#Civility
Embracing Civil Use of Social Media
in Higher Education
Wright State University
Posted on: February 2012
Bradley Custer – Team Leader
Sarah Bear-Eberhardt
Megan E. Ziegler
Overview
I. Goals
II. Examples of Social Media Use
A. Education
B. Business
C. Student Affairs
III. Best Practices
IV. Positive Aspects of Using Social Media
V. Application of Theory
A. Chickering's Theory of Identity Development
B. Baxter Magolda's Self-Authorship
VI. The Civility Statement
VII. 2 Case Studies
VIII.Recommendations
IX. References
Goals
• To promote the use of social media on campus with college leaders and
provide positive examples of social media’s use in industry as well as in
higher education.
• To lay the groundwork for social media’s influence on student development
by reflecting how Chickering’s theory of identity development and Baxter
Magolda’s theory of self-authorship can be formed by students’ use of social
media.
• To communicate a civility statement and programming that promotes civility
in a way which students will follow and one which college leaders will
support.
• To present two real-world cases which can be shared with students in the
future and will demonstrate the consequences of making uncivil statements
online.
EXAMPLES OF SOCIAL MEDIA
USE
Social Media & Education
The Social Media Dilemma
2011
Ron Schachter
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
600 million Facebook users
K-12 schools are beginning to incorporate social media because it is interactive, accessible
and free!
Some schools have banned it for fear of inappropriate use – others embrace it
Principal at one school uses Facebook to communicate with parents
Parent Teacher Student Association started a page on Facebook which doubled the
membership
School administrators use Twitter to advertise sporting events
Superintendent uses twitter to communicate good news because no one reads newspapers
anymore
First-graders have a class Facebook page to post pictures and classroom activity updates
Other school administrators use Twitter to announce bad weather, use googledocs, students
create videos and upload them to YouTube, etc.
Key points: We should use social media in higher education because students in k-12 are using
it! College administrators can use social media to communicate with students, staff, parents,
and community members.
Social Media & Education
Facebook: Challenges and Opportunities for Business Communication Students
2010
Christina Decarie
•
•
•
•
In this article, a communication professor tells her story of her transition from
uneasiness with Facebook to her use of it in her classroom
“Facebook literacy is a necessary communication skill”
Facebook “requires and enhances strong writing and intrapersonal
communication skills”
Professor shows students examples of poor writing and inappropriate language in
status updates – students then evaluate them
– They examine what affect poor Facebook posts might have on them if employers see those
kinds of posts
•
“Social networking is not merely a way to waste time, but if used wisely, it is a
means of self-representation and self promotion. As communication teachers, it
is our responsibility to show them how.”
Key points: Faculty recognize the importance of social media and are teaching
students how to use it properly. Students can learn from their mistakes on social
media.
Social Media & Education
YouTube Video Project: A “Cool” Way to Learn Communication Ethics
2010
Carol Lehman, et. al.
• This communications professor describes a popular project using
YouTube.
• Project: students create an innovative training video on company
ethics and upload it to YouTube
• Students are already tech savvy enough to do these kinds of
projects
• They are reviewed in class and by a panel of business professionals
• This media project gives students the opportunity to be engaged in
a normally less-than-exciting course
Key points: Professors are expecting students to use social media in
the classroom because employers expect it. Students think social
media is engaging and “cool”.
Social Media & Business
Shaking Things up at Coca-Cola
2011
Harvard Business Review, Adi Ignatius
• Coca-Cola’s new CEO, Muhtar Kent, wants to double sales by 2020, and he is using
social media to do it.
• 33 million Facebook fans – a page not even created by Coke
• Largest single product page on Facebook
• Coke spends 20% of its media budget on social media
• Question: “What’s the value exactly of those 33 million Facebook fans?”
Answer: The value is you can talk with them. They tell you things that are
important for your business and brands. Today consumers are buying products
not just for the quality but also because they believe in the character of the
companies that produce those products.
Key points: Large corporations are using social media in a big way to sell and to
promote their products. College students must learn how to use social media.
