Chapter One 1.

1 Introduction
In this chapter a brief concept of socialization is introduced. Additionally, internet, e-learning and social networks benefits to students and academicians are highlighted. Statements of research problem and research questions are also stated in the chapter. Finally research objectives, scope and report organization completed the chapter.

1.2 General Overview

Socialization is the process of inheriting and circulating ideologies, norms, etc. among particular group of people sharing common interest(Greenhow, 2009). Socialization provides people with the skills and knowledge essential to participate in their communities, it is as old as human history(Hayashi, 2008). People enjoy socializing and sharing their experiences with fellow individuals who are willing to listen and learn something from them(Amichi-Hamburger, 2010; Ellison, 2007). Sharing ideas contribute a lot and play an important role in human life irrespective of its economical, social, moral, political or educational nature(Hernandez, 2011; Kaplan, 2010). Academic environment is an environment specifically for individuals that gather together to acquire a specific knowledge in a specific area of interest(Lizzio, 2002). In teaching, it is expected for the academician to develop a better understanding and mutual relationship with his/her students in order to be able to deliver the message clearly and for the students to be able to use the knowledge they acquired(Galy, 2011; Hayashi, 2008). Students from the same department for instance are expected to

interact and share ideas on a course that they find difficult to deal with individually(Evans, 2009; Galy, 2011). The kind of relationship students build with 1

colleagues is quite different from the one they engage with academicians (Mykota, 2007). Before the advent of technology, the manner in which students and academicians relate is quite traditional, students communicate with academicians in either face-to-face basis or through a communication medium such as telephone lines. So a better approach for students and academicians to interact becomes necessary. No sooner the invention of the internet, the academics see the opportunity it provides and capitalize on that. Initially internet was characterized with read only features allowing its users to only get the online content without the ability of editing it (Evans, 2009; Galy, 2011; Greenhow, 2009). Later on in 2004, important features that encourage collaboration, sharing, and participatory practices, and social networks were incorporated(Greenhow, 2009). Youth today are media oriented, interactive and creative and they make use of the internet in their daily affairs. As such the use of the technologies in schools would definitely result in better engagement and preparation(Evans, 2009). E-learning can be defined as the utilization of internet technologies to make available, no matter the distance, a set of answers for the enhancement or acquirement of knowledge and applying the acquired knowledge in the appropriate field(Rodrigues, 2010). According to Hayashi (2008), users willingness to use e-learning system depends immensely on the bridge between expectation and post-use experience; the narrower the gap the higher the satisfaction level. Moreover, e-learning increases chances of reaching many students and give them flexibility of setting their schedules at their own conveniences(Galy, 2011). As Rodrigues (2010) rightly put it, e-learning can be used irrespective of location or time. For a university to be considered to be following international standard of today, it is necessary for it to adopt the concept of using elearning in disseminating knowledge to its students. 2

Social networks which are Facebook, YouTube, etc. can serve as a teaching agent, for instance with problem-based learning (Ellison, 2007; Kim, 2011; Liccardi, 2008). Social networks have been shown to help people with low psychological state perform effectively because of loose relationship with friends and relatives(Ellison, 2007). The major goal of the current study is to find out how social networks influence teachinglearning communication between academicians and students in higher institutions.

1.3 Statement of the Problem

Communication is the backbone reason why students and academicians gather together in an academic environment. Traditionally, an academician communicates with his students in a lecture room and share the required knowledge he possesses. In the general perspective, each academician possesses a unique style of conveying message to his/her students. Some are friendly, entertains all sorts of questions, ready to help anytime and anywhere while others are exactly the opposite or possess some of the qualities aforementioned. According to Kember (2010), most feel uneasy when communicating with students in classes with larger population. One key note to be remembered is that learning can only be possible through the process of sharing knowledge(Rodrigues, 2010). Academicians may involve interaction, activities and dialogue during lecture period, but majority neglect it, and for those who entertain interaction, is mostly for a short period of time and this has prompted some students to show preference to online discussion in comparison to face-to-face interaction(Kember, 2010). Despite the fact that e-learning is readily available everywhere, students find it difficult to get the appropriate information for their studies. They need more encouragement, recommendations, advices, and help from expert and professionals on their selected field of study using the simplest and updated version of the technology(Greenhow,

2009). In most cases, students find it difficult to get an instance guidance or professional advice when encountered with academic problems(Greenhow, 2009). Social networks media is one of the available and suitable platform for both students and academicians to meet and discuss issues related to academia. The use of online social networks increases visibility in students work and that will aid in improving social interactions with (Rodrigues, 2010). Kember (2010) confirms the significance of two-way communication in supporting students improvement on much needed learning benefits and that participation in a conversation involving communication with online resources (social networks, tutorials, etc) and with individuals (academicians, peers, Blogs, Wikis) proved to be more convincing than the provision of just access to academic materials (e.g. e-library). Furthermore, to encourage students to solve problems, an active and collaborative type of education is required which makes use of social networks to support e-learning(Rodrigues, 2010). Knowing and understanding how students utilize their time when using social networks platform will immensely help authorities responsible with student affairs issues in overcoming the stated problems.

1.4 Research Objectives

The objectives of the study are as follows: i. ii. To identify the factors that influence the use of social networks in e-learning. To design a research framework to assess the influence of social networks media on teaching and learning in the academic environment, specifically local universities. iii. To test the framework based on a system prototype.

1.5 Research Questions

The study aims to address the following research questions: i. What are the significant factors that influence the use of social networks in e-learning? ii. What are students and academicians perception in using social networks in e-learning? iii. Is there a difference between the way(s) students and academicians use social networks with respect to e-learning?

1.6 Research Scope

The research is intended to be narrowed on the role of social networks media in improving communication between academicians and students in tertiary institutions. Though social networks are many, the current study however focuses on three main social medias: Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

1.7 Research Report organization

1.7.1 Chapter One: Introduction
In this chapter a brief concept of socialization is introduced. Additionally, internet, e-learning and social networks benefits to students and academicians are highlighted. Statements of research problem, objectives, research questions and scope were also stated.

1.7.2 Chapter Two: Literature Review

This chapter elaborates on the trend of e-learning platform and the extent to which technology is used in supporting e-learning. Research theoretical frameworks related to 5

the study were also investigated and reviewed. Social networks is defined, categories of social networks and its relation to e-learning are presented as well. Furthermore, discussions on how social networking platform can be used by students and academicians to improve students academic performance were elaborated and the chapter was concluded with a brief summary of the entire content.

1.7.3 Chapter Three: Research Methodology

This chapter defined the methodology chosen in the study and the research theoretical framework employed was discussed together with the generated research hypotheses from the reviewed literature. The description of the selected approaches in the survey and the sampling technique used in collecting data and the challenges faced during the data collection process were also explained. Furthermore, measurement of the research instruments and definitions of factors in the research framework were provided. Finally the summary of the chapter content was highlighted.

1.7.4 Chapter Four: Results and Discussion

Statistical Package of the Social Sciences 20.0 (SPSS 20.0) was used to analyze the data. Statistical tests such as descriptive statistic, factor analysis, Analysis Of Variance (ANOVA) and stepwise regression were used to analyze the data. The most significant factors among the eight factors represented in the research theoretical framework were identified. Tables and figures containing the results of the analysis were displayed together with the brief explanation of the contents. Finally a discussion on the overall research results was done at the end of the chapter.

1.7.5 Chapter Five: Prototype Implementation and Testing

This chapter presented the pictorial representation of the implemented prototype and how the prototype pages works. Significant framework factors as shown on the previous 6

chapter were reflected on the prototype in order to satisfy the targeted users. The comments and recommendations of students and academicians on their perception of the system were also shown.

1.7.6 Chapter Six: Conclusion

This chapter presented the overall summary of the whole study and conclusion on what should be done to ensure maximum benefits of the study. Limitations and future work were also suggested.

Chapter Two 2.1 Literature Review

This chapter elaborates on the trend of e-learning platform and the extent to which technology is used in supporting e-learning. Research theoretical frameworks related to the study were also investigated and reviewed. Social networks is defined, categories of social networks and its relation to e-learning are presented as well. Furthermore, discussions on how social networking platform can be used by students and academicians to improve students academic performance were elaborated and the chapter was concluded with a brief summary of the entire content.

2.2 Internet and Web 2.0

The internet is a global system of organized computer networks that uses the standard Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) collection to cater for billions of users globally(Wikipeda, 2011). According to Ellison (2007), internet provides people with access to share information among themselves be it personal or academics. In 2004, Web 2.0 was named which distinguishes itself from the prominent read only Web 1.0 into read and write Web 2.0.It also came with important features that encourage collaboration, sharing, and participatory practices(Greenhow, 2009; Jin, 2009). Other features associated with Web 2.0 are Social digital technologies, relationship technologies, participatory media and social networks such as Facebook, YouTube, Blogs, Google+, MySpace, Wikis, Podcasts, etc(Galy, 2011; Greenhow, 2009). According to Rodrigues (2010), the features of Web 2.0 listed earlier improve relationship and communication between people and information they share in an interactive environment. Web 2.0 is considered to be the most influential information technology in the 21st century(Rodrigues, 2010). Youth of nowadays are media 8

oriented, interactive and creative; they make use of Web 2.0 in their daily affairs; as such the use of the technologies in schools would definitely result in better engagement and preparation(Evans, 2009; Rodrigues, 2010). The students of 21st century have options on how and where to utilize their learning time than those in the earlier decades(Mykota, 2007).

