Universal Journal of Educational Research 8(3A): 85-90, 2020 http://www.hrpub.org
DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2020.081412
The Influence of High Academic Achievers' Social
Media Usage and Types of Social Media Content on
Students' Learning: A Conceptual Framework
Norlaile Salleh Hudin
1,*
, Noraine Salleh Hudin
2
, Nor Azah Abdul Aziz
3
1
Faculty of Management and Economics, Sultan Idris Education University, Malaysia
2
Faculty of Science and Mathematics, Sultan Idris Education University, Malaysia
3
Faculty of Art, Computing and Creative Industry, Sultan Idris Education University, Malaysia
Received July 10, 2019; Revised January 10, 2020; Accepted February 25, 2020
Copyright©2020 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under
the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License
Abstract Social media has been blamed for distracting
and reducing students' engagement in learning. However,
there are limited studies that recommend the appropriate
strategy of using social media for students. Therefore, the
purpose of this study is to propose a conceptual framework
that linked the influence of high academic achievers' social
media usage with types of social media content on students'
learning. A qualitative methodology will be employed to
gain in-depth understanding of the high academic
achievers' purpose of using social media, time spent on
social media and types of social media contents that
interest them. Based on purposive sampling technique, a
sample of high academic achievers pursuing their study in
a public university will be selected and interviewed until
the data reach saturation. The interview data will be
analyzed by using thematic analysis to develop codes and
themes in explaining the phenomenon. The findings of this
study are believed to be useful in developing a
recommendation and effective strategy to help students
manage their social media usage and more importantly
benefit from it for their learning.
Keywords Social Media Usage, High Academic
Achiever, Social Media Content, Learning Experience
1. Introduction
In the era of Education 4.0, incorporating technology in
the classroom is essential to help the Millennial cope with
the social and academic challenges of students’ lives.
Social media, for example, Facebook, Instagram,
Whatsapp, Telegram and Twitter, are readily available
platforms typically used by course instructors to
communicate with the students. By using social media,
students can receive 24 hours online tutoring, access
academic materials anytime and anywhere, receive
feedback on their performance continuously and enhance
students' collaboration. Nevertheless, evidence showed
that despite the awareness of social media usefulness
towards academic-related purposes, the actual use of social
media for learning was at a minimal level (Sobaih,
Moustafa, Ghandforoush, & Khan, 2016).
Examining the reasons behind this, it was found that
excessive use of social media can affect students' academic
performance negatively (W. W. F. Lau, 2017;
Owusu-Acheaw & Larson, 2015). Students usually used
Facebook for communication, entertainment, and sharing
news, pictures and songs (Kaya & Bicen, 2016). In
research conducted in Ghana, most respondents used social
media namely Whatsapp and Facebook to make friends or
chat (Mingle & Adams, 2015). Meanwhile, in Spain,
students frequently send messages, participate in social
networks and listen to music (Carbonell, Chamarro, Oberst,
Rodrigo, & Prades, 2018). As a result, the majority of
respondents experienced negative effects such as poor
grammar and spelling, late submission of assignments, less
study time and poor academic performance due to the
heavy participation in social media networks (Mingle &
Adams, 2015). It also lowered their task performance and
level of happiness, as well as increased the level of
technostress (Brooks, 2015).
In recent times, the majority of students in higher
education institutions have smartphones that get them
connected to social media. Easy access to social media and
the availability of the internet ensure that students have
unlimited opportunities to get engaged in social media.
However, high academic achievers also have the same
exposure towards social media as other students but
CITE THIS PAPER
[1] Norlaile Salleh Hudin , Noraine Salleh Hudin , Nor Azah Abdul Aziz , "The Influence of High Academic Achievers' Social Media
Usage and Types of Social Media Content on Students' Learning: A Conceptual Framework," Universal Journal of Educational
Research, Vol. 8, No. 3A, pp. 85 - 90, 2020. DOI: 10.13189/ujer.2020.081412.