Social Media & Business
Using Social Media to Grow Your Business
2010
Areg Bagdasarian and Steffanie Tamehiro
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
“Businesses can best benefit from social media by having a good overall strategy and knowing
how to listen, participate, and measure results.”
Budgets for social media in companies are increasing by as much as 79%
Ford unveiled a car on Facebook instead of a car show
Three methods for using social media in business:
Listening – what’s being said about your company
Location – finding the right sites to advertise on
Participating – allowing fans and customers to interact with the social media, post pictures of them
in their products (i.e. pictures of your kids in Baby Gap clothing)
–
–
–
–
•
Blogging
Social networking sites
Microblogging (Twitter Tumblr)
Multiples (facebook + twitter, etc.)
1 in 5 small business owners are incorporating social media
Key Points: Businesses need to be using social media to understand their customers
and to engage them
Social Media & Business
Growing Popularity of Social Media and Business Strategy
2010
Lee Dong-Hun
• Social media is the “open media for interactive communication led by
normal people.”
• 4 key values of social media for businesses
– Speed and durability – post information immediately and it lasts forever
unlike mass media
– Audience: Plurality and diversity – transcends nationality and class
– Cost: Feasibility and Effectiveness – most are free, low cost target group ads
– Relations: Friendliness and credibility – interactive, participation
• “Social media is broadly use by 79 percent for Fortune 100 Best
Companies”
Key Points: Successful students who can use social media for marketing will
be desirable to business employers.
Social Media & Student Affairs
Serious Social Media: On the Use of Social Media for Improving Students’
Adjustment to College
2012
David DeAndrea, et. al.
•
•
•
•
Author studied social media project that connected first-year students that studied
a group of 265 incoming students using student-only social
Author uses Bandura, social cognitive theory, non-student development theory to
interpret results
Students took pre and post test evaluating the student’s perceptions of
connectedness
Results showed that students were eager to help each other through the
turbulent, pre-college period using this medium by posting helpful information
about resources, orientation, perceptions of campus, etc.
Key Points: The project getting students connected before they come to a college
campus improves their perceptions of the college and social environment is
important for college students
BEST PRACTICES
Best Practices
• Social media are defined as any online forum where individuals can
share personal information, photos, videos, and are highly and
publically accessible. Examples of such are as follows: Facebook,
Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Google+, and many more exist.
• The following list is to serve as a guideline of practices when
engaging in a social media environment, and is applicable to all
university officials and students:
1.
Think before you blink: This slogan was crafted with the idea that
anything can be posted within the blink of an eye. Even when
mistakes are made, and you try to delete posts, the information you
posted could have been accessed by anyone who has access to your
“page.” That information could be forwarded and posted for the
expansive internet audience to see without your knowledge or
approval. There is relatively little privacy on the internet, and when
we post pictures or comments that may be less than favorable, they
are extremely hard to remove completely from the internet. If you
wouldn’t say something or show something to your boss, you
shouldn’t post it online.
Best Practices, continued
2. Who says that?: Before posting anything online, check its accuracy. False
information can cause problems for you and those who read the false
information. Recognize that falsification of information and academic integrity
policies do exist within the college’s Student Code of Conduct.
3. R-E-S-P-E-C-T: People will always have contentious points of view. Rather than
poke the bear, encourage respectful discussions of opposing viewpoints. When
all else fails, remember to treat others as you wish to be treated.
4. Who’s there?: Just because you can’t see them, doesn’t mean they aren’t there.
Who?, you might ask. Your professors, your boss, your future employers, and
your peers. You never know who might see what you post, so think about
potential audiences before you click that mouse button.
5. In MY opinion…: Make sure that you are clear about whose opinions you are
posting. Your opinions should always be stated as such, and there should be no
possible way someone could interpret your opinions to be that of MC.
POSITIVE ASPECTS OF USING
SOCIAL MEDIA
Positive Aspects of Using Social Media
Junco, et al (2011) conducted a study that investigated the effect of using Twitter in
the classroom and on student engagement. They found that
• students were more likely to communicate with faculty and other students
through Twitter than they were in-class and through a Classroom
Management System (CMS).