2.3 E-learning
E-learning is the use of internet to facilitate students and academicians to learn anywhere at any time(Rodrigues, 2010; Sparks, 2011). A content management system is one of the widely used e-learning system that enable students and academicians to use, upload, download variety of learning materials. Academicians can also use content management system to assess students academic performance(Sparks, 2011). Elearning increases chances of reaching many students and give them flexibility of setting their schedules at their own conveniences(Galy, 2011). In a survey conducted in United States, the findings shows that in the last decade public instructional classes have no more than 14% of internet accessibility but today, it has grown up to 94%, and the ratio of student to networked computer has improved to 4:1 as against 12:1 (Greenhow, 2009). According to Mykota (2007), e-learning creates an atmosphere for learners in which they are at ease and experience comfort when communicating with others. Research conducted by Galy (2011) shows that using e-learning facilities for campus-based and online classes contribute immensely to students grade performance. In almost all tertiary institutions, academicians encourage group discussion among students to increase their reasoning ability and to make them realize their learning potentials. Socialization is what makes learning fun and useful to both students and academicians. Academician(s) needs to be efficient and productive on the e-learning platform in order to satisfy learners well(Yenging, 2010). Furthermore, academicians 9

must have or possess the ability to quickly learn and be familiar with technological new tools, methodologies and techniques to remain relevant in their field of specialization in this generation of rapidly changing concept(Yenging, 2010). Mastery learning on which students, single-handedly or in group learn through each module in an organized approach should be encouraged rather than timeframe learning where students are expected to complete a module within a stipulated time that limits their learning capability(Davis, 1995). Rather than coming to office every day, academicians should be allowed to choose the best possible way to impact knowledge to students and decide on the time to be in office(Yenging, 2010). Some of the available tools that can be used to achieve aforementioned suggestions are YouTube, using open source software, audio files, micro-blogging sites, learning through mobile phones, social networks, etc.

Figure 2.1: showing community of web2.0. Adapted from Rodrigues (2010) 10

Figure 2.1 shows students/user in the midst of different social networks platforms and elearning platform that he subscribed to. In each of the platforms, there are people that he interacts and share ideas. This has shown the new trend of learning and community formation in the virtual world environment. The technology has pushed us towards adapting this kind of life style and of course it is becoming part of us.

2.4 Social networks

Social networks are an organization of nodes that act as individuals and the relationship between them within a particular region(Liccardi, 2008). Social networks can serve as a teaching agent, for instance with problem-based learning (Ellison, 2007; Kim, 2011; Liccardi, 2008) and it also helps in improving relationships between people(Ellison, 2007; Galy, 2011; Kim, 2011). People tend to seek assistance of others who are domain experts, who are willing to contribute in problem solving and also can be reached easily(Evans, 2009). Social networks are open whereby members can join and opt out of a group or community without penalty or long procedures. They can also remove their friends at their own wish without the consent of the friends(Liccardi, 2008). Social interactions play a vital role during web search as pointed out by other researchers as many information seekers need assistance when searching for information(Evans, 2009). According to Lerman (2010), social networks play a vital role in information spreading, searching, marketing, and influence discovery. Furthermore, other reasons given by the users for joining social networks include entertainment, social support and finding friends(Kim, 2011). Mykota (2007) discovered that in online environment, many users apply face-to-face communication skills and further stated that frequent informal communications with students can enhance social presence in learning. Replying to emails, engaging in discussions, and direct communication with students can boost their 11

morale. The need for instructors to build up interactions with students using the social networks is encouraged in this era today. The major goal in this research is to find out how social networks can be used to improve the teaching-learning communication between academicians and students in tertiary institutions.

2.4.1 Types of Social networks

Social networks platforms have been categorized into different groups by many researchers alike, based on the similarity of their functions and purposes(Greenhow, 2009; Rodrigues, 2010). These categories are described in the sections below:

2.4.1.1 Social networks

Various categories of individuals join social networks for one reason or the other. Some of the reasons given were meeting friends, seeking information, meeting celebrities, seeking social support, etc. Among the prominent social networks platform today are Facebook, MySpace, Badoo, Academia.edu, Classmates.com, Friendster, Google+, Ning and weRead.

2.4.1.1.1 Facebook
Facebook was formed on 4th February, 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, and Chris Hughes while they were students in Harvard University (Rodrigues, 2010). By beginning of year 2007, more than twenty-one (21) million registered members were reported creating over 1.6 billion page views every single day. On average, users spend almost 20 minutes on daily basis on the site, and about 67% of users login at least once a day(Ellison, 2007). The site is targeting one billion active users by August 2012(Bennett, 2012). Initially the site launched a high school Facebook version in early September 2005 in USA to test its acceptability with students (Ellison, 2007; Roblyer, 2010). According to Kemp (2012), at least 46.9% of the Malaysians populace has an active Facebook account and that Malaysians have the highest average 12

number of friends (233) on social sites than any other nation. Youth aged between 18 34 constitute about 62% of Facebook users in Malaysia and research has shown that Malaysia is ranked 16 in the world ranking report as at February 2012(Socialbakers, 2012). Interestingly, the percentages of female and male Facebook users in Malaysia are 47% and 53% respectively(Kemp, 2012). At least 3 billion photos and 5 billion pieces of information are uploaded every month on Facebook. Facebook is considered to be one of the frequently visited social sites worldwide(Rodrigues, 2010). The basic goal of allowing users to have all these features is to meet and make friends. Facebook was designed in such a way that users do not have to struggle to find their existing friends and family, it provides a mechanism of linking friends whose emails addresses were known(Hew, 2011).

2.4.1.2 Microblogging
Microblogging is one of the earlier technology related to Web 2.0 as far as collaboration via social networks , conversational discourse, communications and online social interactions are concerned (Grosseck, 2010). Only recently educationist realized its benefits to academic learning. Among the popular platforms are Blogs, Podcasts, Twitter, blogger and Cirip.eu.

2.4.1.2.1 Twitter
Two years after the release of Facebook, Jack Dorsey founded Twitter(Rodrigues, 2010). It is rated top in the 100 most influential e-learning tools in the world with YouTube being in the second position. As at February 2012, Twitter has about 462 million registered users with more than 100 million active users, producing more than 200 million tweets every day and managing over 1.6 billion search queries in a single day (Bennett, 2012). It is targeted to reach 500 million registered users by the end of 13

March 2012. Twitter is a microblogging site designed specifically to distribute information(Bakshy, 2011). Users have the opportunity to follow other users with whom they share common interest or users they find beneficial(Bakshy, 2011; Lerman, 2010). Twitter users were allowed to publish content having not more than 140 characters per tweet on their profiles (Bakshy, 2011; Lerman, 2010; Rodrigues, 2010).

2.4.1.3 Media Sharing

Media sharing is a kind of social networks that allows information, data, and files to be shared in a graphical, animation, image or digital format. Popular among the platforms that render such services are Flickr and Fotolog for sharing photo(s), and YouTube and Metacafe for sharing videos(Greenhow, 2009).

2.4.1.3.1 YouTube
YouTube is mainly for sharing video clips(Greenhow, 2009; Rodrigues, 2010). YouTube was established in the year 2005(Perez-Latre, 2010). Users can subscribe to existing YouTube channels to get regular updates whenever the channel holders upload new video clip(s). It provides users with flexible and versatile way of getting academic materials on their computers and other devices. YouTube has changed the internet world with its simplification approach of sharing videos. According to Kemp (2012), 51% of Malaysians possessed an active YouTube channel and estimated that at least 80% of Malaysians internet users stream online video content. Furthermore, every month, web users in Malaysia spend about 41 million hours watching online video streams. Academicians can upload course materials on YouTube for students to view, create and share with their colleagues(Jin, 2009).

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Other types of social networks are content aggregation and organization, social bookmarking and Collaborative problem solving. In this research the in-depth details of these functions have not been discussed as they are not part of the study scope.

2.5 Social Networks in E-learning

Social networks are assumed to be well suited with the teaching of social-cultural theories of learning(Greenhow, 2009). The collaborative, conversational and participatory nature of social networking platform services are believed to mirror much of what we know to be good models of learning, in that they are collaborative and encourage active participatory role for users(Selwyn, 2009). Researchers have pointed out six unique concepts of learning: (i) Understand, (ii) Interpreting something from different angle, (iii) changing as human do, (iv) Applying, (v) Boosting knowledge, and (vi) Reproducing and memorizing; the first three concepts describe learning as mainly a stage where learners try to understand the learning concept, while the subsequent three describe it as reproducing(Liccardi, 2008). A social network like Facebook with millions of users may have all these learning concepts represented in it. Furthermore, Liccardi (2008) described learning to be a progression as such it will be more effective if the learner chooses his community rather than being assigned to one. Esposito(2007) revealed that 88% of his students admitted that they enjoyed interacting with him and other academicians on the Facebook and only 18% admitted feeling uneasy with their academicians on their friends list in Facebook. According to Selwyn (2009), among the major educational uses of social networking platforms is the ability to rely on their support for collaboration between learners having similar problems understanding their studies. The students need guidance and encouragement on how the social networks should be used especially from academicians and experts. Other researchers have implied that social networking 15

platforms present chances to commit students with learning and education, enhancing a critical thinking in learners on their learning(Selwyn, 2009). We believe the acceptance of the social networking to be one of the approved medium of communication between the students and academicians, and this will help the students in getting wider knowledge and increase their critical thinking.

