Social Media Use in Higher Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Literature Review

Authors

  • Wisal Al Balushi Sultan Qaboos University
  • Fatma Saif Al-Busaidi Sultan Qaboos University
  • Aqdas Malik Sultan Qaboos University
  • Zahran Al-Salti

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i24.32399

Keywords:

Higher Education, Social Media, Online Learning, Systematic Literature Review

Abstract


This study reviews the literature to gain an in-depth understanding of the pedagogical role of social media in higher education institutions (HEI’s) during the COVID-19 pandemic. A systematic search in the Web of Science, Scopus, and EBSCO databases yielded 34 relevant empirical studies published between January 2020 and April 2021. The findings reveal that: a) the innovative possibilities furnished through social media facilitated the transition to a complete online learning setting, b) the majority of studies are oriented towards the perspectives of students, c) the lack of well-defined policy hinders the effective utilization of social media in the pedagogical process, and d) questionnaires were the mostly used data collection method overlooking the significance of digital tracing as a rich source of data. This article provides a research agenda to advance the knowledge of the pedagogical possibilities of social media, especially that these platforms were not used to their full potential for teaching and learning during the pandemic. This study also has practical implications for HEI’s and policymakers to recognize the significance of social media in maintaining educational sustainability

Author Biographies

Fatma Saif Al-Busaidi, Sultan Qaboos University

Fatma Saif Al-Busaidi has graduated with a PhD in Information Studies from Sultan Qaboos University in 2019. Her doctoral research was in examining key factors impacting users’ satisfaction of e-government services in Oman. Fatma is currently working as a General Manager in the private sector in addition to teaching as an Adjunct Lecturer at the university. She worked for The Research Council of Oman from 2012 to 2014 as a Research Analyst for the ICT sector at the Programs and Research department where she helped in promoting, supporting and enhancing ICT research at the national level in Oman. Before that, she worked at the department of Information Systems in Sultan Qaboos University from 2006 to 2011 as a Research Assistant and Adjunct Lecturer. She enjoys the academic and research field and wishes to continue the same path

Aqdas Malik, Sultan Qaboos University

Aqdas Malik is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Information Systems, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman. By applying multiple research methodologies, he actively probes digital media engagement and interaction among public and niche communities within education, activism, entertainment, and health domains. His research work has been published in a variety of prestigious venues including International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, Telematics and Informatics, American Journal of Health Behavior, and Journal of Information, Communication & Ethics in Society

Zahran Al-Salti

Zahran Al-Salti is currently the dean of College of Banking and Financial Studies (CBFS), Oman.  Prior to joining CBFS, Al-Salti was a faculty member in the Information Systems Department, College of Economics and Political Science at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), Oman. He also served as the Director of the Center for Community Service and Continuing Education (2017-2020) at SQU. He began his career at the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation where he served several technical and administrative positions, last of which was the director of postgraduate studies. He earned his PhD in information systems from Brunel University, London, Master’s degree in Business Information Technology Systems from Strathclyde University, Glasgow and bachelor's degree in Computer Science from Oklahoma States University, USA

Cover iJET Vol. 17 No. 24 (2022)

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Published

2022-12-20

How to Cite

Al Balushi, W., Al-Busaidi, F. S., Malik, A., & Al-Salti, Z. (2022). Social Media Use in Higher Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Literature Review. International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning (iJET), 17(24), pp. 4–24. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijet.v17i24.32399

Issue

Vol. 17 No. 24 (2022)

Section

Papers

License

Copyright (c) 2022 Wisal Al Balushi, Dr. Fatma Saif Al-Busaidi, Dr. Aqdas Malik, Dr. Zahran Al-Salti

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.