Social teaching: Student perspectives on the inclusion of social media in higher education

The traditional teaching methodologies employed within universities, comprising of lectures and seminars, have come to be scrutinised for their impersonal approach. Recently, social media and networking sites have become increasingly popular as learning and teaching resources in higher education, providing students with increased opportunities for educational engagement. Whilst research has examined the effects of including social media in class and whether it assists students in academic engagement, it remains to be seen whether social media is understood to affect student attitudes towards their learning experiences. Subsequently, this research endeavours to understand student perspectives on the inclusion of social media in higher education and seeks to establish whether the inclusion of social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, can impact on student motivation and goal orientation. Whilst research in this area is increasing, this paper provides valuable insight into student perspectives on the inclusion of social media in higher education, whether they believe motivation and goals to have been affected by it, and the broader reaching consequences of its inclusions with regard to departmental interaction.