2.5.1 Facebook and E-learning

According to Greenhow (2009), extreme use of Facebook combined with learners feeling of social belonging makes them perform better academically. A survey conducted in US indicated that students share educational knowledge in social networks. In a similar survey conducted by Roblyer (2010), 60% of the students claimed to use social networks to discuss educational topics, and 50% said they discuss schoolwork matters only(Roblyer, 2010). Use of social networks is believed to help students social skills, resolve conflicts and improve reading and writing skills. Facebook permits its users to freely share, comment and access friends wall posts or in some situations friends of friends wall posts in just about real time. Whenever any of the friends updated his profile page/wall with photos, video clips, or a piece of note, it automatically appears on users profile. Users can get updates from their friends all the time until. Students among the users can enjoy this feature very well since they can easily receive updates of any course from e-learning environment(Rodrigues, 2010). Klein (2008) found that one of the key benefits of social networks is to improve communication and establish a sense of community belonging among its users. Universitys departments now have an effective vehicle for delivering news, updates, forms, and files to their staff using social media tools that are easy to use, flexible, timely, and more effective than traditional paper newsletters, web sites, or centralized document distribution (Klein, 2008). To a certain extent, universities and colleges 16

libraries globally are enjoying the services rendered by Facebook (Roblyer, 2010). Roblyer (2010) found that students enjoyed getting their references and research related questions answered through Facebook and email much more than in the traditional faceto-face interactions. They further suggest that by improving social interactions with and among students using social networks platforms such as Facebook and YouTube, academicians can enhance the level of engagement in a defined coaching environment and, as such create a better efficient learning atmosphere. From the data collected by EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research (ECAR), out of the 36,950 sample students gathered from 126 United States universities and a Canadian university, 9 out of 10 students use Facebook(Junco, 2011). The survey further showed that students were more motivated on the instructor open-mindedness on Facebook and it boosts their academic performance(Junco, 2011). Academicians need only to add social networks link on their e-learning environment and when students like the link, they can get regular updates all the time.

2.5.2 Twitter and E-learning

Grosseck (2010) suggested the use of microblogs in educational activities due to its interactive collaboration and flexibility compared to classroom learning. Twitter can be read and written through mobile phones, Short Message Service (SMS), web interfaces (Ebner, 2010). Ebners (2010) findings show that microblogging provides the opportunity to be connected to other users process by discussing, reading, commenting, or improving it(Sparks, 2011). Users have the chances also to be virtually present no matter where they might be in reality. Another vital role of Twitter is its ability to link to blog posts, spread recent news, links to Facebook, and allow easy interaction(Sparks, 2011). Knowledge sharing among students and academicians can be encouraged through comments in a topic of interest in Twitter (Grosseck, 2009). A survey 17

conducted by Top (2011) at Abant Izzet Baysal University in Turkey shows that blogging has been approved as a social media that aids in developing interaction and knowledge sharing among their students.

2.5.3 YouTube and E-learning

YouTube is an established social networks platform that is used as formal and informal learning tool by millions of users worldwide(Clifton, 2010). Tutorial lectures in a form of video clip can be uploaded on the YouTube channels by academicians for students to watch, share and express their feelings towards its usefulness (Clifton, 2010; Jin, 2009). There is no better way of understanding and exploring information than in pictorial form, when materials are designed in visual form, students will easily understand the message and can also keep it for the benefit of other students. Students can also share related materials obtained from other sources by uploading it to their YouTube channels. According to Sparks (2011), a group of students widely used YouTube to share important topics in video format on the internet. YouTube has a key advantage of delivering learning materials in a more convenient way and helps students get engage from passive to active learning. However, communication between academicians and students are considered to be minimal in YouTube platform. In another survey conducted by Clifton (2010), it was discovered that YouTube usage increases students critical awareness, commitment and encourage in-depth learning. Furthermore, Clifton (2010) urged academicians to examine using YouTube for learning and teaching within and outside classroom. Additionally, academicians must play a key role in stimulating students to use YouTube wisely; watching the video clip will never be enough, communication is required between the two parties.

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2.6 Background work on the theoretical framework

In this study, Push-Pull-Mooring (PPM) framework was used as the theoretical framework. The concept of PPM framework is mostly applied in situations where individuals exhibit tendencies of switching from one particular environment to another.

2.6.1 Push factors

Push factors are the unenthusiastic factors that forces people to look for alternatives and possibly better means of dealing with the problems they are facing in their current environment(Zengyan, 2009). The environment might be learning environment (universities), as the case is in this study. One variable e-learning perception was identified to represent push factor in the research framework. Sub constructs were identified to be associated to the variable and they are listed and defined below. Dissatisfaction with learning services in the traditional setting of institutions has been identified as one of the key variable leading students to seek alternatives in the social network media. According to Hayashi (2008), consumers willingness to keep using a service/product or their chances of continual patronizing of the service/product depends on their satisfaction level with the service and that satisfaction is the determinant factor for their return to repurchase or pay for the service in the future. Zengyan (2009) discovered that people change environment due to their dissatisfaction with the place of origin. Inadequate interaction between student-academician and student-student is another subconstruct of concern. In the concept of Asian settings, the dwellers of this region culturally do not mingle freely with people of different races(Kim, 2011). This may be the likely reason why students find it uneasy to open up to their colleagues or

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academician(s) on a face-to-face interaction but feel more comfortable discussing on a virtual environment with the same people. Todays institutions are over-crowded with students and this resulted in students getting inadequate academic support. The academicians are under pressure due to the high expectations accrued on them. Academicians need to prepare lecture notes, attend lectures, conferences, and supervise students. This engagement from the side of the academicians resulted in students not getting the required attention from them, as such necessitates for them to look for an alternative elsewhere. In her findings, Schwartz described her experience with her students in social network Facebook and how sharing information in the platform was awesome to her and the students(Rodrigues, 2010). Disapproved teaching method style is another sub-construct that was considered in the study. Hayashi (2008) discovered that some of the traditional instructors lack convincing techniques in teaching resulting in students losing confidence in them, and in some cases in the entire learning. They further said some students preferred receiving online updates from their colleagues instead of attending the class or they force themselves to attend the class for the sake of writing attendance.

2.6.2 Pull factors

Pull factors refers to the encouraging factors that attract people to the new environment(Zengyan, 2009). When students are dissatisfied with the current setup of their learning environment, they tend to search for a better way and shift their attention there. Some of the variables that were identified that lead students to switch to social networks platforms and neglect the current institutionalized e-learning platforms are social networks, convenience, social influence, academic reasons and ease of use. Some sub-constructs that are associated with these variables were identified and explained below. 20

The network formation sub-variable is a crucial one that cannot be neglected. Meeting existing friends, family members, new friends, online dating, and possibly entertainment (Amichi-Hamburger, 2010; Ellison, 2007). Notably Facebook is one of the environment that almost all the mentioned features can be found. This network formation without doubt keep students busy on the site getting updates from their loved ones and also helps maintain distant relationship when they depart to another location(Ellison, 2007). Community formation is another aspect that led students and users to social networking platforms. It involves formation of groups and engagement in existing ones, joining participation pages and forums, forming volunteer pages to help the society with something vital and many more(Ellison, 2007; Kim, 2011). Students find groups that best suit their academic interest and join in order to get updates (Kirschner, 2010). Attractiveness of alternatives can be considered in terms of superior opportunities for employment, higher income, or education; preferable environment and free to select desired ones (Zengyan, 2009). Zengyan(2009) reported that the close relationship between bands and fans sometime ago helped MySpace to get bigger by attracting more users including users from their main competitors. According to Hayashi (2008), social presence has a significant effect in virtual learning environment. Mykota (2007) argued that the presence of emotional and knowledge goals for the educational process necessitates social presence as a direct contributor to the educational experience. They further suggest that frequent informal communications with students can enhance social presence in learning. Replying to emails on time, engaging in discussions, and direct communications with students can boost their morale. Social presence is one of the most important factors to examine the capacity of interaction and effectiveness of living in a social networking platform(Mykota, 2007). 21

Time saving is considered to be a strong sub-variable that really pushed students to social networking platforms. Within a limited time students can discover valuable information concerning their studies in the social networks. Social networks such as YouTube saves students time a lot and in another view, when academicians give assignments to students, they tend to allocate more time than in traditional campusbased(Galy, 2011). The internet in general and social networks in particular provides easy access to educational materials to both students and academicians. A survey conducted in United States revealed that the respondents of their surveys use internet as a means of gaining and searching for information(Kim, 2011). Usefulness is the extent to which students and academicians understand that using social networks will improve their performance(Galy, 2011; Hayashi, 2008). Students switch to social networks because they believe using it improve their academic performances whereas academicians switch because it assists them in remaining relevant and exposed in their domain of interest. Ease of use sub-variable also plays an important role in students and academicians switching to social networks. According to Hayashi (2008) perceived ease of use is the degree to which an individual agrees that using a particular system would help reduce a lot of effort. As earlier indicated, uses of social networks platforms simplify the procedure of acquiring knowledge. Galy(2011) added that students perception that certain technology is simple and easy to use influences their decision to use it. For instance, when a student subscribes to a particular forum or page in Facebook platform, anytime the administrator of that page/forum updates the page/forum, automatically it will reflect on the students profile. This of course reduces students effort of searching for the information in and around the internet.

