IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS (TARABA STATE UNIVERSITY)
ABSTRACT
In this study an attempt was made to examine whether there is social media impact on students’ academic performance in higher institutions. A close ended questionnaire was administered to the students of Taraba State University to elicit responses about impact of social media on their performance. The data obtain was analyzed using table some findings was formulated to direct the study were accepted. Thus, there is significant impact of social media on students’ academic performance in higher institution. It is recommended that social media should be discouraged so as to enhance better performance of the students.
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 Background to the Study
Recently, there has been considerable discussion regarding the frequent use of social media tools (e.g. Face book, Myspace, Twitter, Xanga, Friendsker) by high school and college students, and the possible effect of those tools on student’s academic performance (Comnolly, 2011: Hargitai and Hsieh, 2010). At the core of the project work is whether the growing use of social media by higher institution student actually improves or worsen a student’s academic performance. With the expected continued growth in the usage of these tools by students as early as secondary school level (Anderson and Rainie 2012), this issue has wide spread implication particularly for areas of education. Academic performance is not a concept that is new many social scientist and researchers alike have defined academic performance in various ways. Bruce Tuckman (1975) asserts that performance is used to label the observation manifestation of knowledge, skill concept and understanding and idea. So performance is the application of a learning product that at the end of the process mastery. It is the product acquisition of particular grades on examination; it shows or indicates the students’ ability, mastery of content, skill in applying learned knowledge to a particular situation. A student is generally judged on examination performance (Banquil et al., 2000). A student’s academic performance basically show how he or she has benefited form being explored to an academic programme, often this shows after an evaluation, done in terms of an examination either at the end of semester, session or even after the completion of the programme. Most institution use C.P.G.A, as a measure of academic performance and it vary from institution to institution. The used of social media by students, especially face book, the most common social media to communicate and explore different interesting information. Through this everyone can say that getting addicted with social media will greatly affect the student’s academic performance. The young people especially the student nowadays are prone with the use of different technologies. Sometimes they are getting tired in doing their homework and in studying their lessons and because of this, they rather surf on internet and open them to have some fun. Nonis and Hudson (2006) stated that student already “spend too little time studying” due to their busy lives. Here in the selected institution in Taraba State Student use to focus with their studies for their chosen course is not that easy. If a students get addicted to face book and spend too much time for it definitely he will find it hard to deal with his academic performance. In fact there were many internet shops found outside the selected institution environment which are found to be loaded by student from different department.
The social media addiction by the student is a great challenge that need to face in order for them to handle and maintain their good performance in school. The social media addiction among student is a very popular issue that still needs to be observed and solve by the student on their own. They must learn to considered their behaviour in performing any actions. Indeed, there is nothing wrong in using social media what’s matter most was the discipline within their own selves. Many students rely on the accessibility of information on social media specifically and that means a reduced on learning and retaining information. Students who attempt to multi-task, checking social media sites while studying may have their academic performances affected either positively or negatively. According to their grades we can determine the academic performance of students. It says that if the students earns high grades it means that he/she studies a lot, while low grades indicates less studying. Academic performance focuses and concentrate on your having the right mind – set for raising your academic performance so you can learn more effectively. It is how students deal with their studies and how they cope with or accomplish different tasks give to them by their lecturers. At the core of this project work is whether the growing use of social media in the selected higher institution in Taraba State if it actually improves or worsens a student’s academic performance. With the expected continued growth in the usage of those tools (e.g. face-book, 2go, wht’s up) by students as raises a concern on the effectiveness of their educational career or performance. Just as the term social media has obtained a fairly board meaning, the term generally refers to internet – based communication that allow individuals and groups to interact. Social media specifically refer to those internet based services that: promote online social interaction between two or more person within a bounded system for the purpose of friendship, meeting other persons and/or exchanging information; contains a functionality that let users create public or semi – public personal profile pages that contain information of their own choosing; serves as a mechanism to communicate with other users; and contains mechanisms that allow users to search for other users according to some specific criteria (Zwarti Lindsay, Henderson 2011).
Social media such as face book, my space, linked and twitter are good example of sites that meet the previously stated criteria. Social media use overall grown significantly since 2005 with some estimate of nearly 78% of student using social media. In terms of daily usage more recent estimate shows face-book as having over 750million. Use worldwide, YouTube having over 3billion views each day; Twitter having over 177million tweets per day, why good percentage of this population are student (Chen and Bryer, 2012). As related to this research exploratory study, the previous statistics indicate that social media tend to have the highest usage rate among traditionally – aged higher institution student (that is those under 30years). The academic performance of these students, social media and academic performance, the issue of where social media helps or hurts or a student academic performance is often couched in larger issues identified with the overall use of social media (e.g. it psychological effect, privacy & safety concerns, individual self-discipline and self regulation concerns, human adaptability concerns Roseri and Conolly (2011).
