The Use of Social Media and its Effect on University Students' Academic Skills in Iraqi Kurdistan Region
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26750/Vol(8).No(2).Paper7Keywords:
Effects, Social Media, Academic Skills, Iraq, Kurdistan Region.Abstract
In recent decades, the use of social media has encountered a rapid growth. This progress made social media a very popular medium of communication among college students. In fact, these online mediums can be a good method to share the knowledge among students and with their lectures. However, extreme use of social media can affect student’s academic performance and skills. Social media platforms have developed significantly in the variety and type of its platforms and the variety of services they have provided to the users. This social media development has had a great impact on human life around the world, particularly the learning process among the students.
The present study examines the effects of social networks on university students' academic skills in Iraqi Kurdistan Region. The sample involved 653 responses from the universities of Raparin and Sulaimani Polytechnic in Kurdistan Region - Iraq. The data of the study has been analyzed using content analysis methods.
According to the study’s results there is a statistically significant correlation between Use of social media and academic skills and there is a strong positive correlation between Use of social media and academic skills which is (0.809) and that the significance value is (0.000).Then, the value of R Square for this analysis, is (0.655), this means that 65.5% of the variance of academic skills must be explored in Use of social media, and the other variables (34.5%) are due to random error.
References
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Alizadeh, I. (2018). Evaluating the educational usability of telegram as an SNS in ESAP programs from medical students’ perspective. Education and Information Technologies, 23(6), 2569–2585. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-018-9731-5.
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Brislin, R. W. (1970). Back-translation for cross-cultural research. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 1, 185–216. https://doi.org/10.1177/135910457000100301
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Huffman, W. H., & Huffman, A. H. (2012). Beyond basic study skills: The use of technology for success in college. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(2), 583–590. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2011.11.004
Ivala, E., & Gachago, D. (2012). Social media for enhancing student engagement: The use of Facebook and blogs at a university of technology. South African Journal of Higher Education, 26(1), 152–167
Junco, R. (2012). Too much face and not enough books: The relationship between multiple indices of Facebook use and academic performance. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(1), 187–198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2011.08.026.
Junco, R., Heiberger, G., & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of twitter on college student engagement and grades. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(2), 119–132. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.2010.00387.x.
Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2009.09.003.
Kietzmann, J. H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I. P., & Silvestre, B. S. (2011). Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of social media. Business horizons, 54(3), 241-251.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.005.
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https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/1637
Kuh, G. D. (2009). What student affairs professionals need to know about student engagement? Journal of College Student Development, 50(6), 683–706. https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.0.0099
Kuh, G. D., Cruce, T. M., Shoup, R., Kinzie, J., & Gonyea, R. M. (2008). Unmasking the effects of student engagement on first-year college grades and persistence. The Journal of Higher Education, 79(5), 540– 563. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221546.2008.11772116.
Leonardi, P. M., Huysman, M., & Steinfield, C. (2013). Enterprise social media: Definition, history, and prospects for the study of social technologies in organizations. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 19(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcc4.12029.
Mahdiuon, R., Salimi, G. and Raeisy, L., 2019. Effect of social media on academic engagement and performance: Perspective of graduate students. Education and Information Technologies, pp.1-20.
Narayanasamy, F., & Mohamed, J. (2013). Adaptation of mobile learning in higher educational institutions of Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Computer Applications, 69(6), 34–38 Retrieved from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.403.7387&rep=rep1&type=pdf
Oueder, M. and Abousaber, I., 2018. A Study on the Impact of Social Media Usage on Student Academic Performance: University of Tabuk an Example. American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS), 40(1), pp.77-88.
Owusu-Acheaw, M. and Larson, A.G., 2015. Use of social media and its impact on academic performance of tertiary institution students: A study of students of Koforidua Polytechnic, Ghana. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(6), pp.94-101.
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Pascarella, E. T., & Terenzini, P. T. (2005). How college affects students (Vol. 2). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
Pasek, J., & Hargittai, E. (2009). Facebook and academic performance: Reconciling a media sensation with data. First Monday, 14(5). https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v14i5.2498
Peters, A. M., Crane, D., & Costello, J. (2019). A comparison of students’ twitter use in a postsecondary course delivered on campus and online. Education and Information Technologies, 24(4), 2567-2584.