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2.6.3 Mooring factors

Mooring factors refers to the factors that make individuals unable to decide on what is good for them or not(Zengyan, 2009). They might be aware of the benefits associated to other platforms that may make positive impact to their current situations but cannot decide to switch due to some reasons. A variable called barriers was identified to represent mooring factors in the study framework and sub-variables that were associated to it were explained below. Lack of awareness among the students and academicians is a factor that keeps them away from the current educational progress. There are cases where some students hardly check their academic emails; they do not know what is actually happening currently in their institutions of study. Absence of social motivation is also a killer in making students doubtful of accepting new education changes. According to Junco(2011) some students are more engaged than others; while others refrain from social networking platforms due to lack of motivation from friends and academicians. Students may be required to put on more effort in order to stay and enjoy the full benefit of social networks, and this is what Zengyan (2009) described as time and management cost. This constant checking of the site may hinder students acceptance of the social networks. Some students naturally enjoyed being isolated from their colleagues. No matter how someone tries to influence them to socialize, their isolation attitude will not allow them to submit. Privacy is one of the major sub-variables that easily lead to quite a number of unattended situations by both students and academicians(Mykota, 2007). It prevents many among students and academicians from joining the social networking platforms due to fear of being hacked or associated to parties of bad characters. There are some 23

details that are required from users of most of the social networks such as age, working place, marital status among others. Many do not want to reveal these details due to personal reasons and requiring these details to be provided might lead to their decision to avoid it even if they are aware of the full benefits they will get from it.

2.7 Summary
Numerous concepts have been studied from different researchers with regards to social networks and its relation to e-learning and the impact it makes on students learning process. Many findings have revealed that social networks do influence e-learning and some of the factors that lead students to join social networks platforms are inadequate assistance from academicians, friends influence, desire to know more, etc. as highlighted earlier on. The researchers have pointed out the educational benefits associated with social networks sites and how they can be adopted by universities to aid in boosting students academic performance. Researchers termed it switching from the traditional way of learning to modern way of learning. Push-Pull-Mooring (PPM) framework was explained in relation to all the factors that might affect the use of social networks in e-learning. The next chapter explains the theoretical framework in more detail.

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Chapter Three 3.1 Research Methodology

This chapter explains the research theoretical framework used in the study with the generated research hypotheses from the reviewed literature. The description of the selected approaches in the survey and the sampling technique used in collecting data were also highlighted. Furthermore, measurement of the research instruments and definitions of factors in the research framework were provided. Finally, the summary of the chapter content was highlighted.

3.2 Theoretical framework

The theoretical framework used in this study is depicted in Figure 3.1. Some variables are recognized as constructs of PPM factors, the independent variables are seven, namely, E-learning Perception (Hayashi, 2008; Zengyan, 2009), Convenience (Galy, 2011; Zengyan, 2009), Social Influence (Bakshy, 2011; Hayashi, 2008; Mykota, 2007), Academic Reasons (Ellison, 2007; Galy, 2011; Hayashi, 2008), Ease of Use (Hayashi, 2008), Social Networking (Amichi-Hamburger, 2010; Ellison, 2007), Barriers (Junco, 2011; Zengyan, 2009) and the dependent variable is Teaching and Learning Benefit. Table 3.1 provides the operational definition of each of the variables.

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Pull Factors
Social Influence Convenience Ease of use

Push Factors
E-learning Perception

Academic Reasons Social Networking

Teaching and Learning Benefit

Barriers

Mooring Factors Figure 3.1 Conceptual theoretical framework. Table 3.1 Research variables and operational definitions Variables Operational Definitions Refers to the academic benefits gained by Teaching and Learning Benefit students and academicians as a result of using social networking platforms. Refers to perceptions current on students and

academicians

e-learning

platforms

implemented in tertiary institutions(Hayashi, E-learning Perception 2008; Zengyan, 2009)

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Refers to the influence of friends, family and Social Influence academicians in using social networks in e-learning (Bakshy, 2011; Hayashi, 2008;

Mykota, 2007). Refers to the extent to which students understand that using social networks will improve their understanding of a course and academicians believe that using social networks will improve their understanding and widen their skills on certain aspects of teaching due to its usefulness Academic Reasons and easy access(Ellison, 2007; Galy, 2011; Hayashi, 2008). Refers to the use of social networks to meet Social Networking friends, family members, academicians, and experts. 2007). Refers to the availability of variety of social networks type that gives users choices of switching to any they find and feel comfortable in Convenience providing their social or academic needs. (Galy, 2011; Zengyan, 2009). Ease of use is the degree to which an individual Ease of use agrees that using a particular system would help reduce a lot of effort(Hayashi, 2008) (Amichi-Hamburger, 2010; Ellison,

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Refers to all the possible barriers that might prevent one from using social networks in elearning such as lack of awareness, absence of Barriers social motivation, privacy issues, time and management cost, etc.(Junco, 2011; Zengyan, 2009)

3.3 Research hypotheses

3.3.1 General predictors
In this section, seven general predictors that affect the influence of social networks in e-learning were identified and explained based on the variables defined in the study framework. With the vast resources in social networking platforms and their flexibility in allowing users to add as many links to other sites as needed, it is expected that if students or academicians are not comfortable with the services rendered in their e-learning platform they will likely abandon it and shift to their desired social networking platform(s). Some e-learning platforms allow forum participation while others do not. Disapproved teaching method can also lead to demoralization in students and the remedy might be searching for a better alternative in order to stay current and relevant. The study intends to investigate whether there is link between e-learning perception and teaching and learning benefits in social networks or not. Hence, a hypothesis was postulated below.

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H1: There is no association between e-learning perception and teaching and learning benefit in social networks The presence of colleagues in a social environment is likely to result to conversation that will lead to academic discussions and as such those that have adequate knowledge on the topic of discussion will share their experiences and viewpoints. Social networks being one of the medium that gather such kind of individuals can be target zone for academic communications among students or academicians, experts and many talented individuals. Is there a connection between social influence and teaching and learning benefits among students and academicians or not? This question resulted in the creation of the second hypothesis. H2: There is no association between social influence and teaching and learning benefit in social networks Social networks make access to educational materials viable. YouTube for instance have piles of educated materials uploaded by several individuals. Another advantage is that user can subscribe to be getting related materials in the future from the social sites. It is also expected that using social networking platforms among academicians and students will result in a pleasant relationship on the virtual environment and improves their communication level thereby boosting their knowledge and possibly increase their grade level. The hypothesis below was postulated to address whether usage of social networks for academic reasons lead to teaching and learning benefit. H3: There is no association between academic reasons and teaching and learning benefit in social networks. The need to communicate with loved ones especially for students that are far away from home is expected to be one of their reasons of joining social network platforms. Keeping in touch is necessary especially to close ones in order to be able to concentrate on daily routines. Additionally, social networks allow users to create pages and groups 29

to share common interest with other users. The group and pages can be open or close depending on the reasons and policies behind its creation. It is a great opportunity for students and/or academicians to create or join group of interest to improve their learning or knowledge. Do such kinds of groups/pages have beneficial impact in students and academicians? The hypothesis below will be tested to discover the fact. H4: There is no association between social networking and teaching and learning benefit in social networks. The flexibility and freedom to switch from one social network to another when it no longer provides what is needed is expected to have influence in students and academicians willingness to keep using the social sites. If for instance Facebook decided to shut down Group participation, users have alternatives of joining other social sites that provides similar services. Furthermore, instant response of messages received via social networks media is linked to students and academicians embracing them as one of the better medium of communication. The social networks are discovered to spread information quicker than traditional email service. Hence the following hypothesis was formed. H5: There is no association between convenience and teaching and learning benefit in social networks Accessing learning resources in social networking platforms are assumed to be simple and easy when compared to other means of getting resources in the internet. It is expected that students and academicians will respond positively in this aspect. H6: There is no association between ease of use and teaching and learning benefit in social networks There are among students and/or academicians that are doubtful of what to do in some situation. They might be aware of usefulness and benefits associated with social networks but due to some factors and reasons could not make up their mind to join and enjoy the available services. These reasons and excuses are what referred to as barriers

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in the theoretical framework. Below is a hypothesis that is related to the perception mentioned above. H7: There is no association between barriers and teaching and learning benefit in social networks.

