Social Media
in eLearning
Prof.Dr. Srisakdi Charmonman
Charm@ksc.au.edu
President of Asia Pacific
eLearning Asoociation
www.charm.au.edu
Keynote Address. Eighth International Conference
on eLearning for Knowledge-Based Society
at Srisakdi Charmomman IT Center,
Assumption University, Suvarnabhumi Campus, Thailand
23 February 2012
Co-Author.
Rit Thirakomen
President of MK Company
and Founder of Se-Education
Public Company Limited.
2
Co-Author.
Pornphisud Mongkhonvanit
President
Siam Technology College
Thailand
Pornpisud@gmail.com
www.siamtechu.net
3
Social Media in eLearning.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Introduction.
Social Media Tools for eLearning.
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning.
Social Media in University-Level eLearning.
Social Media in K12 eLearning.
Social Media in Corporate eLearning.
Concluding Remarks.
4
1. Introduction.

Searching “Popularity of Social Media 2012”
in Google, 76.8 million entries found.
5
Introduction (Cont.)

From the ranking by www.ebizmba.com [6]
in February 2012,
the top five in terms of estimated monthly visitors:
1. FaceBook
750 million.
2. Twitter
250 million.
3. LinkedIn
110 million.
4. MySpace
71 million.
5. Google Plus
65 million.
6
Introduction (Cont.)

Searching “Use of Social Media in eLearning”
in Google, 27.1 million entries found.
7
Introduction (Cont.)

Searching “Success Stories of Using Social Media
in eLearning” in Google, 211 million entries found.
8
Introduction (Cont.)
From J. Aleckson “2012 eLearing Predictions
and How to Cope” [1], 10 predictions were made:
1) eLearning Master’s degrees proliferate.
Invest in professional development with eLearning.
2) eLearning Integrated into High School Curricula.
Enroll in an eLearning course.

9
Introduction (Cont.)
3) Integration of Formal Discussion Threads
with Social Media Platforms.
Join Social Media to collaborate
and comment to formal courses.
4) Declining Interest in Tutorial Format.
Come up with different ways
to assemble just-in-time information.
10
Introduction (Cont.)
5) Tablet Use in eLearning.
Use Apps instead of PowerPoint.
6) LMS will Control Tablet.
Let all students be on the same page
in live classroom.
11
Introduction (Cont.)
7) Online Micro-Lectures Impact eLearning Design.
Develop ways to sell this concept
to the non-believers.
8) Game Developers seek alternative to Flash.
Dedicate one project
to using an alternative platform in 2012.
12
Introduction (Cont.)
9) HTML 5 struggles to replace Flash
in eLearning.
Do not react until investment is available
to use HTML 5 as a replacement to Flash.
10) LMS Satellites grow.
It is alright to maintain more than one LMS
in the cloud.
13
Introduction (Cont.)

From E. Matas
“Top 5 eLearning Skills for 2011” [10]:
1) Graphic Design.
2) Video Production.
3) Rapid Development.
4) Social Media.
5) Mobile Development.
14
Introduction (Cont.)

With millions of entries from Google searches,
only selected examples of literature survey
will be presented in this paper.
15
2. Social Media Tools for eLearning.

Searching “Social Media Tools for eLearning”
in Google, 11.9 million entries found.
16
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)
From <Theelearningcoach.com>,
“10 Social Media Tools for Learning”. [20]
1) Audacity. An inexpensive option to Podcast.
2) Edublogs Campus. Software to centralize
and manage blogs within an institution.
3) Elgg. A social networking engine and publishing
platform for running your own social networking site
on a server.

17
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)
4) “Go To Meeting” and “Go To Webinar”.
An interactive webinar and live presentation.
5) Google Collaboration Tools for Education
and Business, Google Apps Including:
- Google Docs.
- Google Video.
- Google Sites.
- Google Wave.
- Google Conversations.
18
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)
6) MindMeister.
A browser-based service for creating mind map.
7) TalkShoe.
A free web-based service
to create your own radio talk show.
8) VoiceThread.
A tool for having discussions around media,
such as a presentation, video or image.
19
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)
9) Wikispaces.
A software for creating and editing
interlinked web pages.
10) Yammer.
A microblogging that provides
a secure enterprise microblogging platform.
20
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)

From P. Signorelli “Revolutionizing E-Learning:
Innovation through Social Networking Tools”. [19],
several examples were given, the one presented
here is Smarthistory.khanacademy.org… [9].
21
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)
Smarthistory is a free, not-for-profit,
multimedia eBook which may be used
as a substitutes to traditional history book.
 Smarthistory is made possible by generous grants
from the Samuel H. Kress Foundation.
 Smarthistory will continue to add new material.
 Smarthistory is looking forward to broader
collaborations with history professionals.