• Twitter created a cohort effect and connections with peers that they
otherwise would not.
• students were much more likely to create study groups using Twitter to
arrange time and locations than the students limited to the CMS.
• students shared values and interests with each other, and
• students engaged with faculty far more than those limited to the CMS.
Junco and Chickering (2010) state that “it is important for student affairs professionals
to provide programming that helps students think critically about online information,
engage in civil discourse, and focus on privacy issues. By doing so they will reinforce
this learning throughout the students’ college experiences” (p. 18).
THEORY AND SOCIAL MEDIA
Chickering's Theory of Identity Development: The
Seven Vectors of Student Development
Developing Competence
• This vector includes helping students cultivate their intellectual capacity, physical abilities,
and interpersonal skills. While educating students on the civil use of social media may not
lead to increased physical abilities, it certainly can add to expanding their knowledge base
and most certainly can help develop their interpersonal skills in the online environment.
Managing Emotions
• Evans, Forney, Guido, Patton & Renn (2010) identify this vector as working with students to
“develop the ability to recognize and accept emotions, as well as appropriately express and
control them” (p. 67). In the past, this would have been useful in student’s face-to-face
interactions. However, with the social media being used more often for communication, it
has become increasingly important to show students how to react and respond in the online
environment appropriately.
Moving Through Autonomy Toward Interdependence
• Using social media can greatly increase a student’s ability to “stand on one’s own feet,”
because this is really a space for them to share their own feelings and thoughts. However, it
needs to be stressed that once something is on the world wide web, it is there forever.
Students need to have a greater sense of the gravity in which they are taking part.
Chickering's Theory of Identity Development: The
Seven Vectors of Student Development
Developing Mature Interpersonal Relationships
• Students feel a lot of pressure to be a part of social media, because it’s what “everyone’s doing.” During college, it
will be critical, in order for a student to reach interdependence, that he/she understand there is another person on
the other side of the screen and what they type or upload may have consequences.
Establishing Identity
• Again, using social media can be an excellent vehicle for not only getting the student to share his/her voice, but
also the interconnectedness social media can provide by way of reaching out to individuals one may have never
even met because they are in a different state or even a different country.
Developing Purpose
• From all of the learning that can take place by a student utilizing social media, it will be important for college
professionals to frame their understanding in a way that is constructive for the student’s future interests and
activities. Social media can expose students to a whole world which they never knew existed simply because of a
tweet posted on another friend’s feed. It will be important for professionals to help students process this and
support them in endeavors they may wish to undertake as a result of what they have seen or read while using
social media.
Developing Identity
• Bringing together all the points from the previous vectors, this vector deals with the development of the student as
a whole. Pulling all the experiences, reflections and thoughts of what the student has experienced in the online
social media environment. Having gone through all these vectors will hopefully bring a culminating experience for
the student where he/she has grown in their intellectual, intrapersonal and interpersonal skills.
Baxter Magolda's Theory of Self-Authorship
Phase 1:
Following
Formulas
Social media is helping to
create a more voyeuristic
society, there has been
an increase in the
number of, what Baxter
Magolda deems,
formulas to which
students are being
exposed. Often these
formulas can be
conflicting, as they have
always been, but there is
a greater number of
formulas students have
available to them today
because of social media.
It is important to create
an open dialogue where
students can vent about
what they are being
exposed to and talk
through the various
pressures they are
feeling.
Phase 2:
Crossroads
The phase of Crossroads
is when one “crosses”
from being directed by
the formulas from phase
1 to a more selfdetermined direction.
This may be a difficult
stage for students who
heavily use social media
where they are
constantly being
bombarded by other’s
accomplishments. It will
be imperative that
college professionals
work with students to
develop their own voice.
in the realm of social
media. College
professionals can help
students identify who
they are as individuals
and how to deal with
what they see online.