3.3.2 Student-Academician Perception

In this section, seven hypotheses were generated to investigate whether there is difference in the way students and academicians use social networks for academic benefits. The details of the hypotheses are provided below: When students and academicians felt dissatisfied with the services rendered by e-learning platforms, they tend to search for alternative means of getting satisfied through the use of other mediums such as social networks. Since students and academicians play different roles in academics, do they face common challenges in using e-learning platforms? There is need to know whether they have similar needs and experience common problems with the e-learning platforms that lead them to join social sites. The hypothesis below was postulated in relation to the question. H8: There is no difference between students and academicians towards e-learning perceptions with regards to teaching and learning benefit Social influence has been defined as impacting positively on peoples life through sharing and spreading vital information they find beneficial to them. How students influences others might or might not be the same way academicians influences same or different categories of individuals. A hypothesis that tried to address the situation is postulated below. H9: There is no difference between students and academicians perceptions towards social influence with regards to teaching and learning benefit. 31

Though academicians primary role is to teach and students are expected to learn from the academicians, when it comes to getting information from social networks do these sets of individuals access and use the information on the same manner or not? Both without doubt are working towards improving their understanding and probably digging to know more about a particular concept or topic. What differentiates the two parties will be investigated with the help of the hypothesis below H10: There is no difference between students and academicians perceptions towards academic reasons with regards to teaching and learning benefit. Individuals are free to interact with different sets of people in social networking environment from young adult to old people without limitation. Meeting friends, experts, joining forums, groups, pages, etc. are mostly open for users to choose and join. The manner in which students form a community of network on social sites might be same or different from the one form by academicians. There is need to investigate in order to know common differences between students and academicians if it does exist. H11: There is no difference between students and academicians perceptions towards social networking with regards to teaching and learning benefit. Convenience has to do with the attractiveness of alternatives and time saving in getting required data or information on the social sites. Whether students and academicians share the same thought on what exactly convenience means to them need to be confirmed. Hence, the hypothesis below was raised. H12: There is no difference between students and academicians perceptions towards convenience with regards to teaching and learning benefit. The simplicity of social networks makes it to be a target for many in getting and spreading information. How do students and academicians use and define ease of use? 32

Do they see it and understand it from the same angle or not? will be the focus of the hypothesis below. H13: There is no difference between students and academicians perceptions towards ease of use with regards to teaching and learning benefit. Barriers as discussed earlier hindered students or academicians from joining social sites due to some particular reasons such as privacy issues; isolation attitude, etc. students and academicians may have similar reasons why they are resisting from joining social sites and they may also differ in the same issue. The hypothesis below will be used to investigate the situation. H14: There is no difference between students and academicians perceptions towards barriers with regards to teaching and learning benefit.

3.4 Research Method

3.4.1 Questionnaire
The questionnaire in this study was developed in accordance to the research conducted by Zengyan (2009), Galy (2011), Hayashi (2008) and Kim (2011). Quantitative approach of gathering data was adopted in this survey due to the fact that respondents are dispersed across Malaysia from different universities and with the availability of internet everywhere, it is considered a wise decision to adopt this techniques in getting the survey feedback. A 45-item questionnaire assessing demographic information and statements related to using social networks in e-learning was prepared in English. Six university students and two academicians reviewed the questionnaire to gauge if survey respondents would be able to understand the questions, statements and instructions given in the research instruments. The final questionnaire revealed a Cronbach value of 0.81 indicating a high level of internal consistency. 33

The questionnaire consisted of four sections. Section 1 requires the respondents to provide their demographic details such as age, gender, choice of social networks used, etc. Section two, three and four focused on statements related to perception on current elearning platforms used, perceptions on social networks and e-learning and perceptions related to factors that might prevent one from social networks in e-learning, respectively. All the statements in Section one, two and three are measured using a 5-point Likert scale (1= strong disagreement and 5 = strong agreement). There were a total of 39 statements. The questionnaire is attached as Appendix A. The survey data were collected using an electronic sample survey website https://docs.google.com. The participants are assumed to be internet users and are familiar with social networking platforms such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. They were invited to fill up the questionnaire via the website link provided to them.

3.5 Sampling Technique

The survey sampling was characterized by the populace (students and academicians) ability to access internet everywhere across the globe and their general awareness of the existing of the social networking platforms targeted on the research. The studied samples are within the specified range of age being studied in the survey and each and every questions asked to them were related to the research study. To confirm the assertions, a pilot test was conducted as discussed in the next section.

3.6 Survey Pilot Testing

At the initial stage, pilot test was attempted on the selected individuals to determine any unclear questions that needed to be revised. A total of 24 usable survey responses were obtained during the pilot test study of which 20 were students and four were academicians. Generally respondents were happy and commented well on the questions. 34

Notwithstanding, corrections were pointed out that needed to be effected before final distribution of the survey questionnaire. All other data remain valid and respondents commented well on the simplicity of the questionnaire.

3.7 Respondents
The respondents investigated in the survey were students and academicians from various universities and colleges across Malaysia. The universities and colleges were selected based on their popularity and world academic ranking. Since the questionnaire was prepared online, a URL was provided https://docs.google.com to the respondents via their universitys central email service or forwarded to their personal emails. Others received the link via Facebook. A total of 455 responses were received at the end of the survey comprising of 255 females and 200 males. Respondents aged between 25 39 years dominated the survey with 47.7% of the total responses, followed by those within the age of 18 25 years with 43.7%.

3.8 Summary
Push Pull Mooring (PPM) framework was adopted as the theoretical framework that fitted into the study based on the studies carried out on the previous related researches by other researcher. Fourteen hypotheses were formed of which seven of them are concerned with the general predictors that affect the influence of social networks in elearning while the remaining seven were formed to check if differences exists in the way students and academicians perceive the use of social networks in e-learning. A quantitative approach of gathering data was adopted in the study survey. A total of 455 responses were received with almost equal number of male and female respondents. The next chapter presents the results of the quantitative survey.

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Chapter Four 4.1 Results and Discussion

Statistical Package of the Social Sciences 20.0 (SPSS 20.0) was used to analyze the data. Statistical tests such as descriptive statistic, factor analysis, Analysis Of Variance (ANOVA) and stepwise regression were used to analyze the data. The most significant factors among the eight factors represented in the research theoretical framework were identified. Tables and figures containing the results of the analysis were displayed together with the brief explanation of the contents. Finally a summary of the overall research results was done at the end of the chapter.

4.2 Descriptive Analysis

4.2.1 Demographic details
The responses from the research as shown in Table 4.1 are found to have almost equal number of male (44.0%) and female (56.0%) responses. It was quite interesting how the result appeared that way and this has proven the survey of not being gender biased. The overall result for the age range was quite positive with respondents within age range of 25 30 slightly dominated the survey with 27.3% followed by those within age range of 18 20 with 23.5%. Only 8.6% percent of the respondents age were

greater than 40 years and are most likely to be among the academicians. This indicates that majority of the respondents are youth and they are the primary target of the research.

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Table 4.1: Number of respondents according to gender, age-range and category Frequency Female Gender: Male Total 18 20 21 24 Age Range: 25 30 31 39 >40 Total Academician Category Type: Postgraduate Undergraduate Total 255 (56.0%) 200 (44.0%) 455 (100.0%) 107 (23.5%) 92 (20.2%)

124 (27.3%) 93 39 (20.4%) (8.6%)

455 (100.0) 130 (28.6%) 147 (32.3%) 178 (39.1%) 455 (100.0

Students and academicians actively responded in the survey. Students both from undergraduate and postgraduate field have shown their interests in this research by participation amass. The number of responses from academicians has indicated how current and active they are on the social sites domain and their willingness to explore and engage teaching via social sites as indicated in the subsequent statistics to follow.

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4.2.2 Description of social platforms

Figure 4.1: Graph of social media platforms The result on figure 4.1 shows that social networks have gained total acceptance in the academic community. Nine out of ten respondents have an active Facebook account and may likely have another account in other social network media. The result further showed that Twitter is still yet to gain popularity among students and academicians with only 28%. On the other hand, YouTube has gained popularity among students and academicians and this is not a surprising considering earlier report on the literature review that 51% of total Malaysian possessed an active channel in YouTube(Kemp, 2012).

4.3Factors Analysis
The factor analysis resulted in a total of eight factors (Table 4.2). Approximately 77.2% (eigenvalue more than 1.00) of the expressed variance was contained in these eight factors, with 34 items included. The high variance indicates that the measurement method (i.e. questionnaire) to a high extent accurately represents the research design.