Sánchez, R. A., Cortijo, V., & Javed, U. (2014). Students' perceptions of Facebook for academic purposes. Computers & Education, 70, 138–149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2013.08.012.
Saud, M., Ida, R., Abbas, A., Ashfaq, A. and Ahmad, A.R., 2020. The social media and digitalization of political participation in youths: An Indonesian perspective. Society, 8(1), pp.83-93.
Shahbaz, M., & Khan, R. M. I. (2017). Use of Mobile immersion in foreign language teaching to enhance target language vocabulary. MIER Journal of Educational Studies, Trends and Practices, 7(1), 66–82
Steineld, C., Ellison, N. B., & Lampe, C. (2008). Online social network use, self-esteem, and social capital: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 29, 434–445.
Subrahmanyam, K., & Patricia, G. (2008). Online Communication and Adolescent Relationships. The Future of Children, 18(1), 119-46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/foc.0.0006
Tang, T. L. P., & Austin, M. J. (2009). Students’ perceptions of teaching technologies, application of technologies, and academic performance. Computers & Education, 53(4), 1241–1255. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.compedu.2009.06.007
Wiley, C., & Sisson, M. (2006). Ethics, Accuracy and Assumption: the use of Facebook by
students and employers. Paper presented at the Southwestern Ohio Council for higher
education Special Topics Forums, Dayton, OH. Retrieved from
https://www.books.google.com.gh.
Wise, L. Z., Skues, J., & Williams, B. (2011). Facebook in higher education promotes social but not academic engagement. Changing demands, changing directions. Proceedings ascilite Hobart, 1332-1342
Wright, D. L., Aquilino, W. S., & Supple, A. J. (1998). A comparison of computer-assisted and paper-andpencil self-administered questionnaires in a survey on smoking, alcohol, and drug use. Public Opinion Quarterly, 62, 331–353
Yu, A. Y., Tian, S. W., Vogel, D., & Kwok, R. C. W. (2010). Can learning be virtually boosted? An investigation of online social networking impacts. Computers & Education, 55(4), 1494–1503. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2010.06.015.
Yusoff, S., Yusoff, R., & Md Noh, N. H. (2017). Blended learning approach for less proficient students. SAGE Open, 7(3), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244017723051
Ahmad, A.R. and Hamasaeed, N.H.H.H., 2015. The Role of Social Media in the ‘Syrian Uprising’. Journal of Economic Development, Environment and People, 4(2), pp.39-48.
Adams, B., Raes, A., Montrieux, H., & Schellens, T. (2018). “Pedagogical tweeting” in higher education: Boon or bane? International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 15(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-018-0102-5
Ahn, J. (2010). The Influence Of Social Networking Sites on High School Students’ Social and Academic Development. Diss. Faculty of the USC Graduate School University of Southern California.
Ainin, S., Parveen, F., Moghavvemi, S., Jaafar, N. I., & Mohd Shuib, N. L. (2015a). Factors influencing the use of social media by SMEs and its performance outcomes. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 115(3), 570–588. https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-07-2014-0205.
Ainin, Sulaiman; Naqshbandi, M. Muzamil; Moghavvemi, Sedigheh and Ismawati Jaafar, Noor (2015b). Facebook usage, socialization and academic performance. Computers & Education 83, 64-73. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.compedu.2014.12.018.
Alizadeh, I. (2018). Evaluating the educational usability of telegram as an SNS in ESAP programs from medical students’ perspective. Education and Information Technologies, 23(6), 2569–2585. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-018-9731-5.
Al-Khalifa, H. S., & Garcia, R. A. (2013). "The state of social media in Saudi Arabia higher education." International Journal of Technology and Educational Marketing (IJTEM), 3, 65-76.