Phase 3: Becoming
the Author of One’s
Life
Social media can serve as
a powerful tool for
students to live out the
story of their life. Social
media sites can serve as
platforms for students to
not only verbally identify
who they are and their
beliefs, but also where
they chronicle the events
in their life that are
helping to shape them.
These sites can serve as a
journal where students
can reflect upon what
they have written . Social
media literally allows the
student to become the
author of their own life’s
story.
Phase 4: Internal
Foundation
If students are able to
navigate through the
previous three stages in
the online environment,
students will be more
well-rounded and
grounded in their beliefs
and their life’s direction.
Social media can be a
powerful tool with proper
guidance.
PROMOTING CIVIL DISCOURSE
Ways Middle College can Promote Civil Discourse
• Implement “‘Social Spaces,’ a community conversation about social
media” once a month (modeled after Campus Conversations
created by the University of Idaho). This initiative will be teamhosted with participants from varying campus departments (both in
Student Affairs and Academic Affairs). Social Spaces meetings are a
proactive initiative designed to give students, faculty, staff and
administrators the opportunity to come together and discuss
implications of using social media.
• Varying topics will be as follows: effects of posting negative
comments/photos, networking through usage of social media,
conducting effective civil discourse online, learning how exercising
1st Amendment rights can still be civil, and more.
• Other topics of interest would be generated through these sessions.
• This initiative will be conducted through several mediums: face-toface, Skype, and asynchronous video with live chat options.
THE CIVILITY STATEMENT
Background & Justification for a Civility Statement
•
•
•
While our approach is not policy, our approach incorporates the suggestions of
Junco and Chickering (2010) from “Civil Discourse in the Age of Social Media.”
Before implementing the following statement, a review of the College’s mission
statement is necessary to ensure the college will be committed to supporting
pluralism. The mission statement of the college and all departments (especially
Student Affairs) within must reflect the college’s commitment to diversity
initiatives.
The civility statement
– fosters open communication and sharing of multiple views.
– recognizes that online forums are as important to student development as
traditional forms of communication.
– sets respect and civility as the mainstays of the statement.
– is not policy; thus, there is no statement of sanctions for negative actions
– supports initiatives for modeling positive interactions online.
– includes a best practices statement.
• It discusses identification of opinions so that personal opinion cannot be confused
with MC’s opinion.
– will be practiced by the whole community, but is monitored by the Student
Activities Department within Student Affairs at MC.
The Middle College Civility Statement*
•
•
•
Middle College (MC) defines civility as the practice of mutual understanding and respect that
creates a positive environment for all members of our community.
Civility should be practiced and demonstrated by faculty, staff and administrators as they are
leaders within the MC community. They are to serve as models for our student body. Our students
should also practice civility on and off campus as representatives of our great institution.
We recognize the limitations of this statement, and cannot guarantee civic encounters at all times.
However, the list below is to serve as a guideline in hopes that it will bring our community closer
and create a safe environment for all. These guidelines should be practiced in person and
electronically (through all forms of electronic communication, including but not limited to the
following: social media—Facebook, Twitter, Skype, YouTube—email, listservs, classroom
management systems).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Consideration and respect for ideas, lifestyles and work of all individuals and groups
Awareness of our actions and words in relation to campus life
Practice civil discourse
Fair and equitable treatment
Understanding of and adherence to the MC mission statement
Respect for the U.S. Constitution 1st Amendment rights
Understanding of how harmful words, expressions and gestures affect those around
us
Enhancement of students’ ethical and moral development
*Largely based on Ocean County College’s Civility Statement
CONSEQUENCES FOR BEING UNCIVIL
IN THE WORLD OF SOCIAL MEDIA:
2 CASE STUDIES
Case Study #1
• Amanda Tatro, University of Minnesota mortuary science student,
who posted on Facebook about playing with her cadaver and how
she wanted to stab someone with an embalming tool. A discussion
about how this student’s words reflect upon the university would
follow. The University decided that Tatro violated student behavior
policy, and was sanctioned to take an F in the course, undergo
psychological evaluation, and academic probation. Tatro sued the
University for violating her First Amendment rights, but the
Minnesota Supreme Court upheld the University’s decision.