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Table 4.2: Varimax rotated factor loadings matrix

Factors Dependent variable FACTOR 1: Teaching and Learning Benefit I am benefitting a lot (academically) through social networks usage. I would like academicians to join Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to assists students. I believe social networks can be used to improve teaching & learning I believe social networks can be used to improve the collaboration among peers and between students and academicians Eigenvalue Independent variables (push, pull & mooring factors) FACTOR 2: E-learning Perception I am satisfied with the current e-learning facility in my university/college The e-learning facilities allow me to communicate with my peers and/or academicians My peers and/or academicians always assist me academically via e-learning platform The current e-learning platforms enhances my (academicians) style of teaching I am able to use the e-learning platform to fulfil all my learning/teaching needs Eigenvalue FACTOR 3: Convenience Communications in social networks platforms is much faster Searching for a specific video/audio clip is efficient on YouTube. YouTube simplifies sharing of audio/video files online Social sites are good medium for students and academicians meetings and communications Eigenvalue FACTOR 4: Social Influence Friends and family influence the way I use social networks in learning My academicians influence the way I use social networks in learning Friends taught me how to access learning materials through social network sites My academician taught me how to access learning materials through social network sites Eigenvalue .838 .982 .981 .978 3.10 .975 .975 .974 .821 3.85 .902 .869 .775 .974 .971 4.12 Factor loadings

.700
.950 .919 .953 6.69

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FACTOR 5: Barriers I am conservative as such I do not like socializing on internet I enjoy working alone, social sites distract my attention I wanted to join social sites but something inside me tells me to wait until later I was not aware that I can use social networks for academic benefits Lack of motivation from peers and academicians discourages me from joining social networks I quit social network sites due to its constant requirement of time and management Eigenvalue FACTOR 6: Academic Reasons Intellectuals attract my attention in social networks Groups pages participation in Facebook make access to learning materials easier Academicians in my university/college use social networks to enhance teaching methods I use social networks for educational purpose Eigenvalue FACTOR 7: Ease of Use Communications in social networks platforms is much easier I am attracted to variety of communication mediums in social networks (able to upload materials, posts, send messages etc.) I would prefer to use social networks compared to other modes (emails, phone calls) as a communication medium with peers and/or academicians Eigenvalue .458 .745 .840 1.65 .924 .927 .957 .959 2.70 .744 .685 .711 .675 .710 .782 2.78

FACTOR 8: Social networking I use social networks to stay in touch with my friends and families I use social networks to make new friends I use social networks to meet people of the same field of study Eigenvalue Total Variance .833 .813 .552 1.36 77.2%

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The dependent variable was named Teaching and Learning Benefit, it contains all items grouped in factor one that measure the benefit of using social networks in teaching and learning. All the items related to respondents perceptions on the current e-learning platform used are grouped into factor two; therefore, this factor was named E-learning Perception. As the name implies, factor three relates to all the items focusing on the Convenience of using social network sites for communication and sharing materials. Factor four has four items that shows how friends, families and academicians assist one to use social networks; therefore this factor was named Social Influence. Six items measuring reasons as to why student and/or academician may not use social networks loaded into a single factor that is named Barriers. Factor six is called Academic Reasons as it contains all the items that measured how social networks can be used for educational purposes whereas factor seven is named Ease of Use as it contains items that attract the respondents to use social networks due to its simplicity. Finally, factor eight relates to how social networks can be used for communication and network building among the respondents, hence it was named Social Networking. Five items were dropped due to their low factor loadings (i.e. less than 0.4). They are: i. ii. Instant response to information request influences my stay in social sites I am always happy to add academicians/students to my friends list iii. iv. v. Academicians respond quickly to my academic queries in Facebook I use Facebook to make appointments with my academicians/students I am careful of the content I post on my Facebook/Twitter update status due to the presence of my academicians. Facebook/Twitter

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4.4 Respondents Overall Perceptions

The mean and standard deviation of the respondents were calculated using descriptive analysis to measure the ways in which students and academicians rated the influence of social networks in e-learning with regards to the eight factors extracted using factor analysis. Table 4.3 below shows the mean and standard deviation of the eight factors. Table 4.3: Mean values for all the factors Factors Academic Reasons Social Networking Ease of Use Convenience Teaching and Learning Benefit Social Influence E-learning Perception Barriers Mean 4.21 4.10 4.06 3.96 3.83 3.62 3.27 2.35 Std. Deviation .803 .789 .804 .757 .852 1.065 1.163 1.254

The average mean and standard deviation for all independent factors is 3.65 and 0.95, respectively. Factors that scored above the average mean are Academic Reasons, Social Networking, Ease of Use, Convenience and Teaching and Learning Benefit whereas Social Influence, E-learning Perception, and Barriers scored below the average factors mean score. Academic Reasons, Social Networking, Ease of Use, Convenience and Teaching and Learning Benefit have a standard deviation value of less than one, indicating that the respondents have consistently rated all these factors. The mean scores for all the factors were above 3.20 except for Barriers. This indicate that majority of the respondents rated positively to most of the statements. As for Barriers, the low mean score shows that most of the respondents did not agree that social network act as a 42

barrier to their learning and teaching activities. Social Influence, E-learning Perception and Barriers factors have standard deviation values which are greater than one, indicating disagreeing opinions among the respondents about these three factors.

4.5 Identification of significant predictors

In order to investigate and test the seven predicted hypotheses (H1 H7) described in the previous chapter, stepwise regressions were used to identify the significant predictors that affect the influence of social networks in e-learning. Table 4.4 below provided the result of the stepwise regression analysis. Table 4.4: Stepwise regression Factors Academic Reasons Beta 0.898 t-Statistics p-value 22.2 5.27 0.98 2.65 1.84 1.08 0.52
2

0.000* 0.002* 0.015* 0.039* 0.047* 0.068 0.606

E-learning Perception 0.021 Convenience Social Networking Ease of Use Barriers Social Influence 0.000 0.092 0.085 0.043 0.012

*= Significant (p < 0.05); F =207.82 (p < 0.001) R = 0.792

In Table 4.4, the adjusted R2 clearly explains 79.2% of the variance associated with Teaching and Learning Benefit factor. The F-statistics for the model was also found to be significant (F = 207.82; p < 0.000). Academic Reasons, Convenience, Social Networking, Ease of Use and E-learning Perception were found to be significantly associated with Teaching and Learning Benefit. A higher beta weight (0.898) and tstatistics (22.2) for Academic Reasons makes it more influential to Teaching and Learning Benefit than the rest of the significant factors, that is, Convenience, Social Networking, Ease of Use and E-learning Perception. These factors are also positively 43

associated with Teaching and Learning Benefit, meaning an increase in any of these factors results in a significant increase in Teaching and Learning Benefit. The hypotheses that related to the total five significant factors were listed below: H1: There is no association between e-learning perception and teaching and learning benefit in social networks H3: There is no association between academic reasons and teaching and learning benefit in social networks H4: There is no association between social networking and teaching and learning benefit in social networks H5: There is no association between convenience and teaching and learning benefit in social networks H6: There is no association between ease of use and teaching and learning benefit in social networks Since the p values for all the five factors associated with these hypotheses are less than 0.05, therefore, the hypotheses are all rejected. The finding coincides with the result obtained by (Kim, 2011; Liccardi, 2008; Zengyan, 2009) on how social networks positively affect teaching and learning benefit based on the aforementioned factors. The rest of the factors were not found to be significant predictors for Teaching and Learning Benefit as such their hypothesis are not rejected.

4.6 Students and academicians perceptions on social networks in e-learning

The hypotheses (H8 H14) statistical significant difference(s) between students and academicians perception towards all the seven independent factors and the dependent factor were tested using ANOVA as depicted in Table 4.5. Significant differences were 44

found in six of the factors. Social Influence (p-value < 0.000), Ease of Use (p-value< 0.000), Social Networking (p-value < 0.000), Teaching and Learning Benefit (p-value < 0.022), E-learning Perception (p-value < 0.001) and Academic Reasons (p < 0.018). Table 4.5 shows the ANOVA. Factors Social Influence Ease of Use Social Networking Teaching and Learning Benefit E-learning Perception Academic Reasons Barriers Convenience
*= Significant (p-value < 0.05)

F statistics p-value Mean (Student-Academician) 26.92 16.59 15.07 46.08 10.55 0.018 0.087 0.021 0.000* 0.000* 0.000* 0.000* 0.001* 0.018* 0.061 0.884 3.20 2.30 4.07 3.72 4.05 3.72 3.81 3.23 3.12 3.50 3.46 4.06 2.29 2.26 3.91 3.90

Mean values indicate that students have a higher degree of agreement towards Social Influence and Teaching and Learning Benefit than academicians and this can be understood considering tendencies of students to follow and engage in any kind of activities they come across in social sites due to their inability to distinguish between need and want. As for Ease of Use students seems to agree more than the academicians. Students are always searching for an easier way that will lead them to understand certain courses easily without much effort, lecture note in form of video clip provided in YouTube is easier to grab than walking for an hour to lecture hall to attend lecture. The result is similar to one discovered by (Hayashi, 2008). Students also agree more on Social Networking than the academicians. Of course students networked with friends, family members, celebrities, new friends, etc. whereas academicians will hardly be there to meet people they have no contact before. Again students agree more that social 45

networks provide Teaching and Learning Benefit than academicians do. Hayashi (2008) discovered that frequent usage of the social sites will make one learn a lot of its potentials. As for Academic Reasons academicians seems to agree more on the statements than students. This is no surprise because academicians are more talented and goal oriented when it comes to looking for what they want than the students. Students might have other form of engagements on the sites that may carry their attention away from doing appropriate things while on the social networks. The hypotheses related to the significant factors in Table 4.5 are listed below: H8: There is no difference between students and academicians towards e-learning perception with regards to social networks usage. H9: There is no difference between students and academicians perception towards social influence with regards to social networks usage. H10: There is no difference between students and academicians perception towards academic reasons with regards to social networks usage. H11: There is no difference between students and academicians perception towards social networking with regards to social networks usage. H13: There is no difference between students and academicians perception towards ease of use with regards to social networks usage. Hence, since the p values of all the five factors connected to these hypotheses were less than 0.05, the hypotheses are therefore rejected.

