Investigating the knowledge sharing activities among postgraduates students using social media tools

Knowledge sharing is a process where individuals mutually exchange their knowledge and jointly create new knowledge. Recently, it is found that besides face-to-face interactions, students also share their knowledge through social media tools. Social media is considered as the key value in the campus to facilitate knowledge sharing and the main tasks in order to support the daily communication. Many dimensions of knowledge sharing in social media environments have not yet been examined. Also many questions are still unanswered and need to be explored across different social media tools. Thus, this research aims to explore the knowledge sharing activities among local and international postgraduate students at Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) as well as find the benefits and barriers through using social media tools during sharing knowledge. Data were collected through qualitative approach. A total of 12 postgraduate students were interviewed and received answers from them through semistructure interview. Interpretive analysis method was used to find the themes by using Nvivo software. The results for this study included four sections based on Nonaka and Takeuchi theory, in the socialization section the findings show the activities for students include exchange experience and perspective as well as confirmed the important of social media in overcome time, geographical distance and cost that is a barriers to share knowledge as well as provide more confident to share ideas for students. As well as, some barriers that still issues to sharing knowledge such as lack of math-symbol and culture. In externalization section, the findings show the design the diagram and document the files as activities as well as show the important of using social media in documentation to save the files and diagram online as well as enhance English language and protect from viruses. While the barriers include uploading limitation. In combination section the findings show the modification and reflection as activities among group member and show the benefit of social media during combine the work for assignment and project is easy to use and saving paper cost. While, the barriers is downloading limitation. In internalization section the findings show the review and reflection as activities among student. The benefits include create new idea and acquiring in depth understanding while lack of personal interaction and late in answering as barriers to share knowledge. This study contributed by using the Nonaka and Takeuchi model with higher educational institutions. In the same context, there is few empirical studies focused on the IT with share knowledge, therefore this research sought to add information into the literature by shed light the barriers and the benefits through utilize the new technologies for share know among the team wor

Understanding knowledge sharing activities through the use of social media tools in higher educational institutions

Knowledge sharing is a process where individuals mutually exchange their knowledge and jointly create new knowledge. Several of the previous studies found that besides face-to-face interactions, students also share their knowledge through social media tools. Social media tools are currently considered as the key value in the campus to facilitate knowledge sharing and the main tasks in order to support the daily communication. Although the importance of using these tools among the students in educational institutions, many dimensions of knowledge sharing in social media environments have not yet been examined. Furthermore, many questions are still unanswered and need to be explored across different social media tools. Additionally, literature also stressed the need to focus more on use the social media with education in developing countries. For this purpose, this empirical study sought to explore the knowledge sharing activities among local and international postgraduate students at one of public universities in Malaysia, as well as find the benefits and barriers through using social media tools during sharing knowledge. With regard to data collection, the best manner to understand the perspective of the students about some of the new phenomena through harness qualitative approach. Data were collected through qualitative approach. More specifically, a total of 12 postgraduate students were interviewed and received answers from them through semi-structure interviews. Interpretive analysis method was used to find the themes via using NVivo qualitative data analysis software. The results for this study included four sections based on Nonaka and Takeuchi theory. The findings indicated that, the activities for students include exchange experience and perspective as well as confirmed the importance of social media in overcome time, geographical distance and cost that is a barriers to share knowledge as well as provide more confident to share ideas for students.This study contributed by using the Nonaka and Takeuchi model with higher educational institutions. In the same context, there are few empirical studies focused on the Information technology with knowledge sharing, therefore this research sought to add valuable information into the literature by shedding light the barriers and the benefits through utilize the new technologies to share know among the team work

Implications of the Sociotechnical Factors to Knowledge Creation and Sharing in the Context of Enterprise Mobility

Knowledge is an asset that supports organization\u27s skills, differentiating working groups, business units, and individuals. In addition, knowledge is considered the main agent for development and innovation. However, to benefit from this asset, organizations and their workers need to be able to identify and exploit, in time, the knowledge required for their strategies and operations. Considering this scenario and observing the estimated growth of 4% per year of mobile workers in Latin America, the present study aims to analyze how socio-technical factors influence the creation and sharing of knowledge in the context of Enterprise Mobility, a context where the work is carried out geographically distant from other actors and also from physical work spaces. Among the results stand out the implications and the challenges of these factors to knowledge creation and knowledge sharing. These results could be better exploited in future researches and potentiate a better orientation to organizations that are in Enterprise Mobility context. El conocimiento es un activo que apoya las habilidades de la organización, diferenciando grupos de trabajo, unidades de negocio e individuos. Además, el conocimiento se considera el principal agente de desarrollo e innovación. Sin embargo, para beneficiarse de este activo, las organizaciones y sus trabajadores deben ser capaces de identificar y explotar, a tiempo, los conocimientos necesarios para sus estrategias y operaciones. Considerando este escenario y observando el crecimiento estimado del 4% anual de los trabajadores móviles en América Latina, el presente estudio tiene como objetivo analizar cómo los factores socio-técnicos influyen en la creación e intercambio de conocimiento en el contexto de la Movilidad Empresarial, un contexto donde el trabajo se lleva a cabo geográficamente alejado de otros actores y también de los espacios físicos de trabajo. Entre los resultados se destacan las implicaciones y los desafíos de estos factores para la creación y el intercambio de conocimientos. Estos resultados podrían aprovecharse mejor en futuras investigaciones y potenciar una mejor orientación a las organizaciones que se encuentran en el contexto de la Movilidad Empresarial. O conhecimento que as organizações acumulam ao longo do tempo constitui um recurso que suporta as competências, diferenciando indivíduos, grupos de trabalho, unidades organizacionais e de negócio. O conhecimento também é considerado o principal agente para o desenvolvimento e inovação. Contudo, para que as empresas possam fazer um melhor uso deste conhecimento é necessário que as mesmas possuam capacidade de identificar, em tempo, o escopo e a localização dos conhecimentos requeridos para a formulação e a operacionalização de suas estratégias. Considerando este cenário e observando a estimativa de crescimento de 4% ao ano de trabalhadores móveis na América Latina, o presente estudo tem como objetivo analisar de que forma os fatores sociotécnicos influem na criação e compartilhamento do conhecimento em um contexto de Mobilidade Empresarial, contexto onde o trabalho é realizado geograficamente distante de outros atores e também de espaços físicos de trabalho. Entre os resultados destacam-se as implicações destes fatores e os desafios para a criação e o compartilhamento do conhecimento neste contexto. Estes resultados podem ser melhor explorados em pesquisas futuras e potencializam uma melhor orientação para as organizações que se encontram neste contexto de mobilidade

