportunities’ Figure 1: Reasons for Using Closed Facebook Group

The findings from this survey not only clearly identify the current peer support benefits of a closed Facebook group for this cohort of students in supporting their studies but also demonstrates potential future benefits. The importance of networking for professional development is recognised and advocated by healthcare professional groups (Russell et al 2004, Yan et al 2012, Miller 2003). However in the past barriers to establish such networks such as weak connections, lack of skill and resource limitations have been recognised (Russell et al 2004). The availability and wide use of technologies such as social networking sites could potentially now break down these barriers as individuals begin to incorporate these technologies into their everyday lives.

Bodell S and Hook A (2011) Using Facebook for professional networking: a modern-day essential The British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 74 (12) pp. 588-590

Figure 2: Reasons for continued use of closed Facebook group on completion of studies

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In addition, although students identified benefits to University tutors being involved in a separate closed group, none of the students surveyed would have liked tutors to have access to this established closed Facebook group, demonstrating their need to have an online support facility separate to those housed within the University platform and therefore accessible by University staff.

References

Figure 1 shows the reasons identified by respondents for using the closed Facebook group.

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analysts claim that over 28 million UK residents are active Facebook users with over 50% of these logging on to the site every day (Guardian 2013); as all of the students who responded to this survey are members of Facebook, it is perhaps not surprising that this method of communication and support was chosen for the convenience it provides (Caruso 2004).

Discussion

Yan Yu, A., Wen Tian, S., Vogel, D., Chi-Wai Kwok, R. (2010) Can learning be virtually boosted? An investigation of online social networking impacts Computers and Education. 5 pp.1494-1503

The establishment of a closed Facebook group by this cohort of students is reflective of the trend for use of this social networking site with an estimated 901 million users worldwide (Facebook 2012). Sources derived from market

Yan Y, Sinclair K, Merrolee P (2012) Using social networking for professional development of occupational therapy throughout the People’s Republic of China WFOT Bulletin Nov; 66 pp.47-9

www.derby.ac.uk/lei