(414) HOW ARE HIGHER EDUCATION STUDENTS USING SOCIAL NETWORKING SERVICES (SOCIAL MEDIA) TO SUPPORT THEIR STUDIES? AN EXPLORATIVE INTERVIEW

摘要

The purpose of this study is to explore and understand how Higher Education Students are usingSocial Media to support their studies. The social media term has been defined in many different ways;;based on a literature review, Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010 p.61) [1] Defined Social Media as“media that allows the creation and exchange of user-generated content”. This essentially means thatall media that are used to support exchanges among people (e.g. e-mail, social networks, contentsharing, and forums) can be considered as Social Media. Alternate definitions consider social mediaas the interaction among people in which they create, share, and/or exchange information and ideas invirtual communities and networks. It is the students who decide whether a media is used in socialways or not. More than ever, students are immersed in Social Media, including both face-to-face andvirtual worlds. This paper shows results from a study conducted in a Mexican University, focus in theaim to explore the potential benefits of Social Media in Education. Results indicate that interactiontools have a positive effect on students' learning processes. The potential benefits of Social Media forstudents are not only limited to the improvement of learning process used as a communication and ainteraction tool, but also as a useful tool that helps students improve their skills, share knowledge andprofessional development.