Analysis of technological, individual and community factors influencing the use of popular Web 2.0 tools in LIS education

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/EL-03-2016-0069
Pages977-993
Published date02 October 2017
Date02 October 2017
AuthorChokri Barhoumi
Subject MatterInformation & knowledge management,Information & communications technology,Internet
Analysis of technological,
individual and community factors
inuencing the use of popular
Web 2.0 tools in LIS education
Chokri Barhoumi
Department of Information Sciences and Learning Resources, Taibah University,
Al Madinah Al Munawarah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Abstract
Purpose This research paper aims to explore the technological, individual and community factors
inuencing the use of popularWeb 2.0 tools in library and information science (LIS) education to prepare LIS
students for Library2.0. The study was guided by the activity theory (AT) and technology acceptance model
(TAM) of Davis as a lens. The study reveals a set of factors concerning the technical tools, subjective
perceptions, goals of online discussion,social presence within a community, rules for participation and roles
of the participantsthat affect their online engagement patterns.
Design/methodology/approach This study was performed during the 2015 academic year; it used a
descriptive analytical research approach for exploring and analysing technological, individual and
communityfactors inuencing the use of the popular Web 2.0 tools in LIS education.
Findings The results show that at the technological level of the AT, educators in the sample found the
WhatsApp instant messagingand Twitter to be the easiest tools to use, selecting those tools at, respectively,
73.2 per cent (standard deviation = 0.450) and 61.1 per cent (standard deviation = 0.490). WhatsApp and
Twitter alsolead at the individual level of the AT, as the most valuable platforms for sharinginformation and
knowledge.Video, text and photo objects are the most commonly shared items, used by 90.7, 93.5and 98.9 per
cent, respectively.
Originality/value This study may be useful to help informationscience educators to prepare graduates
for the emergingWeb 2.0 environments and to prepare students for Library2.0.
Keywords LIS education, Activity theory, Technology acceptance model, Web 2.0
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Web 2.0 plays a key role in facilitating information sharing, collaboration and
communication between librarians and patrons and among librarians(Wordofa, 2014). The
use of Web 2.0 tools, such as blogs, wikis WhatsApp, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and
Googleþ, in teaching andlearning has presented new challenges to education. Web2.0 tools
used in online teaching and learning provide online learners with opportunities to share
knowledge in learning communitiesthrough social communication and interactions (Nelson
et al., 2009). From a research viewpoint, information science instructors need to prepare
graduates for the emerging Web 2.0 environment, to help them discover how to reap the
educational benets of Web 2.0 tools in online instruction. These needs provide strong
motivation for the use of Web 2.0 tools in information science education and the
incorporationof related themes into informationscience curricula.
This study explores factors inuencing information educatorsparticipation in online
discussions through the popular Web 2.0 tools of WhatsApp, Googleþ, Facebook and
Popular Web
2.0 tools in LIS
education
977
Received22 March 2016
Revised1 October 2016
Accepted8 December 2016
TheElectronic Library
Vol.35 No. 5, 2017
pp. 977-993
© Emerald Publishing Limited
0264-0473
DOI 10.1108/EL-03-2016-0069
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0264-0473.htm
Twitter. The study also explores the educational benets of these tools in information
science education and the types of information shared most often between information
science instructors and their students. To accomplish these goals, the technological,
individual and communityfactors introduced in activity theory (AT) (Engeström, 1987)and
the perceived usefulness and ease of use of systems as discussed in the technology
acceptance model (TAM) (Davis et al., 1989) are usedto guide this study. Joint (2009) found
that LIS needs to evolve its Web 2.0 strategy to promote this aspect of its services. In the
same context, the present study is useful for providing knowledge to information science
educators about how online discussions can be better promoted, sustained and enhanced,
and about how to harness the educational potential of social networking websites for the
emerging Library 2.0 environment.
Literature review
The use of Web 2.0 applications in enhancing teaching and learning
Educational Web 2.0 tools have emerged with great potential to facilitate the sharing of
knowledge between students and teachers in the context of learning and teaching (Pence,
2007). However, with the use of Web2.0 learning activities, students seek to not only obtain
information but also create and share it. Used correctly, online learning activities should
require students to situate their knowledge within a discussion about real-life and
disciplinary contexts, thus providing an authentic learning environment (Herrington et al.,
2003). Connectivism-based Web 2.0 applications are an important source of interaction
between students and their teachers inonline instruction. Interaction is one of the key roles
of information and communication technologies (ICT) in promoting online learning,
especially through Web 2.0 learning activities (Beauchamp and Kennewell, 2010).
Connectivism using Web 2.0 applicationshelps students construct new knowledge through
social interactions to meet their learning targets and perform problem-solving activities
(Wilson, 1996).
Strijbos and Fischer (2007) noted in their research related to learning communities that
collaborative and cooperative learning strategies based on the Web 2.0 applications are
useful for constructing and sharing information,skills and knowledge between individuals
in online lectures when an instructor or an online tutor is present to guide learners in their
interactive learning process. AT stimulates professionals to renew knowledgeby exploring
factors that inuence subjectsparticipation in online discussions. A qualitative study by
Deng and Tavares (2013) identied factors that inuence student participation in online
discussions via Moodle and Facebook. The study was basedon interviews of 14 pre-service
teachers. AT, the theoretical lens for that study, states that technological tools, subjective
perceptions, roles and rules regarding online discussions, as well as social presence and
interaction within a community, inuence learnersparticipation and adoption of Facebook
compared to Moodle in a learning environment.
A recent study by Fasae and Adegbilero-Iwari (2016) showed that, among the various
social media networks availablein public universities in southwest Nigeria, Facebook (93.5
per cent) is the most recognized and mostfamous, followed by Googleþ(63.8 per cent) and
Twitter (47.8 per cent). Their ndings indicated that Googleþ(52.2 per cent) is the most
benecial social media network, followed by Facebook (29.7 per cent) and Wikia (23.9
per cent). A study conducted by Yu et al. (2010) reported that online discussions between
students through social networking improved social relationships among students,
heightened their self-esteemand boosted their learning performance.
EL
35,5
978

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