Research-supported strategies to engage your students.

Reynol Junco Associate Professor Department of Academic Development and Counseling Lock Haven University of PA http://www.reyjunco.com

Greg Heiberger Coordinator and Advisor for Pre-Health Professionals South Dakota State University

References

 Send email to Rey Junco for list of references

 Reference for this presentation:

Junco, R. & Heiberger, G. (2009, March). You can use Facebook for that? Research-supported strategies to engage your students. Presentation at the National American College Personnel Association Meeting, Washington, DC.

Presentation Outline

 Generations on campus   Introduction to technology used by

students  Using Facebook to increase student

engagement and retention   Astin   Tinto

 Research on Facebook and student engagement

Generations on Campus Generation! Silent

Generation!

(1925-1942)!

Boomers!

(1943-1960)!

Generation X!

(1961-1981)!

Net Generation!

(1982-Now)!

Peer Personality!

Loyal!

Collaborative!

Personal Sacrifice!

Patriotic!

Conformity!

Respect for authority!

Civic Pride!

Optimistic!

Competitive!

Individualistic!

Reject Authority!

Return to religious values!

Independent!

Skeptical!

Latchkey Kids!

Shun Traditional Values!

Nihilism!

Special!

Sheltered!

Confident!

Conventional!

Team-Oriented!

Achieving!

Pressured!

Defining Events!

WWI & II!

Great Depression!

New Deal!

Vietnam War!

Watergate!

Women’s Rights!

Reagan recession!

Civil Rights Movement!

Television !

Challenger Accident!

MTV!

Computers!

Video Games!

Persian Gulf War!

Columbine Shootings!

September 11 Attacks!

Oklahoma City Bombing !

Attended College!

1943-1960! 1961-1978! 1979-1999! 2000-Now!

Technologies used by students

Student Technology Use   Today’s College

Students Use

  More than people from other generations

  Internet   Facebook   Instant Messenger   Wikipedia   Blogs   P2P File Sharing

Use

  >175 Million Active Users  Users over 35 are the fastest growing

demographic   3 billion minutes spent per day   35 languages (60 in development)   850 million photos uploaded every

month   95% of users have at least one of the

52,000 applications

Nielsen March 2009 Report   67% of global online community visit blogs and

social networking sites   Global active reach is greater than email   Facebook is visited monthly by 3 in every 10 people   Audience is becoming more diverse

  Largest growth in 35-49 year olds in 2008   Increase of 156% from 2007 in use of cell phones

to access social networking in the US

Increase in global use of Facebook since 2007

Facebook Growth by age since 2007

Audience is becoming older since 2007

Facebook Penetration on College Campuses

Faecbook founded

Facebook open to everyone

69% had Facebook account (Junco & Mastrodicasa)

92% use Facebook daily (Heiberger)

94% use Facebook weekly (HERI)

99% use Facebook (Matney & Borland)

7th most visited site in US

86% had Facebook accounts (Mastrodicasa & Kepic)

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Changing Perceptions of Facebook

Astin’s (1984) theory of student engagement

  Involvement requires the investment of psychological and physical energy

 Students will invest varying amounts of energy in different areas

  Involvement occurs along a continuum  Student development is proportional to

quantity and quality of involvement  Educational effectiveness is related to

capacity to increase involvement

Tinto’s model of departure

Research on Facebook and Student Engagement  Few studies examining link  HERI (2007)  Heiberger (2007)  How is engagement related to

technology use?

HERI (2007) & Heiberger (2007)

HERI HEIBERGER

n 31,500 via YFCY 375

Participants 114 Colleges and Universities

1 Midsize Midwestern U.

Social Network All Social Networks Facebook only

94% use weekly 92% use daily

No less time studying

The Bad… Data from HERI (2007) show that:   94% of first year students spend at least some

time on SNW each week.   Majority of first year students (60%) spend

between 1-5 hours a week on SNW.   High users (> 6 hours/week) reported more

problems with time management and study skills.

The Good…

 Time spent on SNW was less than on academic activities and socializing in the real world.

Friends

Social networks Interact Daily w/ close friends

>6hrs per week 84% <1hr per week 69%

Facebook Feeling of connection to friends (VH/H)

>1hr per day 92.2% <1hr per day 73.4%

HERI, 2007

Heiberger, 2007

Student Organizations

Social networks Spend 6 hrs per week in student clubs and groups

>6hrs per week 15% <1hr per week 7%

Facebook Participation in 1+ student organization

>1hr per day 78.1% <1hr per day 63.3%

HERI, 2007

Heiberger, 2007

Connection and Satisfaction

Social networks Very Satisfied with social life

>6hrs per week 33% <1hr per week 20%

Facebook Connection to University (VH/H)

>1hr per day 63.4% <1hr per day 43.4%

HERI, 2007

Heiberger, 2007

Social Networking and Engagement

Bridging the Gap

 Hesitation by student affairs professionals to use emerging technologies

  Increased experience with Facebook  Meeting students where they are

Opportunities for Student Affairs Professionals  Shift to older population on Facebook  Familiarity with the technology

 Mainstreaming  Capitalizing on engaging aspects of the

technology  Using applications  Working with student attitudes

Student Attitudes

  Information posted on social networking sites is private

 You shouldn’t be looking at my social networking site unless, of course, I want you to

 What is a privacy statement?  The job search

CareerBuilder.com Survey (2008)   22% of Hiring Managers use Social

Networking websites to research candidates.

  33% reported they found information to disqualify potential employee:   41% posted information about them drinking or using drugs   40% posted inappropriate photographs or information   29% had poor communication skills   28% badmouthed their previous company or fellow employee   22% used discriminatory remarks   21% were linked to criminal behavior

Helping Students

 Explaining the concept of online privacy   Implications of information posted online   Judicial sanctions  Staying safe

Five Ways to use Facebook to increase engagement 1.  Help peer leaders and mentors develop

and maintain connection with program students.

2.  Help students connect to each other and to faculty and staff members.

3.  Help students connect to groups and activities on campus.

4.  Increase engagement of non-traditional students.

5.  Enhancing pre-enrollment orientation efforts.

Engaging uses of Facebook   Presidential election and Inauguration   FraternityLive   Careerbuilder.com Application   Courses Application   College News Application   Fantasy Stock Exchange Application   Causes Application   Groups – study/orgs/classes/majors   RedRover   Social networking

  Students and employers hooking up (Newhouse News, 2007)

  Maintaining Relationships

Maintaining appropriate boundaries  Five ideas to consider:

1.  Not friending students unless they request the connection

2.  Never pressuring students to friend you 3.  Use Facebook to help students learn about you 4.  Exercising appropriate discretion when using

Facebook for personal communications 5.  Keep in mind that your behavior on Facebook will

be used as a model by our students

Effects of faculty self-disclosure on Facebook Three themes discovered by Mazer,

Murphy, and Simonds (2007):  Concern about faculty professionalism  Students like to learn about a

professor’s personality  Students concerned that faculty would

“spy” on them

Ideas for future research

  Longitudinal study  Experimental design  RedRover as IV  Engagement, Retention as DV’s

Questions and Discussion