– We wish to avoid turning the Civility Statement into policy as it leads
to violations of students’ right to free speech. However, should we
decide at a later date that the precedent has been set by University of
Minnesota, we could revisit the possibility of changing this into policy.
Please note, however, that speech codes have been ruled illegal by the
U.S. Supreme Court on February 8, 2012, and would make any such
policy difficult to enforce. The backlash from the publicity of such an
event could be far more detrimental to the college’s image than the
events of a case like this.
Case Study #2
• A second example of negative consequences of not thinking before
posting would come from Alexandra Wallace, UCLA student. She
posted a video on YouTube that went viral within minutes. In her
video, she complained about Asians on their cell phones in the
library, used derogatory language to describe how they were
speaking, and used racial stereotypes to complain about those who
live in her residence hall. This caused such a backlash that she
withdrew from the university and moved home, but not after her
video was reposted multiple times (she deleted her original almost
immediately, but copies are still accessible today on YouTube).
– The college issued no sanction for her actions. UCLA determined that
she did not violate their Student Code of Conduct, and that she was
exercising her right to free speech. The student left on her own
accord, but not before receiving hate mail and YouTube responses
targeted towards her. She later issued a public apology.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendations
• Use and publicize the civility statement
outlined
• Create programing that educates students on
positive, effective social media usage
• Continue researching programs that work
• Keep an open dialogue with students about
how to best use social media and implications
for its use
References
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
“Alexandra Wallace Not Punished for Racist Rant” (2011). Huff Post Los Angeles. Retrieved from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/18/alexandra-wallace-not-pun_n_837857.html
Bagdasarian, A., & Tamehiro, S. (2010). Using social media to grow your business. Graziado Business
Review, 13(4), n.p. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Ball State University (2009). Ball State University Social Media Policy. Retrieved from
http://cms.bsu.edu/About/AdministrativeOffices/UMC/WhatWeDo/Web/WebPolicies/SocialMedia.
aspx
DeAndrea, D., Ellison, N., LaRose, R., Steinfield, C., & Fiore, A. (2012). Serious social media: On the
use of social media for improving students’ adjustment to college. Internet and Higher Education,
15, 15-23. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Decarie, C. (2010). Facebook: Challenges and opportunities for business communication students.
Business Communication Quarterly, 449-452. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Dong-Hun, L. (2010). Growing popularity of social media and business strategy. SERI Quarterly, 112117. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Evans, N. J., Forney, D. S., Guido, F. M., Patton, L. D., & Renn, K. A. (2010). Student development in
college: Theory, research, and practice (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Iganatius, Adi. (2011). Shaking things up at Coca-Cola. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from
EBSCOhost.
Johnson, Brett (2012). “Minnesota supreme court to rule on the off-campus speech rights of
college students.” Student Press Law Center (SPLC). Retrieved from
http://lib.westfield.ma.edu/webapa.htm
References, continued
•
•
•
•
•
•
Junco, R., & Chickering, A. W. (2010). Civil discourse in the age of social media. About Campus,
15(4), 12-18. doi:10.1002/abc.20030
Junco, R. R., Heiberger, G. G., & Loken, E. E. (2011). The effect of Twitter on college student
engagement and grades. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(2), 119-132.
doi:10.1111/j.1365-2729.2010.00387.x
Lehman, C., DuFrene, D., & Lehman, M. (2010). YouTube video project: A “cool” way to learn
communication ethics. Business Communication Quarterly, 444-449. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Ocean County College (n.d.). OCC Campus Civility. Retrieved from
http://www.ocean.edu/campus/PAR/civility.htm
Schachter, R. (2011). The social media dilemma. District Administration, 27-33. Retrieved from
EBSCOhost.
University of Idaho (2012). Campus Conversations. Retrieved from
http://www.asui.uidaho.edu/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=53&Itemid=66