Instructional scaffolding in online social collaborative learning environment for nurturing engineering students' knowledge construction level

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of Instructional Scaffolding (IS) on an online Social Collaborative Learning (SCL) environment upon engineering students' knowledge construction (KC) level. In addition., this study also investigate on how the IS cognitively steers engineering students towards KC and helps them reach a higher level of KC. This study then proposed a KC model in an online SCL environment integrated with IS that could nurture engineering students' knowledge construction level. A questionnaire, achievement test, posting scripts from Facebook discussions, and structured interviews were used for data collection. The methodology comprised two designs: a quasi-experimental for the quantitative approach, and a case study for the qualitative approach. The quasi-experimental involved the pre and post-test to be taken by 74 participants from one polytechnic in northern Malaysia to identify the improvement in their knowledge construction level. Meantime, the case study involved a process in providing the detail and depth of exploration in a real situation by obtaining the perceptions and perspectives of 10 engineering students. Content analysis and thematic analysis were used to identify the relationships between codes, themes, and between different levels of themes. A t-test indicated a significant increase in the mean score of the post-test in both of the learning environments, that is, the conventional collaborative learning (CCL) and the SCL environment supported by instructional scaffolding. Nevertheless, the engineering students in the SCL environment showed a significantly higher mean score if compared with those in the CCL environment (pre-test score; 3.05 vs post test score; 13.98). Simultaneously, comparing the combination of results in the percentage of knowledge construction level reveals that engineering students in the control group and in the experimental group demonstrated an increase for each level of knowledge construction whether they were in the CCL or in the SCL environment They illustrated different percentages for scores of argumentative knowledge construction (such as CCL=84.21 , SCL=86.11) and metacognitive knowledge construction (CCL=I3.16, SCL=64.00) between control and experimental group. Through content analysis, eight answer themes that affect engineering students' knowledge construction were identified. Nine answer themes also were identified regarding on how SCL characteristics supported by IS enabled engineering students to reach a higher level of knowledge construction. Based on all these findings, the researcher then produced a holistic knowledge construction model. It comprised the 8 essential elements of impact factors, such as students' cognitive pre-engagement, motivation, engagement and enhancement, explanation and guide, encouragement and praise, determination., comfort and engagement, as well as ease ofthe learning process in the instructional scaffolding strategy model. As a result, it is concluded that IS plays a vital role in the knowledge construction processes in order to help engineering students' construct their knowledge and reach a higher level ofthinking

Instructional scaffolding in online social collaborative learning environment for nurturing engineering students' knowledge construction level

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the impact of Instructional Scaffolding (IS) on an online Social Collaborative Learning (SCL) environment upon engineering students' knowledge construction (KC) level. In addition., this study also investigate on how the IS cognitively steers engineering students towards KC and helps them reach a higher level of KC. This study then proposed a KC model in an online SCL environment integrated with IS that could nurture engineering students' knowledge construction level. A questionnaire, achievement test, posting scripts from Facebook discussions, and structured interviews were used for data collection. The methodology comprised two designs: a quasi-experimental for the quantitative approach, and a case study for the qualitative approach. The quasi-experimental involved the pre and post-test to be taken by 74 participants from one polytechnic in northern Malaysia to identify the improvement in their knowledge construction level. Meantime, the case study involved a process in providing the detail and depth of exploration in a real situation by obtaining the perceptions and perspectives of 10 engineering students. Content analysis and thematic analysis were used to identify the relationships between codes, themes, and between different levels of themes. A t-test indicated a significant increase in the mean score of the post-test in both of the learning environments, that is, the conventional collaborative learning (CCL) and the SCL environment supported by instructional scaffolding. Nevertheless, the engineering students in the SCL environment showed a significantly higher mean score if compared with those in the CCL environment (pre-test score; 3.05 vs post test score; 13.98). Simultaneously, comparing the combination of results in the percentage of knowledge construction level reveals that engineering students in the control group and in the experimental group demonstrated an increase for each level of knowledge construction whether they were in the CCL or in the SCL environment They illustrated different percentages for scores of argumentative knowledge construction (such as CCL=84.21 , SCL=86.11) and metacognitive knowledge construction (CCL=I3.16, SCL=64.00) between control and experimental group. Through content analysis, eight answer themes that affect engineering students' knowledge construction were identified. Nine answer themes also were identified regarding on how SCL characteristics supported by IS enabled engineering students to reach a higher level of knowledge construction. Based on all these findings, the researcher then produced a holistic knowledge construction model. It comprised the 8 essential elements of impact factors, such as students' cognitive pre-engagement, motivation, engagement and enhancement, explanation and guide, encouragement and praise, determination., comfort and engagement, as well as ease ofthe learning process in the instructional scaffolding strategy model. As a result, it is concluded that IS plays a vital role in the knowledge construction processes in order to help engineering students' construct their knowledge and reach a higher level ofthinking