Impact of Social Media on Political Education of College of Education Student in Abia State
CHAPTER ONE
Objectives of the Study
The primary objective of this study is to look at the impacts of social media on political education of College of education students in Abia State. Other objectives include:
- To find out if there is a relationship between social media usage and academic performance of political education students.
- To find out the extent at which the use of social media has helped the students of political education students.
- To identify the problems of political education students in Colleges of education in the use of social media.
- To highlight possible solutions to the problems that may arise due to the usage of social media by political education students.
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEWED OF RELATED LITERATIRE
Internet and Politics
The debate on how the Internet impacts the political sphere has been rich with contributions since its advent. In the 1990s, scholars approached research in this field interested in the interactive potentials of the Internet (Bimber, 1998; Gibson & Ward, 1998). The Internet was hailed as the opportunity for the realization of the ideal of direct democracy (Slaton, 1992; White, 1997). It was also argued that if the Internet failed in reaching this goal, then its impact on politics would be minimal. Coleman (2005) pointed out that this scenario did not take into consideration established institutional procedures of representative democracy, which have been mistakenly considered obsolete. However, given the initial limited penetration of digital technologies across political institutions, governmental processes, and reduced access to the Internet across geographies, and socio and cultural backgrounds, the initial debate addressing the impact of the Internet on politics was more theoretical driven than empirically grounded. Since the advent of the public use of the Internet, the framework of research in this field has further evolved. Debate on how the Internet impacts politics has grown dramatically (Chadwick & Howard, 2009), and, as Castells and Sey (2004) observed, its influence is no longer proclaimed as fate but now established by observation. Today we can rely on more empirical evidence on the influence of the use of the Internet in politics (Hardy & Sheufele, 2005; Howard, 2003), thereby giving more substance to the debate. Studies explored the relationship between Internet and politics from a broad range of analytical perspectives. Scholars stressed that the Internet could develop civic engagement by creating connections between affinity groups (Diani, 2001; Van Aelst & Walgrave, 2002) enabling them to develop knowledge on specific political issues for citizens (Bimber, 2001), and to increase the ability to compare multiple points of view (Howard, 2005).Others have been interested in the potential of the Internet in enabling self-expression, and in facilitating the spread of personal and local claims (della Porta & Mosca, 2005). The Internet has also been hailed as an opportunity to create new forms of political participation (Wright, 2004), as an instrument to better link citizens and political institutions, and finally, as a new space to discuss politics (Fearon, 1998; Price & Cappella, 2002). All these new conditions have been considered useful for strengthening democracies by enlarging political participation. In short, the debate can be summarized along two opposite lines of argument: some scholars argue that the Internet is creating a new space of politics which is determinant for strengthening democracies, while other scholars point out that the Internet is a space to practice ‘politics as usual’ (Margolis & Resnick, 2000). Many middle-ground conclusions have been provided between both opposite arguments. The famous conflict between ‘cyber-optimists’ and ‘cyberpessimists’ has converged towards a more balanced optimism. The former have discovered that Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) are not a democratic panacea, while the latter cannot so easily deny the usefulness of digital technologies for facilitating political practices. Today we may conclude that the use of digital connectivity to practice politics has not revolutionized democracy as predicted by cyber-optimists, nor has there been any radical reorganization of political institutions or massive political inclusion of citizens caused by the Internet.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
In this chapter, we described the research procedure for this study. A research methodology is a research process adopted or employed to systematically and scientifically present the results of a study to the research audience viz. a vis, the study beneficiaries.
RESEARCH DESIGN
Research designs are perceived to be an overall strategy adopted by the researcher whereby different components of the study are integrated in a logical manner to effectively address a research problem. In this study, the researcher employed the survey research design. This is due to the nature of the study whereby the opinion and views of people are sampled. According to Singleton & Straits, (2009), Survey research can use quantitative research strategies (e.g., using questionnaires with numerically rated items), qualitative research strategies (e.g., using open-ended questions), or both strategies (i.e., mixed methods). As it is often used to describe and explore human behaviour, surveys are therefore frequently used in social and psychological research.
CHAPTER FOUR
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
INTRODUCTION
This chapter presents the analysis of data derived through the questionnaire and key informant interview administered on the respondents in the study area. The analysis and interpretation were derived from the findings of the study. The data analysis depicts the simple frequency and percentage of the respondents as well as interpretation of the information gathered. A total of eighty (80) questionnaires were administered to respondents of which only seventy-seven (77) were returned and validated. This was due to irregular, incomplete and inappropriate responses to some questionnaire. For this study a total of 77 was validated for the analysis.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
5.1 Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to impact of social media on political education of college of education student. In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing an impact of social media on political education of college of education student
Summary
This study was on impact of social media on political education of college of education student. Three objectives were raised which included: To find out if there is a relationship between social media usage and academic performance of political education students, to find out the extent at which the use of social media has helped the students of political education students, to identify the problems of political education students in Colleges of education in the use of social media and to highlight possible solutions to the problems that may arise due to the usage of social media by political education students. A total of 77 responses were received and validated from the enrolled participants where all respondents were drawn from Abia state college of Education. Hypothesis was tested using Chi-Square statistical tool (SPSS).
Conclusion
The study results show that political learning is obtained from discussion via social media networks. This finding confirms previous studies. Political discussion increases students’ political knowledge, even though social media is not part of learning design. Regarding the differences in previous research results on knowledge acquisition, this study’s results do not indicate social media activities’ influence on political knowledge. This study’s unique finding is that social media activities and political discussion activities have different impacts on students’ political learning. Social media activities, such as re-sharing other people’s comments, following politicians’ accounts, receiving political information, posting political experiences, and sharing current events’ opinions, showed no impact on political learning. These activities do not involve conversations among social media users. Political learning through social media requires discussion related to politics. These findings have practical democracy guarantees, which can involve youth in politics. Subsequent studies with an enormous demographic scope will further confirm the results of studies with broader generalizations.
Recommendation
Based on my knowledge and research on the impact of social media on political education, I would like to provide the following recommendation:
Encourage the use of social media platforms: College of Education students in Abia State should be encouraged to use social media platforms to access political education resources, share their views on political issues, and participate in political discussions.
Promote Critical Thinking: Students should be taught to critically analyze political information they find on social media platforms. This would help them differentiate between fake news and reliable sources.
Encourage Civil and Respectful Discourse: Social media platforms can be prone to disrespectful and uncivil discourse. However, college of education students should be encouraged to engage in civil and respectful political discussions.
Encourage the Use of Reliable Sources: Students should be taught to rely on credible sources for political information, rather than base their opinions on social media rumors or hearsay.
Monitor and Regulate Social Media Use: The use of social media platforms should be monitored and regulated to avoid the spread of false information or hate speech.
Provide Political Education Courses: College of Education students should be provided with courses on political education to help them understand the significance of politics and its impact on society.
Engage in Political Activities: Students should be encouraged to participate in political activities such as voting, campaigning, and attending political events. This would help them understand the practical aspects of politics beyond social media platforms.
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