Twittering Away - Is twitter an appropriate adjunctive tool to enhance learning and engagement in Higher Education?

Abstract

Twitter is a social media platform that has been used in teaching and learning. The aim was to explore students’ views of using Twitter as an adjunctive learning tool to provide access to contemporary information, to enhance learning and to generate wider discussion via Twitter backchannel communication. A 17-item Qualtrics questionnaire consisting of open and closed questions was devised specifically for the study. Qualitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics. Qualitative data via thematic analysis. Participants were a convenience sample of 44 Level 4 Social Welfare Law students who were invited to engage online with the academic and professional community via Twitter. Eleven (25%) students responded to the questionnaire. Four key themes emerged from the qualitative data: Enhancing knowledge; Building academic and professional networks; Time for twitter and the Need for Twitter training. Despite the limitations, the results suggest that if supported by institutional digital scaffolding and training, twitter may be a useful adjunct to traditional physical learning spaces. Further research is r however required to explore the future pedagogic potential of Twitter.

Keywords: Twitter, Teaching, Student Engagement.