Abstract:

In the following paper I investigate the use of Facebook and the purpose of its use by first year students, in the Department of Media, Communication and Information at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, with a limited enrolment of 960 students (2011-2012). Differences in whether or not students use self-created Facebook-groups will be measured against the differences in utilization of various activities on Facebook. According to a previous study, these activities are categorized by the motives for using Facebook; 1) for information sharing, 2) for educational purposes, 3) for social purposes and 4) for leisure. Furthermore, this study is part of a broader (PhD) research where I investigate the influence of media literacy and its possible effect on students’ success. The aspects of media literacy I focus on are better known as information problem solving skills (IPS-skills). These IPS-skills are also measured against the different activities conducted on Facebook. All variables are measured using digital surveys and analysed with the help of statistical tests. This will ultimately provide a valuable insight into how and if there is a relation between the differences of the students’ use of Facebook and their IPS-skills.

Keywords:

Facebook, student success, higher education, social network site, information problem solving skills.