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4.7 Summary
In this chapter, the result of the survey demographic details was presented in which the ratio of male to female is almost 1:1 and youth dominated the majority of the survey. Factor analysis was carried out in which eight factors were extracted. Stepwise regression was used to test general predictors affecting social networks in e-learning. Five factors (E-learning Perception, Convenience, Academic Reasons, Ease of Use and Social Networking) were found to be significant which resulted in rejecting five of the seven hypotheses. ANOVA was later used to test if there is a significant difference(s) on the way students and academicians perceived social networks link to Teaching and Learning Benefit. Six factors were found to be significant and mean values revealed some differences between students and academicians on the significant factors. The next chapter presents a prototype implementation and testing based on the four of the five significant factors identified in stepwise regression test. They are Convenience, Academic Reasons, Ease of Use and Social Networking.

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Chapter Five 5.1 Prototype Implementation and Testing

This chapter presents the implementation part of the study research. The prototype was designed in such a way that the most significant factors, that is Convenience, Academic Reasons, Ease of Use and Social Networking in the research theoretical framework were made to be functional. It is a simple social site that enabled students and academicians share and communicate on academic related issues. After the completion of the system, some students and also academicians were asked to test the prototype. Feedbacks from the users were also collected.

5.2 Description of Implementation

With the availability of Web 2.0 tools freely, it becomes easier to develop an application using the free tools. An open source platform called webs available on the internet was used in developing the prototype. The URL link to the platform location is http://webs.com. The tools used in the development of the prototype are Asynchronous JavaScript (AJ), Adobe Flash, Prototype JavaScript Framework and HyperText Markup Language (HTML) editor. Ajax programming was used in the design and it uses JavaScript to allow upload and download of data from server without going through complete page reload. Some of the tools used are already built-in into the packaged applications such as adobe flash and asynchronous JavaScript. The client-server and hosting of the prototype was control and run by the proprietary of the platform. Most of the functionalities required to be incorporated in the prototype such as blog, forms, learning resources and chat services have already been packaged in the open source platforms. What is needed is the skill to integrate them together to achieve the desired goal and that has been done. The provision of the customization of the pages 48

and widgets (links to Facebook, Google+ pages, etc.) enable the development of the prototype to be done in such a way that only basic functionalities required were included. The prototype was aimed at primarily designing a module for a course Information System Development Practices (ISDP) in Information System (IS) department in Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology in University of Malaya using combination of open source tools. The functionalities (blog, forum, chat, learning and teaching resources and users profiles) provided on the system are determined from the significant factors Ease of Use, Social Networking, Convenience, and Academic Reasons in the research framework. The acceptance of the system by academicians and students will determine whether the system will be generalized for all module courses in the Information System (IS) field and possibly expand it to cater for the entire university community.

5.3 Prototype Modules

5.3.1 Home page
Figure 5.1 shows the interface of the home page of the implemented prototype. The basic components of the prototype were displayed with a brief description of what it was actually meant for. As indicated, any student or academician who is willing to join the site must register on the right panel of the site. Academicians and students who registered on the site have the privilege to upload and download materials (documents, videos, audio) posted by colleagues or themselves anytime they wish and also comment or seek explanation on any topic they find interesting.

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Figure 5.1: Homepage The forum window also allows members to discuss issues related to the objective of the site and learn and share with each other. Students and academicians can interact on oneto-one basis via the use of chatting facility or short message whenever they like. The toolbar located at the bottom of the page allows academicians and students to follow related work on the existing social media Facebook, YouTube and Twitter by just clicking on the appropriate button.

5.3.2 Blog
Blog can be a journal or an article authored by an individual or group of people. It allows students and academicians to express their personal or academic opinions based on their understanding.

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Figure 5.2: Blog page The blog service was integrated in the site to enable students and academicians share personal as well as academic stand on some issues they find interesting which ordinarily do not have the means to express them. And at the same time it will give an academician running the course module a clue on students that share similar ideologies on a specific domain. The blog will contribute a lot towards understanding the focal point of most students that use it wisely and show their true character. At any time, students and/or academician can publish their journal or article here for others to see and learn.

5.3.3 Academic Resources

In this category, educational materials in different format (document, pdf, video, audio, etc) are provided for students and academician. They are encouraged to post any relevant material they come across for the benefit of the entire community of the site.

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5.3.3.1 Document file

Figure 5.3: Document materials page Figure 5.3 present document sections that enable students and academician upload and download educational related materials. Academicians and students are allowed to have access to the materials uploaded by one of them for full benefit and encouragement for those that are yet to contribute. Some of them have already uploaded documents as shown in the figure, one in Microsoft word format (doc) and the other in the portable document format (pdf). The interface was developed in such a way that students and academicians can easily upload documents without much follow up. Student(s) and/or academician(s) that uploaded some documents can be able to modify or delete it at any time they desire and academician can also delete documents uploaded by students when they find them to be irrelevant in the module of discussion.

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5.3.3.2 Video clip

Figure 5.4: Video page Figure5.4 displayed the interface where students and academician post video clips. The concept is almost same for the document category discussed earlier. Additionally, students and academicians can comment on any of the available video clips posted on the page. From the video clips already posted, it can be seen that one of the video clip was viewed 14 times by students and/or academicians. Students and academicians reactions on the video facility have been discussed in the testing section of the chapter.

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5.3.3.3 Audio clip

Figure 5.5: Audio page There are instances when some individuals prefer listen to some important information than watching or reading them. This page has provided that avenue for such categories of students and/or academician. Students and academician can post any related audio clip for the benefit of other members and probably themselves. As at the time of filing this report, two audio clips were posted by students and/or academicians. They can listen to the audio clips at any time they want without the burden of continual staring at computer screen.

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5.3.4 Forum

Figure 5.6: Forum page Forum is an online discussion page where students and academicians can have open conversation on a specific topic proposed by any member. Most of the discussions in a forum are centered on a specific domain and required members to comments and make suggestions on the topic of discussions. As indicated on the Figure 5.6, some topics were created by students and/academicians of this forum and comments were made. Students and academicians can also start a new topic on the forum by clicking on the +New Topic link provided on this page. It is fun having discussion with colleagues on topics that are difficult to deal with. With this forum page available to students, it is hope that they will utilize it to the best of their ability.

5.3.5 Users
There are three categories of users defined in this prototype. They are administrator, academicians and students. Each of these people plays a role in making the site sustainable. Currently the site has ten users, nine of which are students and an 55

academician. Figure 5.7 below displayed the users page. The toolbar also shows that students and academicians can have live chat among themselves whenever they are online.

Figure 5.7: Users collective page

5.3.5.1 Administrator
An administrator controls the overall privileges of the site and users. He assigned responsibility to users of the site and manage the site whenever there is need to do that. The administrator can delete any member that violate the ethics and policy of the site and also monitor the overall activity of the site. Currently the site has only one course module running. The administrator is the only user that can add other course modules in the future.

5.3.5.2 Academicians
Academicians play important roles in the site. As couches/instructors of the course modules, their participation will influence many students to behave and stick discussions to course modules related matters. Academicians have the power to remove 56

or edit any data or information posted by the students that they found to be irrelevant to the course module. Academicians can also do whatever the students are allowed to do in the sites such as posting notes, videos, audios, or chatting with students. They is also expected to participate in the forum discussions to motivate students and guide them on how to answer or approach certain issues they may find difficult to deal with. In fact, they are expected to be the role models on the site.

Figure 5.8: Academician profile page.

5.3.5.3 Students
Any individual that register in the site is regarded as a student by default. Students can write blog, post and comments on academic resources (document, video and audio) create forums and comment on the existing ones. Add friends to their profile and communicate with members via a live chat window. They can also share on their profile their social feelings and what they were doing at a particular time. They are provided with basic facilities that are present in Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. Figure 5.9 below shows a typical profile of students page in the site. 57

Figure 5.9: Student profile page.

5.4 Prototype Testing

After the completion of the prototype, a total of ten students and academicians mostly from IT field were invited to test the prototype. They were later asked to assess the prototype based on their experience and fill in comments based on the factors identified via the link http://socialelearning.webs.com/. Refer to Appendix B for complete prototype testing survey questionnaire. Majority of the students and academicians are of the view that the prototype is simple and appealing and that it provides room for socializing and supports for academic learning and knowledge sharing among the academicians and students.

5.4.1 Respondents Mean Assessments

The mean and standard deviation of the assessment of the four factors, Convenience, Ease of Use, Social Networking and Academic Reasons based on the experience on the prototype were calculated as shown in Table 5.1. The result was based on the ten responses collected from the respondents (students and academicians). 58

Table 5.1: Assessments Mean and standard deviation Factors Social Networking Academic Reasons Convenience Ease of Use Mean Standard deviation 4.70 .48 4.50 .71 4.10 .88 4.00 .67

The average mean and standard deviation for the factors are 4.33 and 0.69 respectively. Two of the factors Social Networking and Academic Reasons scored above the mean whereas Convenience and Ease of Use are slightly behind the average mean. All the factors have standard deviation value of less than one showing that the respondents consistently rated all the factors with a high value. Based on this, it can be said that respondents are happy with the contents and functionalities of the prototype.

