Using facebook to engage microbiology students outside of class time.

INTRODUCTION

Online social networking services such as Facebook (www.facebook.com) have continued to increase in popularity, likely due to the accessibility of mobile internet on smart phones and tablets. Between 2010 and 2011 alone, the number of mobile Internet subscribers increased by 45% (7). Among consumers aged 16 and over in the UK and US, it is estimated that 95% own mobile devices (8). Studies show that the most popular social media service for college students is Facebook, with somewhere between 67 and 99 percent using it (1, 6). Indeed, Facebook is listed as one of the most downloaded free apps (applications) of all time for the Apple iPhone device (Apple iTunes Store, “Top 25 most downloaded Free iPhone apps of All Time,” posted in May 2013). At the time of writing this article (January 2014), Facebook also tops the list of most popular free apps in the Google Play marketplace for Android users (https://play.google.com/store/apps/collection/topselling_free?hl=en).

The near ubiquitous use of Facebook makes it an ideal platform for engaging college-age students outside of regular class time. The wealth of online biology and microbiology videos, podcasts, and other educational resources is easily shared via Facebook. Although many institutions have their own online learning management systems (e.g. Blackboard, Moodle, etc.), students are less likely to spend their leisure time engaging with the posted material. It stands to reason that if students are already spending their leisure time browsing their Facebook accounts, they will be inclined to engage with academic material if received in this manner.

PROCEDURE & RESULTS

This past year, I set up a private Facebook group (the group could only be joined with the administrator’s permission) for my Medical Microbiology for Nurses class in an attempt to increase student engagement with course content outside of class time. In order to join, a student would require a Facebook account and would have to search for the group name through the Facebook system. The Facebook group was entirely optional and only used to supplement the lectures. In one semester, about 50% of the students (14 out of 30) joined the Facebook group. In a subsequent offering of the course, a similar percentage of students joined the group (13 out of 25 students). During each semester, the Facebook group was regularly updated (about twice a week) to share curriculum-relevant resources and reinforce any relevant class announcements (see Table 1).

TABLE 1.

Examples of resources shared with microbiology students through Facebook.

Resource	E.g.	Author/URL
Class Announcements	Time and location of review session. Notice that final grades are posted.
Exam Hints	Sample exam questions. Posts about important concepts to study.
Videos	Gram Stain Procedure HIV Lifecycle How We’ll Stop Polio for Good	Ernie Godsey, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQ6C-gj_UHM) Howard Hughes Medical Institute, http://www.hhmi.org/biointeractive/hiv-life-cycleBruce Aylward, http://www.ted.com/talks/bruce_aylward_how_we_ll_stop_polio.html
Tutorials, Animations	The Scale of the Universe Cellular Immunity	Cary and Michael Huang, http://htwins.net/scale2W. H. Freeman Publishers, http://bcs.whfreeman.com/thelifewire/content/chp18/1802003.html
News/Media Reports	It’s Turkey Time: Safely Prepare Your Holiday Meal MERS Virus Found in Patient’s Pet Camel	CDC, http://www.cdc.gov/features/turkeytime/Donald G. McNeil Jr., http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/12/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-mers-virus-found-in-patients-pet-camel.html?_r=0
Humor	Comic Strips
Games	Sneeze (Flash game on spreading infections)	Oil Productions and Playerthree, http://www.miniclip.com/games/sneeze/en/
Podcasts	Meet the Scientist: “E. coli and the human gut”This Week in Parasitism, “Tapeworms, the long and short of it”	American Society for Microbiology, http://www.microbeworld.org/careers/audio-interviews/244-mts5-brett-finlay-ecoli-and-the-human-gut). Vincent Racaniello and Dickson Despommier, http://www.microbeworld.org/podcasts/this-week-in-parasitism/archives/615-twip-6-tapeworms-the-long-and-short-of-it

Once set up, Facebook proved to be a relatively easy interface for posting these types of media, with very little additional time spent per week managing material and posting links. Additionally, some students also used it as a forum to ask questions (e.g. “What topics will be covered on the midterm exam?”). One useful feature of Facebook for research purposes is that it tracks how many views a posted item receives, providing feedback as to the usefulness of a given post.

At the end of each semester, I surveyed the students about their use of the Facebook group. Students commented that links to course-relevant videos and communication with peers were by far the best aspects of using the Facebook group. When asked what could be done better, a number of students expressed the desire for more studying tips and exam hints. (In fact, exam hints and questions received the most comments and “likes”—a feature whereby users can vote on most useful posts.) Links to podcasts received no comments from students.

The main disadvantage of using Facebook as an engagement tool is that not every student uses this social media service. Some users of Facebook may also express concerns about the privacy of their posts or how easy it is for others to access their pictures and profiles. Anyone desiring to use social networking services should review any privacy settings or options that may be available for the service.

Find out if your institution has a social media policy that will affect how and to what extent you are able to use these services.

Consider your own privacy and professionalism. If you have a personal Facebook account with information and pictures pertaining to your private life, you may want to set up a second account used exclusively for interaction with the students.

For new ideas, discuss with your colleagues how they interact with students via social media.

A wealth of resources is available to guide new users through educational strategies using social networking (e.g. refs 2, 5, and 9). Facebook has also published a guide for educators that covers some ethics and privacy concerns (3).

CONCLUSION

Although face-to-face engagement in the classroom has been shown to be more effective than social networking technologies (4), the social networking lifestyle of students should probably not be ignored by educators. Facebook and other networking sites provide opportunities to engage with students about class material outside of class time.