Al-Rahmi, W., Othman, M. S., & Musa, M. A. (2014). The improvement of students’ academic performance by using social media through collaborative learning in Malaysian higher education. Asian Social Science, 10(8), 210–221. https://doi.org/10.5539/ass.v10n8p210
Alwagait, E., Shahzad, B., & Alim, S. (2015). Impact of social media usage on students’ academic performance in
Saudi Arabia. Computers in Human Behavior, 51, 1092–1097. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2014.09.028.
Arafat, S.M., Ahmad, A.R., Murad, H.R. and Kakashekh, H.M., 2021. Perceived Impact of Social Media on Panic Buying: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey in Iraqi Kurdistan. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, p.447.
Beeland Jr, W. D. (2002). Student engagement, visual learning and technology: can interactive whiteboards help?.
Brislin, R. W. (1970). Back-translation for cross-cultural research. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 1, 185–216. https://doi.org/10.1177/135910457000100301
Camilia, N. C., Ibrahim, S. D., & Dalthu, B. L. (2013). "The effect of social networking sites usage on the studies of Nigerian students." The international Journal of Engineering And Science, 2, 39—46.
Chugh, R., & Ruhi, U. (2018). Social media in higher education: A literature review of Facebook. Education and Information Technologies, 23(2), 605-616. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-017-9621-2.
Conner, T. (2011). Academic engagement ratings and instructional preferences: Comparing behavioral, cognitive, and emotional engagement among three school-age student cohort. Review of Higher Education & Self-Learning, 4(13).
Courtner, A. S. (2014). Impact of student engagement on academic performance and quality of relationships of traditional and nontraditional students. International Journal of Education, 6(2), 24–45
Creswell JW , Plano Clark VL (2018) Designing and conducting mixed methods research. 3rd edn. Sage Publications.
Dabbagh, N., & Reo, R. (2011). Back to the future: Tracing the roots and learning. Web 2.0-Based e-learning: Applying social informatics for tertiary Teaching: Applying social informatics for tertiary teaching, 1, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-60566-294-7.ch001.
Dahlstrom, E. (2012). ECAR study of undergraduate students and information technology. Louisville: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research Available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar
Dahlstrom, E., de Boor, T., Grunwald, P., & Vockley, M. (2011). ECAR national study of undergraduate students and information technology (Research study, Vol. 6). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research.
El-Badawy, T.A. and Hashem, Y., 2015. The impact of social media on the academic development of school students. International Journal of Business Administration, 6(1), p.46.
Huffman, W. H., & Huffman, A. H. (2012). Beyond basic study skills: The use of technology for success in college. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(2), 583–590. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2011.11.004
Ivala, E., & Gachago, D. (2012). Social media for enhancing student engagement: The use of Facebook and blogs at a university of technology. South African Journal of Higher Education, 26(1), 152–167
Junco, R. (2012). Too much face and not enough books: The relationship between multiple indices of Facebook use and academic performance. Computers in Human Behavior, 28(1), 187–198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2011.08.026.
Junco, R., Heiberger, G., & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of twitter on college student engagement and grades. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(2), 119–132. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.2010.00387.x.
Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, 53(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2009.09.003.
Kietzmann, J. H., Hermkens, K., McCarthy, I. P., & Silvestre, B. S. (2011). Social media? Get serious! Understanding the functional building blocks of social media. Business horizons, 54(3), 241-251.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bushor.2011.01.005.
Kolan, Bernard John and Dzandza, Patience Emefa, (2018). "Effect of Social Media on Academic Performance of Students in Ghanaian Universities: A Case Study of University of Ghana, Legon." Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal). 1637.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/libphilprac/1637
Kuh, G. D. (2009). What student affairs professionals need to know about student engagement? Journal of College Student Development, 50(6), 683–706. https://doi.org/10.1353/csd.0.0099
Kuh, G. D., Cruce, T. M., Shoup, R., Kinzie, J., & Gonyea, R. M. (2008). Unmasking the effects of student engagement on first-year college grades and persistence. The Journal of Higher Education, 79(5), 540– 563. https://doi.org/10.1080/00221546.2008.11772116.
Leonardi, P. M., Huysman, M., & Steinfield, C. (2013). Enterprise social media: Definition, history, and prospects for the study of social technologies in organizations. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 19(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcc4.12029.
