SAUDI STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TOWARD USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO SUPPORT LEARNING

The Pew Research Center (2015) reported that 74% of the Internet users use social networking sites worldwide. Studies have provided evidence that social media is promising for increasing collaboration and cooperation in project –based learning. However, few empirical studies investigate the use of social media in educational settings, especially in the Middle East. This study investigates factors and barriers affecting the attitudes toward using social media in one of Saudi Arabia’s universities, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, with the intent of understanding when and how social media can best be used to support learning. The hypothesized model was developed through the social learning theories of Bandura and Vygotsky, the Technology Acceptance Model of Davis, and the Diffusion of Innovation model of Rogers. Five hundred ten students (214 male and 296 female) participated in an electronic survey, and its findings reveal the students have positive attitudes (M= 3.99, SD=.76) towards using social media to support learning. The most frequently used tool by students was WhatsApp (M= 4.60, SD=.88), with which students have the highest experience (M= 4.58, SD=.84). Students reported facing two major barriers when utilizing social media which are some of the social media contents are against the students’ religion (M= 4.12, SD= 1.1) and concerns about privacy and security issues related to the usage of social media (M= 3.72, SD=1.19). Only five predictors were significant determinants of attitudes of the students including: perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, subjective norms, experience with Skype, and age. There was a significant relationship between the overall attitudes of the students and their intentions, with r(508)= .67, p=.00. As social media tools continue to attract students’ attention, more research on developing effective instructional methods for using social media to support students’ learning, with consideration of cultural and religious aspects, is needed

Global Exposure and Global Perceptions: A Cross-Cultural Comparison of Students in China, Japan, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and the USA

This study compares the global perceptions and exposure of students who have come to age in the era of global communication, across ideologically and economically different nations: China, Japan, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and the USA. To examine the type and level of their global exposure and the impact of type and level of global exposure on perceptions of global communication, 21 global exposure items and 31 global communication impact items were used to comprise scales for a survey, which was administered to 1360 college students in six countries. The results show significant differences by country in all five types of Global Exposure: Intercultural Curiosity, International Internet, Global Engagement, International Travel, and International Immersion. The results also reveal significant relationships between level and type of Global Exposure and perceptions of threat, prosperity, and justice. Threat perceptions appear to be fueled by higher international internet use, lower overall intercultural curiosity, and less travel experience. With the exception of students from Saudi Arabia, respondents perceive that global communication promotes prosperity. Students from China and the USA are highly optimistic about the impact of global communication on issues of world justice

The potential impact of utilising social media platforms in Saudi higher education : academic practitioners perception

The use of social media has penetrated the field of education during the past decade, but it is still not widely accepted or used to support teaching and learning despite their potential usefulness. However, since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic, SM have gained momentum as face-to-face teaching and learning came to a halt due to the severity of this infectious virus and due to the ways Covid spreads between people. In Saudi higher education, the usefulness of SM in education has also a situation of mixed perceptions and experiences that needs scrutiny. This study was, therefore, conducted to investigate the perceptions of lecturers, academic leaders, and students on the use of social media technologies at Taibah University in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. The methodology of Qualitative Content Analysis was applied in the study through an inductive approach to analyse qualitative data collected on their perceptions of the potential impact of utilising social media at the selected institution. Data were collected from conducting individual interviews with 21 lecturers, seven academic leaders, and four focus-group sessions with 25 students of both genders, and thematically analysed by categorisation and coding. This led to identifying five overarching areas of insight: general social media use, benefits of social media in education, motivation, and encouragement to use social media for lecturers and students, and challenges in applying social media in education. Several key findings confirmed previous findings by other researchers, although some contradictory findings were also obtained; points of tension were found related to the factors of age, gender, time and control, and numerous new findings emerged from the data which provided insight into the investigated phenomenon for the specific case. Based on the outcomes of the study, several recommendations are made to support the promotion of social media platforms and technologies in Saudi higher education

Saudi College Students’ Attitudes towards Online Collaborative Learning

Online learning has the potential to expand collaborative learning and teaching. It has tremendous potential in the educational field, as it allows people to access computing services to share and edit data over the Internet. Yet few studies investigate the growing impacts of online learning on students’ learning skills, such as collaborative learning. This study investigates attitudes, factors, and challenges to adopt online applications by Saudi students at King Abdul-Aziz University to support collaborative learning. The hypothesized model was developed through the Technology Acceptance Model of Davis, and the Diffusion of Innovation model of Rogers. Three hundred and six students participated in an electronic survey (138 female and168 male). The findings reveal the students have positive attitudes toward collaborative learning with their classmates (M = 4.07, SD = .78), and have positive attitudes toward adopting online collaborative learning, (M = 3.96, SD = .77). Of the participants, 60.1% use online applications for their learning, and 69.9% preferred the learning style that mix between collaborative and individual learning style. There was a significant relationship between the overall attitudes of the students (M = 3.96, SD = .77), and perceived usefulness of online applications in collaborative learning (M = 4.09, SD = .68), with r (306) = .774, p = .00. Students reported facing three major barriers to adopt online collaborative learning, which are data concerns (M = 3.86, SD = 1.01), privacy issues (M = 3.64 and SD = 1.22), and security issues (M = 3.47 and SD = 1.19). Of three predictors: age, gender, and education major, none were significant predictors of student attitudes towards adopting online collaborative learning (F (3,302) = 1.32, p .05). Given that the online applications can be a very useful solution for education, as it may reduce the costs incurred for the purchase of computers, other equipment, and for employing IT people, it is urgent that universities and administrators start implementing this solution

