Vol. 27 No. 2 (2013)
Research Articles

Facebook and Issues of Professionalism in Undergraduate Nursing Education: Risky Business or Risk Worth Taking?

HTML ePub PDF
  • Laura Anne Killam,
  • Lorraine Mary Carter,
  • Rob Graham
Laura Anne Killam
Cambrian College
Bio
Lorraine Mary Carter
Lorraine Carter, PhD Director, School of Nursing Director, Centre for Flexible Teaching and Learning Nipissing University lorrainec@nipissingu.ca 705-474-3450, ext. 4602
Rob Graham
Nipissing University Schulich School of Education ITeach Laptop Learning 100 College Drive North Bay, ON P1B 8L7 telephone (705) 474 3450 ext 4404 Office H-145

Published 2014-01-23

Keywords

  • Facebook,
  • social media,
  • education,
  • online learning,
  • e-learning,
  • educational technology,
    • ...More
    Less

How to Cite

Killam, L. A., Carter, L. M., & Graham, R. (2014). Facebook and Issues of Professionalism in Undergraduate Nursing Education: Risky Business or Risk Worth Taking?. International Journal of E-Learning & Distance Education Revue Internationale Du E-Learning Et La Formation à Distance, 27(2). Retrieved from https://www.ijede.ca/index.php/jde/article/view/849
Copyright Notice

Abstract

The purpose of this exploratory investigation was to share the strengths, challenges, and tensions of using Facebook in an undergraduate nursing program. The observations presented have emerged from information shared by study participants and the professional insights of the three researcher-authors who represent perspectives from nursing, education, and technology-enabled teaching and learning. The theoretical framework used to guide the study was Drexler's (2010) Networked Student as well as ideas based on work by Siemens (2010) and Downes (2012). Findings suggest that use of Facebook in professional programs such as nursing provides an opportunity for the modeling of professional behaviour by students and teachers. However, concerns about privacy, misinformation, and a lack of professionalism are also present in the discussions of Facebook in professional programs. As a learning strategy, Facebook is recommended when pedagogical benefits are anticipated and clear and transparent guidelines regarding its use have been established by the user group. It is respectfully acknowledged that there are many social media options available to students and teachers to support learning in a professional program. Facebook, however, was the focus of this study given its unique prevalence among university students at the present time. The paper is a first step in looking at how Facebook and other social media experiences may play a role in supporting learning in professional programs offered by universities.
HTML ePub PDF

