Explaining the Strategic Position of Iran’s Agricultural and Natural Resources University in Using Virtual Social Networks in Teaching and Learning Process

International Journal of Agricultural Management and Development

مقاله 4، دوره 12، شماره 3، آذر 2022، صفحه 209-225   

نوع مقاله: Research Article

نویسندگان

Maisam Rafe¹؛ Bahman Khosravipour^{* 2}؛ Jafar Yaghobi³

¹Ph.D. of Agricultural Education, Agriculture Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khouzestan, Ahvaz, Iran

²Professor, Agricultural Extension and Education Department, Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources University of Khuzestan, Mollasani, Ahvaz, Iran

³Associate Professor of Agricultural Extension, Communication and Rural Development Department, University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran

چکیده

Virtual social networking (VSN) is an important new technology that can redesign the structure of society and help create a learning community on campuses. This research aimed to explain the strategic position of universities in the implementation of VSN and formulate appropriate strategies for its effective implementation. SWOT analysis, along with the construction of multilevel matrices, was used to achieve this goal. The statistical population was composed of the faculty members of Iran’s agriculture sciences and natural resources universities, 28 of whom were selected as a statistical sample using the "special cases" sampling method. Data were analyzed using SPSS and MS-Excel software. In the qualitative phase, verifiably was confirmed by the following steps: 1) self-review of the research committee during the process of data collection and analysis; 2) use of special coding procedures in the analysis stage; 3) carrying out research steps by testing items such as raw data, data summarization products, and the noting process; 4) interview with faculty member separately and comparing their answers, and 5) using a steering committee to evaluate and conduct interviews. The validity and reliability of the research instrument were confirmed by the universities’ faculty members and Cronbach's alpha calculation (0.83-0.92). Findings from the SWOT matrix showed that the studied universities were in a reformation (ST) position in using VSN. By using the SWOT matrix, we developed four strategies to implement VSN in the studied universities, which included attack strategies (SO), diversification (WO), reformation (ST), and defense (WT).

کلیدواژه‌ها

Agricultural universities؛ social networks؛ teaching learning

مراجع

Altbach, P. G., & Knight, J. (2007). The internationalization of higher education: Motivations and realities. Journal of Studies in International Education, 11(3-4), 290-305.

Asadian, A., Gholizadeh Ahmadabad, H.G., & Mahoodi, G.R. (2018). Feasibility and pathology of tablet use in the teaching and learning process. Journal of Teaching Research, 6(2), 46-66. (In Persian)

Bagheri, A., Yamini Dozi Sorkhabi, M., Farasatkhah, M., Khorasani, A (2018). Analytical study of students' individual learning network. Journal of Iranian Higher Education Research, 9 (3), 26-1. (In persian)

Berrío-Zapata, C., & Rojas-Hernández, H. (2014). La brecha digital universitaria: La apropiación de las TIC en estudiantes de educación superior en Bogotá (Colombia). Comunicar: Revista Científica de Comunicación y Educación, 22(43), 133-142.

Campbell, A., Mayzlin, D., & Shin, J. (2017). Managing buzz. The RAND Journal of Economics, 48(1), 203-229.

Clark, D. B., & Sampson, V. (2008). Assessing dialogic argumentation in online environments to relate structure, grounds, and conceptual quality. Journal of Research in Science Teaching: The Official Journal of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching, 45(3), 293-321.

Fischer, G., Rohde, M., & Wulf, V. (2007). Community-based learning: The core competency of residential, research-based universities. International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, 2(1), 9-40.

García, A. S., García-Álvarez, M. T., & Moreno, B. (2014). Analysis of assessment opportunities of learning spaces: On-line versus face to face methodologies. Computers in Human Behavior, 30, 372-377.

García-Álvarez, M. T., Novo-Corti, I., & Varela-Candamio, L. (2018). The effects of social networks on the assessment of virtual learning environments: A study for social sciences degrees. Telematics and Informatics, 35(4), 1005-1017.

Ghorbankhani, M., & Salehi, K. (2017). Representation challenges of virtual training in Iran's higher education system: A study of phenomenological approach. Information and Communication Technology in Educational Sciences, 7(2(26)), 123-148. (In Persian)

Greenhow, C., & Askari, E. (2017). Learning and teaching with social network sites: A decade of research in K-12 related education. Education and Information Technologies, 22(2), 623-645.

Harris, C. A. (2013). Learning about sustainable development: An examination of socialnetwork practices of first-year engineering students (Doctoral dissertation, Purdue University).

Hartnell-Young, E., & Heym, N. (2008). How mobile phones help learning in secondary schools. Coventry: Becta.