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The problem to be addressed in this study is three fold. First, social networks have united many students of Taraba state university, into an online platform where they spends countless hour browsing profiles, meeting new peoples as exploring relationship. Social network popularity such as Facebook among the youth raises questions about the websites influence on Taraba state university’s life (Barratt, 2005). Has this exposure influence the way they learn or expect to be taught. This exposure to social networking software offers an opportunity for educators to understand the component of social networking that students find so attractive. These elements once identify later be incorporated into teaching and learning process either by web based, face to face blend of the two. Similarly it gives an opportunity for educators to establish whether such technologies influence the way they learn. Secondly, knowledge cam be created and exchanged to a large extent through informal social interaction such as social network browsing that allows the transfer and sharing of information, ideas and non-verbal communication. The critical question to investigated concerns the kind of educational content created and shared among our university students on social networking software. Which subject areas or academic contents if any do university students share communicate or collaborate while browsing Facebook. Thirdly, the study sought to predict the types of students who will use Facebook to support their academic work rather than browsing as a daily activity, social, entertainment or pastime.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceived influence of social network on academic performance among students in Taraba state University. The study seeks to investigate:
Whether social networks influence students on their academic performance in Taraba State University.
Social networks that is frequently used by undergraduate students in Taraba State University.
Whether students use social networks facilities on academic purpose in Taraba State University.
1.4 Research Questions
The following question will be answered in the study:
To what extent do social networks influence Economics Students on academic performance in the Taraba state university?
Which social networks the economics students frequently use for academic purpose in Taraba state university?
Do Economics Students use social networks facilities for academic purpose in Taraba State University?
1.5 Significance of the Study
The research work will be significant to the government, lecturers, university information communication technology (ICT) department, software developers, university Deans of faculty, and students.It is therefore very important that government department and policy developer in charge of e-learning will identify factors that make an e-learning program attractive to economics students and those that discourage Economics students from using those programmed.This information is useful to university lecturers, in identifying what features attract Economics students to this software and whether lecturers can borrow some of these elements and implement them in their teaching and learning process whether web based, face to face or a blend of the two. It is an important to note what level, these social networking software promote the available e-learning software.Software developers more often than not develop programmed that make their work easier rather than concentrating on the needs of the users. This study will helps to identify the various elements that learners find to be so attractive to them while browsing Facebook. Therefore if these developers adopt these features, then online learning will be very attractive to the learners. Mobile serves providers as well as do hire software developers to develop different software targeting various markets. Therefore providers who wish to target local students via their products will also get ideas on what to include or omit on content materials targeting tertiary institution students especially economics students.University information and communication technology (ICT) department have been given the task of providing reliable internet services to the students. One of the social networking software demanded by the economics students is Facebook.
The level at which this software contributes to the core business of the university; teaching and learning is an unknown. The study provides information to university ICT department that will helps identify Facebook contribution to the tertiary institution mandate of teaching, learning, and research.This information will also be vital to university deans especially the guidance and counselling department in helping to identify measures of stopping misuse of this software and promote learning.Further, more the research work will be significant to all economics students in Taraba state university in identifying and use of social network that will enhance academic performance and also the researcher will serve as a education data bank for economics students carryout the research of social network in tertiary institutions.
1.6 Scope of the Study
The scope focused on perceived influence of social network on academic performance among Economics student in Taraba State University. The content will focus on:
Influence of social network on economic students’ academic performance in Taraba State University.
The various social network frequently used by economics students in Taraba state university.
The economics students use social network facilities for academic performance in Taraba state university.
1.7 Definition of Terms
Perceived: In this study it is the thought people have on social network.
Influence: For this study it is the impact of social network has on students’ academic performance.
Social network: Applications used by economics students in Taraba state university like: Facebook, 2go, LinkedIn, twitter, and Whatsapps.
Social networking: The use of internet to make information about yourself available to other people especially people you share an interest with to send messages to them.
Social Networking Sites: A website where people put information about them and can send to others.
Economics students: In this study this are group of economics students that will be used for the study.
Academic performance: In this study it refers to the economics students overall educational outcome or performance.
IMPACT OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON THE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS (TARABA STATE UNIVERSITY)