Advancing Education: Using Mobile Electronics To Deliver Communications

Based on gender, age, education level, online shopping, economic state, and level of development, this thesis discusses the kinds of electronic communication devices which are used in Arabic countries. Also, the internet, cellphone usage, and how electronic communication technology effect individual\u27s lives in Arabic countries will be studied. As a developing Arabic country, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is seeking to use the best methods of digital education. Spending on education technology in the UAE is one of the highest in the world. The UAE is constantly looking to better the educational system. The economy in UAE has developed into a modern state. The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is another an Arab Kingdom in the Middle East. This research discusses the importance of the information and communication sectors in Jordan. These sectors, as well as telecommunications and technology, business banking, the internet and e-commerce solutions, online shopping, and communication centers are the fastest growing areas in Jordan. Finally, Saudi Arabia has the highest reserves of national oil in the world. Recently, Saudi Arabia has developed rapidly because of its oil exports, so quality of life for citizens has improved. The government has provided an inexpensive distribution of electrical power, which helps advance internet use. Also, the improvement of the living level, and the internet and cellular phones have entered into people’s lives which bring more convenience to communicate in Saudi Arabia, especially in education

Attitudes of female faculty toward the use of computer technologies and the barriers that limit their use of technologies in girls\u27 colleges in Saudi Arabia

The purpose of this study was to examine female faculty members’ use of computer technologies, their attitudes toward computers, the factors that best predict their attitudes toward computers, and the barriers that limit their use of computer technologies in girls’ colleges in Dammam and Jubail, Saudi Arabia. Also, this study examined how female faculty members’ attitudes and use of computer technologies differ according to their demographic characteristics. 206 female faculty members participated in this study, and only 197 usable questionnaires were analyzed and used in this study. Descriptive statistics, a one-way ANOVA, and multiple regression analysis were conducted to analyze the data. The findings of this study revealed that female faculty members had positive attitudes toward using computer technologies. Also, the results indicated that female faculty members had high levels of use of 3 common computer applications: e-mail, word processing, and the Internet. Furthermore, findings revealed that the barriers that significantly limit faculty members’ use of technology were lack of technical support, lack of effective training, lack of equipment and infrastructure, and lack of administrative support. The results revealed that the demographic variables that had an influence on female faculty members’ attitudes toward using computers were age, years of experience with computer technologies, subject taught, academic degree, access to a computer at the office, access to the Internet at the office, computer skill levels, and English language proficiency. The findings indicated that the demographic variables that had an impact on female faculty members’ use of computer technologies were age, teaching experience, years of experience with computer technologies, subject taught, access to the Internet at home, computer skill levels, and English language proficiency. The factors that best predict female faculty members’ attitudes toward computers were reduced course quality, lack of time, lack of collegial support, and lack of self confidence. This study presents several conclusions and recommendations to improve female faculty members’ use of computer technologies at girls’ colleges. Female faculty members need technical support services unit, more training, available equipments and infrastructure, more administrative support, and release time for learning about computer technologies to increase their use of computer technologies

Attitudes of female faculty toward the use of computer technologies and the barriers that limit their use of technologies in girls\u27 colleges in Saudi Arabia

The purpose of this study was to examine female faculty members’ use of computer technologies, their attitudes toward computers, the factors that best predict their attitudes toward computers, and the barriers that limit their use of computer technologies in girls’ colleges in Dammam and Jubail, Saudi Arabia. Also, this study examined how female faculty members’ attitudes and use of computer technologies differ according to their demographic characteristics. 206 female faculty members participated in this study, and only 197 usable questionnaires were analyzed and used in this study. Descriptive statistics, a one-way ANOVA, and multiple regression analysis were conducted to analyze the data. The findings of this study revealed that female faculty members had positive attitudes toward using computer technologies. Also, the results indicated that female faculty members had high levels of use of 3 common computer applications: e-mail, word processing, and the Internet. Furthermore, findings revealed that the barriers that significantly limit faculty members’ use of technology were lack of technical support, lack of effective training, lack of equipment and infrastructure, and lack of administrative support. The results revealed that the demographic variables that had an influence on female faculty members’ attitudes toward using computers were age, years of experience with computer technologies, subject taught, academic degree, access to a computer at the office, access to the Internet at the office, computer skill levels, and English language proficiency. The findings indicated that the demographic variables that had an impact on female faculty members’ use of computer technologies were age, teaching experience, years of experience with computer technologies, subject taught, access to the Internet at home, computer skill levels, and English language proficiency. The factors that best predict female faculty members’ attitudes toward computers were reduced course quality, lack of time, lack of collegial support, and lack of self confidence. This study presents several conclusions and recommendations to improve female faculty members’ use of computer technologies at girls’ colleges. Female faculty members need technical support services unit, more training, available equipments and infrastructure, more administrative support, and release time for learning about computer technologies to increase their use of computer technologies