Higgins, S., Hall, E., Wall, K., Woolner, P., & McCaughey, C. (2005). The Impact of School Environments: A literature review, The Centre for Learning and Teaching, School of Education, Communication and Language Science, University of Newcastle. University of Newcastle (http: //www. ncl. ac. uk/cflat/news/DCReport. pdf).

Hommes, J., Rienties, B., de Grave, W., Bos, G., Schuwirth, L., & Scherpbier, A. (2012). Visualising the invisible: a network approach to reveal the informal social side of student learning. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 17(5), 743-757.

Hung, H. T., & Yuen, S. C. Y. (2010). Educational use of social networking technology in higher education. Teaching in Higher Education, 15(6), 703-714.

Jamshidi, L., Zineabadi, H.R. (2013). Privatization of Public Higher Education and Skills: A Case Study of the University of Applied Sciences. Journal of Skills Trading, 1 (1),47-33. (In Persian).

Johnson, C., & Kritsonis, W. A. (2007). National School Debate: Banning Cell Phones in Public Schools: Analyzing a National School and Community Relations Problem. Online Submission, 25, (4).

Karami, S., & Agahi, H. (2018). Swot Analysis of Strategies for Agricultural Entrepreneurs Empowerment. International Journal of Agricultural Management and Development, 8(2), 307-320.

Karimi, S., Sharif, M. (2015). Challenges of higher education in curriculum content with a learning community approach. Journal of New Educational Approaches, 9 (1), Series 19, pp: 142-107. (In Persian)

Keller, C., Lindh, J., Hrastinski, S., Casanovas, I., & Fernandez, G. (2009). The impact of national culture on e‐learning implementation: a comparative study of an Argentinean and a Swedish university. Educational Media International, 46(1), 67-80.

Kolleck, N. (2013). Social network analysis in innovation research: using a mixed methods approach to analyze social innovations. European Journal of Futures Research, 1(1), 25.

Manca, S., & Ranieri, M. (2013). Is it a tool suitable for learning? A critical review of the literature on F acebook as a technology‐enhanced learning environment. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 29(6), 487-504.

Mishra, S. (2007). Quality assurance in higher education: An introduction. National Assessment and Accreditation Council, India.

Mohammadi Mehr, M., Maleki, H., Abbaspour, A., Khoshdel, A. (2012). A study of the competencies required for lifelong learning in general medicine students. Journal of Medical Education, 11 (8), 975-960. (In Persian)

Moradi, A., Zarghami Hamrah, S., Ghaedi, Y., and Barkhordari, R. (2017). A study on the opportunities and challenges of online teaching in promoting the character of students with an emphasis on social constructivism. Journal of Teaching Research, 5(3), 59-86.(In Persian)

Nyíri, K. (2008). The networked mind. Studies in East European Thought, 60(1-2), 149-158.

Petropoulou, O., Altanis, I., Retalis, S., Nicolaou, C. A., Kannas, C., Vasiliadou, M., & Pattis, I. (2010). Building a tool to help teachers analyse learners’ interactions in a networked learning environment. Educational Media International, 47(3), 231-246.

Pittaway, L., Rodriguez-Falcon, E., Aiyegbayo, O., & King, A. (2011). The role of entrepreneurship clubs and societies in entrepreneurial learning. International Small Business Journal, 29(1), 37-57.

Sauers, E. L., McLeod, T. C. V., & Bay, R. C. (2012). Practice-based research networks, part I: clinical laboratories to generate and translate research findings into effective patient care. Journal of Athletic Training, 47(5), 549-556.

Sedighi Boukani, N., Mohajeran, B., & Bagheri Majd, R. (2015). Challenges of virtual learning in the educational system of Islamic Azad University.  Scientific Journal of Education Research, 10(42), 35-50.

Solangi, Y. A., Tan, Q., Mirjat, N. H., & Ali, S. (2019). Evaluating the strategies for sustainable energy planning in Pakistan: An integrated SWOT-AHP and Fuzzy-TOPSIS approach. Journal of Cleaner Production, 236, 117655.

Stroos,R.E.(2008). Educational psychology: Theory and practice(8^th ed). New York,86-174

Trow, M. (2007). Reflections on the transition from elite to mass to universal access: Forms and phases of higher education in modern societies since WWII. In International handbook of higher education (pp. 243-280). Springer, Dordrecht.

Williams, R. D., & Lee, A. (Eds.). (2015). Internationalizing higher education: Critical collaborations across the curriculum. Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense Publishers.

Zarmpou, T., Saprikis, V., Markos, A., & Vlachopoulou, M. (2012). Modeling users’ acceptance of mobile services. Electronic Commerce Research, 12(2), 225-248.