5.4.2 Respondents Comments

Respondents were asked to kindly comments on their experience and satisfaction level with the prototype for each of the factor given and Table 5.2 show excerpt comments from respondents taken from each of the factors. Table 5.2: Respondents comments Factors Ease of Use: Respondents comments The prototype is very simple to use, operate and understand. The simplicity of files and video upload is amazing Social Networking: It is a good avenue to meet and communicate with friends, academicians and read updates from colleagues Academic Reasons: It is amazing. If it is sustained, it will go a long way in helping academicians and students to teach, learn and communicate because educational documents, videos & audios can be upload and downloaded easily. Convenience: The prototype provides variety of medium of communication and support variety of academic services to choose from. 59

5.5 Summary
The chapter described prototype implementation in which open source platform was used in developing the prototype. Snapshots of the prototype pages were provided with details of their contents. Students and academicians were later asked to assess and comments on the prototype based on their experience and understanding. The comments and assessments received were both positive and encouraging. The next chapter concludes the overall contents of the study and suggests future works.

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Chapter Six 6.1 Conclusion

E-learning no doubt improves the way people learn and study in educational environments. The study has discussed what researchers have done in the field of e-learning and social networking media and recommendations together with different approaches where suggested on how to maximize the benefits provided by the use of electronic learning. The social media reigning in the 21st century and total acceptance of it by the majority of the academic populace has shown how necessary it is to integrate it into educational studies. The statements of the study problems are: Despite the fact that e-learning is readily available everywhere, students find it difficult to get the appropriate information for their studies. They need more encouragement, recommendations, advices, and help from expert and professionals on their selected field of study using the simplest and updated version of the technology(Greenhow, 2009). In most cases, students find it difficult to get an instance guidance or professional advice when encountered with academic problems(Greenhow, 2009). Social networks were suggested as one of the medium that can be used to deal with the aforementioned problems. Three notable social media platforms were suggested and they are Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The study carried out has indicated that both students and academicians appreciate the services rendered by the social networks and agreed upon that the usage of social networks will increase the communication, teaching and learning among students and academicians in the universities. The study was supported and agreed with by the work carried out by (Galy, 2011; Greenhow, 2009; Hayashi, 2008; Zengyan, 2009) 61

The objectives of the study are: i. To design a research framework to assess the influence of social networks media on teaching and learning in the academic environment, specifically local universities. ii. iii. To identify the factors that influences the use of social networks in e-learning. To test the framework based on a system prototype.

All the above objectives were met and achieved. Research framework was designed using Push-Pull-Mooring (PPM) model. Variables that lead students and academicians to leave universities e-learning platforms were identified and grouped under push factors. Variables that attract students and academicians joining social networks were also identified and grouped under pull factors. Then variables that may prevent students and academicians from joining the social networks were grouped under mooring factors. All in all seven variables were identified from the literature review, one for push factor (e-learning perception), five for pull factors (academic reasons, convenience, ease of use, social networking and social influence) and the last variable barriers, fall under mooring factor. The dependent variable was Teaching and Learning Benefit. The results of the analysis have shown that students and academicians find social networks media beneficial to teaching and learning. Eight factors were identified, one dependent factor and seven independent factors using factor analysis technique. Five of the independent factors were found to be significant. They are E-learning Perception, Academic Reasons, Convenience, Social Networking and Ease of Use. Four of these factors Academic Reasons, Convenience, Social Networking and Ease of Use were used during the implementation of the research prototype and links to popular 62

social networks media (Facebook, YouTube and Twitter) were added to the implemented sites toolbar to enable students and academicians follow related work on those platforms. The assessment given by the students and academician after testing the prototype further proved that social networks media integration in e-learning is highly recommended. Students have shown their enthusiasms in meeting academicians in social sites to discuss academic matters. They have shown their total acceptability and willingness to open up and learn from academicians in the virtual environment and there is need from the management to encourage academicians to engage in social networks media and open up to students too. In conclusion, it is recommended that if academicians want to engage students to build understandable relationship, then they must come to understand the methods of communication that students naturally find engaging in todays world.

6.2 Study Limitations

There are many approaches to handle the problem statements of the research as mentioned earlier. This research suggested and investigated on only one among them, which is social networks. And even in the social networks domain, the research was restricted to Facebook, Twitter and YouTube platforms as scope.

6.3 Future Work

In the future, the study can be extended to cover other social networks platforms such as social bookmarking, congregation and collaboration. This research was carried out in Malaysians universities; it will be great if similar research is carried out in other universities across the world to see if students and academicians relate academically on social networks and their views on the impact social networks make on e-learning.

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Future prototype should also accommodate more course modules to examine the impact and reactions from large number of students.

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Appendix A: Survey Questionnaire

Social Media and E-learning Survey Questionnaire Considering the acceptance of social networks (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc) in our society, we embark in investigating how Facebook, Twitter and YouTube can be blended into e-learning to enhance academic communications between academicians and students in tertiary institutions (universities/colleges). Kindly please ensure the success of this study by filling the surveys questionnaire by filling the information provided below. Your data will be treated with utmost confidentiality. Thank you for your cooperation. Part One: Background information 1. Gender: o Male o Female 2. Age range: o 18 - 20 o 21 - 24 o 25 - 30 o 31 - 39 o > 40 3. Category Type: o Undergraduate o Postgraduate o Academician

4. Faculty/Department: ..........................................

5. University/College of study/teaching: ...........................

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6. o o o o o o o o

I use the following social networks (Choose at least one) Facebook Twitter YouTube MySpace LinkedIn Google+ Academia.edu Others (Specify)

Please indicate the extent to which you think each statement pertain using the scale below: Strongly Disagree Disagree Neutral Agree 1 2 3 4 Part Two: Experiences with current e-learning platform 1 I am satisfied with the current e-learning facility in my university/college The e-learning facilities allow me to communicate with my peers and/or academicians My peers and/or academicians always assist me academically via e-learning platform The current e-learning platforms enhances my (academicians) style of teaching I am able to use the e-learning platform to fulfil all my learning/teaching needs Strongly agree 5 2 3 4 5

Part Three: Experience with social networks platform 1 I use social networks to stay in touch with my friends and families I use social networks to make new friends I use social networks to meet people of the same field of study I use social networks for educational purpose Friends and family influence the way I use social networks in learning My academicians influence the way I use social networks in learning 2 3 4 5

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1 Friends taught me how to access learning materials through social network sites My academician taught me how to access learning materials through social network sites Academicians in my university/college use social networks to enhance teaching methods I would prefer to use social networks compared to other modes (emails, phone calls) as a communication medium with peers and/or academicians as it is simple and easy to use I am attracted to variety of communication mediums in social networks (able to upload materials, posts, send messages etc.) Communications in social networks platforms is much easier Communications in social networks platforms is much faster Intellectuals attract my attention in social networks Social sites are good medium for students and academicians meetings and communications. Instant response to information request influences my stay in social sites I am always happy to add academicians/students to my Facebook/Twitter friends list Academicians respond quickly to my academic queries in Facebook I use Facebook to make appointments with my academicians/students I am careful of the content I post on my Facebook/Twitter update status due to the presence of my academicians. Groups and page participation in Facebook make access to learning materials easier I would like academicians to join Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to assists students. On searching for a specific video/audio clip, YouTube always suggests similar related video/audio clips. YouTube simplifies sharing of audio/video files online. I am benefitting a lot (academically) through social networks usage. I believe social networks can be used to improve teaching I believe social networks can be used to improve the interaction among peers and between students and academicians I believe social networks can be used to improve the collaboration among peers and between students and academicians

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Part Four: Factors that might prevent me from using social network sites 1 2 3 I do not know that I can use social networks for academic benefits. Lack of motivation from colleagues discourages me from joining social networks. I joined social sites before but have to quit due to its constant requirement of time and management. I am conservative as such I do not like socializing on internet. I enjoy working alone, social sites distract my attention I am concerned about privacy issues on social networks

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Appendix B: Prototype Testing Questionnaire

Kindly please ensure the success of this study by filling the information provided below. Your data will be treated with utmost confidentiality. Thank you for your cooperation. Part One: Background information 1. Gender: o Male o Female 2. Category Type: o Student o Academician

Please rate the extent of your satisfaction for each of the factors below: Strongly Disagree 1 Ease of Use Refers to the simplicity of the prototype in terms of use and operation Academic Reasons Refers to the ability of the prototype to provide access to teaching and learning materials such as videos, documents, etc Convenience Refers to the provision of alternatives source of getting teaching and learning materials. Social Networking Refers to the ability of the prototype in allowing students and academicians communicate via chat, messages, status updates and forum participation. Disagree 2 Neutral 3 Agree 4 Strongly agree 5 1 2 3 4 5

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Please write your comments on your experience with the prototype.

1. Ease of Use:

2. Academic Reasons:

3. Convenience:

4. Social Networking:

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