Extent of social media usage by students for improved learning in Tertiary Institution

This study was carried out to ascertain the perception of students on the use of social media for educational purposes. It was conducted in three tertiary institutions in Rivers State. The sample comprised 200 respondents randomly selected from three tertiary institutions in Rivers State. Five research objectives and four null hypotheses were used for the study. Mean scores, ANOVA, multiple comparison test using schaffer model, and Correlational Analysis were the statistical tools used in the study. The study found that social media is used in the study. The study found that social is used for educational purposes in terms of communication, sharing and exchanging ideas with improved engagement with technology. The study also revealed that social media is frequently used for interactions with friends for classroom assignment, communication in and outside classroom, promoting interactions during lectures, promoting informal learning, enhance course grades, facilitating language exchange, video conferencing, creating room for educational and video sharing. In terms of attitude of students, respondents generally have favourable attitude towards use of social media. The study revealed significant differences exist in social media usage across the three universities involved in the study and significant differences exist in usage of social media between male and female respondents; and in attitude of students towards social media. Based on these findings, the study recommend that the use of social media should be incorporated into the curriculum for enhanced universities education.