Utilization of Social Media Platforms for Educational Purposes among the Faculty of Higher Education with Special Reference to Tamil Nadu

Abstract

Social media tools are observed to play a vital role in the renovation of the conventional teaching and learning practices across the globe. Though primarily developed for online social communication, social media platforms tend to possess suitable tools that can be used for instructional purposes in order to initiate active learning among students. Additionally, the social publishing features that support User Generated Content (UGC) act as powerful drivers in converting social media sites into informal, networked and constructive virtual learning environments. The present study aims to analyse the use of social media platforms for educational purposes in developing nations such as India. The study intends to examine the penetration and reception of social media platforms in higher educational institutions in urban as well as the technologically deprived rural areas. An extensive survey was conducted among the faculty members in the higher educational institutions in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The research reveals the present diffusion level of social software in the academic sector of Tamil Nadu, a state containing a varied technological landscape due to its internal digital divide and many other infrastructural discrepancies. Additionally, factors that induce and the barriers that affect the pedagogical employment of social media tools by the higher education faculty members have been identified.