Mahdiuon, R., Salimi, G. and Raeisy, L., 2019. Effect of social media on academic engagement and performance: Perspective of graduate students. Education and Information Technologies, pp.1-20.
Narayanasamy, F., & Mohamed, J. (2013). Adaptation of mobile learning in higher educational institutions of Saudi Arabia. International Journal of Computer Applications, 69(6), 34–38 Retrieved from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.403.7387&rep=rep1&type=pdf
Oueder, M. and Abousaber, I., 2018. A Study on the Impact of Social Media Usage on Student Academic Performance: University of Tabuk an Example. American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS), 40(1), pp.77-88.
Owusu-Acheaw, M. and Larson, A.G., 2015. Use of social media and its impact on academic performance of tertiary institution students: A study of students of Koforidua Polytechnic, Ghana. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(6), pp.94-101.
Pascarella, E. T., & Terenzini, P. T. (2005). How college affects students (Vol. 2). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Pascarella, E. T., & Terenzini, P. T. (2005). How college affects students (Vol. 2). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass
Pasek, J., & Hargittai, E. (2009). Facebook and academic performance: Reconciling a media sensation with data. First Monday, 14(5). https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v14i5.2498
Peters, A. M., Crane, D., & Costello, J. (2019). A comparison of students’ twitter use in a postsecondary course delivered on campus and online. Education and Information Technologies, 24(4), 2567-2584.
Sánchez, R. A., Cortijo, V., & Javed, U. (2014). Students' perceptions of Facebook for academic purposes. Computers & Education, 70, 138–149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2013.08.012.
Saud, M., Ida, R., Abbas, A., Ashfaq, A. and Ahmad, A.R., 2020. The social media and digitalization of political participation in youths: An Indonesian perspective. Society, 8(1), pp.83-93.
Shahbaz, M., & Khan, R. M. I. (2017). Use of Mobile immersion in foreign language teaching to enhance target language vocabulary. MIER Journal of Educational Studies, Trends and Practices, 7(1), 66–82
Steineld, C., Ellison, N. B., & Lampe, C. (2008). Online social network use, self-esteem, and social capital: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 29, 434–445.
Subrahmanyam, K., & Patricia, G. (2008). Online Communication and Adolescent Relationships. The Future of Children, 18(1), 119-46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1353/foc.0.0006
Tang, T. L. P., & Austin, M. J. (2009). Students’ perceptions of teaching technologies, application of technologies, and academic performance. Computers & Education, 53(4), 1241–1255. https://doi. org/10.1016/j.compedu.2009.06.007
Wiley, C., & Sisson, M. (2006). Ethics, Accuracy and Assumption: the use of Facebook by
students and employers. Paper presented at the Southwestern Ohio Council for higher
education Special Topics Forums, Dayton, OH. Retrieved from
https://www.books.google.com.gh.
Wise, L. Z., Skues, J., & Williams, B. (2011). Facebook in higher education promotes social but not academic engagement. Changing demands, changing directions. Proceedings ascilite Hobart, 1332-1342
Wright, D. L., Aquilino, W. S., & Supple, A. J. (1998). A comparison of computer-assisted and paper-andpencil self-administered questionnaires in a survey on smoking, alcohol, and drug use. Public Opinion Quarterly, 62, 331–353
Yu, A. Y., Tian, S. W., Vogel, D., & Kwok, R. C. W. (2010). Can learning be virtually boosted? An investigation of online social networking impacts. Computers & Education, 55(4), 1494–1503. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2010.06.015.
Yusoff, S., Yusoff, R., & Md Noh, N. H. (2017). Blended learning approach for less proficient students. SAGE Open, 7(3), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244017723051
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Published
2021-06-08
How to Cite
Ahmad, A. R., & Hameed, H. O. (2021). The Use of Social Media and its Effect on University Students’ Academic Skills in Iraqi Kurdistan Region. Journal of University of Raparin, 8(2), 149–167. https://doi.org/10.26750/Vol(8).No(2).Paper7
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Humanities & Social Sciences