References

  1. Anderson, T. (2005). Distance learning—Social software’s killer app? Retrieved September 25, 2012 from http://auspace.athabascau.ca/handle/2149/2328
  2. Are you Twittering, getting friends on Facebook, and YouTube? (2009). Same-Day Surgery, 33(11), 105-107.
  3. Aydin, S. (2012). A review of research on Facebook as an educational environment. Educational Technology Research and Development, 60(6), 1093-1106.
  4. Brady, K.P., Holcomb, L.B., & Smith, B.V. (2010). The use of alternative social networking sites in higher educational settings: a case study of the e-learning benefits of Ning in education. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 9(2) 151 -170.
  5. Brocade. (2011). Enterprise and mobility: What e-living is teaching about e-learning? San Jose, CA: Brocade Communication System. Available at: http://www.brocade.com/downloads/documents/technical_briefs/mobility-e-living-teaching-e-learning-tb.pdf
  6. Bullen, M., Morgan, T., Belfer, K., & Qayyum, A. (2009). The Net generation in higher education: Rhetoric and reality. International Journal of Excellence in eLearning, 2(1), 1-13.
  7. Bullen, M., Morgan, T., & Qayyum, A. (2011). Digital learners in higher education: Generation is not the issue. Canadian Journal of Learning Technology, 37(1), 1-24. Retrieved from http://www.cjlt.ca/index.php/cjlt
  8. Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing. (2013). Position paper on scholarship in nursing. Available at: http://www.casn.ca/en/68/item/0
  9. Carter, L., & Graham, R. (2012).The evolution of online education at a small northern university: Theory and practice. Journal for Distance Education/Revue de l'Éducation à Distance, 26(2).
  10. Carter, L., Muir, L., & McLean, D. (2011). Narrative as a means of understanding the multi-dimensional benefits of teleheath: An exploration of telehealth stories. Canadian Journal of University Continuing Education, 37, (1).
  11. Carter, L., Rukholm, E., & Kelloway, L. (2009). Stroke education for nurses through a technology-enabled program. Journal of Neuroscience Nursing, 41(6), 336-343.
  12. Clifton, A., & Mann, C. (2011). Can YouTube enhance student nurse learning? Nurse Education Today, 31(4), 311-313. doi:10.1016/j.nedt.2010.10.004
  13. Currie, D. (2009). Public health leaders using social media to convey emergencies: New tools a boon. Nations Health, 39(6), 1-10.
  14. Dickieson, P., & Carter, L. (2010). Scenario testing in undergraduate nursing education: Assessment for learning. Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education, 22(2), 65-76.
  15. Downes, S. (2012, February 11). Half an hour: E-learning generations. http://halfanhour.blogspot.ca/2012/02/e-learning-generations.html
  16. Drexler, W. (2010). The Networked Student Model for construction of personal learning environments: Balancing teacher control and student autonomy. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 26(3).
  17. Eberhardt, D. M. (2007). Facing up to Facebook. About Campus, 12(4), 18-26.
  18. Eytan, T., Benabio, J., Golla Rahul Parikh, V., & Stein, S. (2010). Social media and the health system. The Permanente Journal, 15(1), 71-74.
  19. George, D. R. (2011). 'Friending Facebook?' A minicourse on the use of social media by health professionals. Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions, 31(3), 215-219.
  20. Gorham, R., & Carter, L., Nowrouzi, B., Askin, C., & McLean, N. (2012). Social media and health education: What the literature says. Journal of Distance Education/Revue de l'Éducation à Distance, 26(2).
  21. Greene, J., & Kesselheim, A. (2010). Pharmaceutical marketing and the new social media. The New England Journal of Medicine, 363(22), 2087-2089.
  22. Johnson, D. (2010). Taming the chaos. Learning and Leading with Technology, 38(3), 20-23.
  23. Killam, L. A., & Carter, L. M. (2010). Challenges to the student nurse on clinical placement in the rural setting: A review of the literature. Rural and Remote Health, 10(3), 1523.
  24. Killam, L. A., & Heerschap, C. (2012). Challenges to student learning in the clinical setting: A qualitative descriptive study. Nurse Education Today. doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2012.10.008
  25. Lane, S. & Twaddell, J.W. (2010). Should social media be used to communicate with patients? The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, 35(1), 6-7.
  26. Margaryan, A., Littlejohn, A., & Vojt. G. (2011). Are digital natives a myth or reality? University students’ use of digital technologies. Computers and Education, 56(2), 429-440. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2010.09.004
  27. McNab, C. (2009). What social media offers to health professionals and citizens. Bull World Health Organ, 87(8), 566.
  28. Miles, M. B., & Huberman, A. M. (1994). Qualitative data analysis (2nd ed.). London: Sage.
  29. Mitchell, S. (2008). Letting go of the rock. Journal of Nursing Education, 47(10), 439-440.
  30. Salyers, V., Carter, L., Antoniazzi, C., & Johnson, S. (2013). Evaluating the effectiveness of a clinical tracking system for undergraduate nursing students. Nursing Education Perspectives, 34(1), 37-41.
  31. Siemens, G. (2010). Connectivism. Retrieved September 28, 2012 from http://connectivism.ca/?p=220
  32. Siemens, G., & Conole, G. (2011). Connectivism: Design and delivery of social networked learning. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning. 12 (3), i-iv.
  33. Statistics Canada, 2012. Canadian Internet usage survey, 2012. Available at http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/131126/dq131126d-eng.htm
  34. Tapscott, D. (2008). Grown up digital: How the Net generation is changing your world. NewYork: McGraw-Hill.
  35. Teclehaimanot, B., & Hickman, T. (2011). Student-teacher interaction on Facebook: What students find appropriate. TechTrends: Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning, 55(3), 19–30.
  36. Veletsianos, G. (2010). A definition of emerging technologies for education. In G. Veletsianos (Ed.), Emerging technologies in distance education (pp. 3-22). Edmonton, AB: Athabasca University Press.
  37. Weaver-Lariscy, R., Reber, B., & Paek, H. (2010). Examination of media channels and types as health information sources for adolescents: Comparisons for black/white, male/female, urban/rural. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 54(1), 102-120.
  38. Wenger, E. (2004). Communities of practice: A brief introduction [Electronic version]. Retrieved from http://wenger-trayner.com/theory/
  39. Wenger, E., & Lave, J. (1999). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
  40. Wenger, E., McDermott, R. A., & Snyder, W. (2002). Cultivating communities of practice: A guide to managing knowledge. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Press.
  41. Wiske, M. S. (2011). Unleashing the power of networked learning, Harvard Business Review, Retrieved from http://blogs.hbr.org/2011/03/how-do-we-unleash-the/