22
Smarthistory.
23
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)

As of February 2012, Smarthistory
covers the history from 400 CE to 1907.
Ancient Cultures
Medieval Era
Proto-Renaissance
Renaissance in Italy and the North
- 400 C.E.
400 –1300
1300 – 1400
1400 - 1500
24
The History from 400 C.E. to 1907 (Cont.)
End of the Renaissance
and the Reformation
Age of Discovery, Reformation II,
and the Baroque
Age of Enlightenment
Industrial Revolution I
Industrial Revolution II
1500 - 1600
1600 – 1700
1700 - 1800
1800 - 1848
1848 - 1907
25
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)
From <www.trivantis.com> “eLearning Industry
Leader Hosts Social Media Contest”. [22],
social media contest for eLearning was presented.
 The contest ran for about 1 month,
from 12 January 2012 to 15 February 2012.

26
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)

Twitter and FaceBook
are used concerning eLearning projects:
- To discuss.
- To post questions.
- To provide answers.
- To share experiences.
27
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)

From <waithash.com>,
“How to Use Social Media as a Learning Tool.” [24],
Social Media allow users to:
- Make information available.
- Help learners to connect.
- Help learners to engage.
- Help learners to collaborate.
- Help learners to share eLearning experience.
28
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)

The tools are:
- Search-Engines, especially Google Scholar.
- Blogs, especially by professionals.
- Twitter.
- FaceBook.
- File-Sharing and Collaborations
especially Dropbox.com, Google docs, and Wikis.
29
Social Media Tools for eLearning (Cont.)
- Video sharing,
especially YouTube educational videos.
- LMS, such as Moodle, Sakai, Blackboard, etc.
- Social Bookmarking, such as delicious.com
30
3. Social Media for Marketing of eLearning.
In this paper on
“ASEAN University-Level eLearning”. [4],
the first author stated
that marketing is a very important factor
for success or failure of eLearning programs.
 The purpose of eLearning marketing
is to recruit students.

31
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
University of Phoenix has been highly profitable
because it was highly successful
in recruiting students
 UKeU (UK eUniversity) was disbanded
because it got very small number of students
comparing to the target.

32
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)

In this paper on “Recruiting Student
for University-Level eLearning”. [5],
the authors discussed social network
for recruitment of students.
33
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
A. H. Omer presented five social media
marketing tips for eLearning [12]:
1) Use blogs to discuss cost effective training,
authoring tools, instructional design strategies
and theories.
2) Use LinkedIn to engage in discussions.

34
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
3) Use YouTube to demonstrate your products.
4) Offer courses to induce students
to take paid courses.
5) Use Twitter and FaceBook
to inform potential customers.
35
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
L. Overton discussed
how to make social media work in eLearning [14].
1) Master the art of conversation,
especially to engage potential students
on what they are interested in.

36
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
2) Understand your audiences,
especially by observing your staff
and students’ reactions.
3) Find where the conversation
are happening and go there.
Popular social sites are FaceBook, Yahoo,
LinkedIn, Skype, and Twitter.
37
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
4) Sharing great content is at the heart of engagement,
especially contents that are useful and informative,
to keep the potential students wanting more.
5) Master the tools that align to business strategy.
It you do not know the tools well,
you cannot use them effectively.
38
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
J. Ballas shared his insight
on FaceBook marketing [2].
1) Online to exceed print advertising in 2012.
By 2016, the projection is:

US$ 62 billion for online.
US$ 32 billion for print.
39
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
2) Two Key types of Facbook marketing:
- Free by posting your content
on your business FaceBook page
and run competitions and surveys.
- Paid to accelerate your presence online.
40
Social Media for Marketing of eLearning (Cont.)
W. Oppelbaumer presented his idea
on Using Twitter in eLearning [13].
1) Follow the Subject Matter Experts (SME).
Let the students tweet questions to SME to answer.
2) Follow the Subject.
Use a hashtag to keep the conversation going.
3) Build a community
to let learners share there thoughts.

41
4. Social Media in University-Level eLearning.

From P. Signorelli “Revolutionizing E-Learning”. [19],
examples of use of Social Media in eLearning are:
- Wikipedia-style collaborations.
- Social Networking Tools such as
* Online Discussion Boards.
* Live Chats.
* Twitter.
* YouTube.
* Communities.
42
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)
From E. Hoffman “Social Media
and Learning Environment”. [7], Social Media
changed authority from the teachers to the students.
 Teaching-elearning initiatives in higher education
has been:
- Under-funded.
- Poorly coordinated.
- Too rapidly moved to the new high-prestige trend.

43
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

Hoffman stated that Social networking
provides novel affordances
for computer-supported collaborative learning.
44
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

From S. Minocha “A Study on the Effective
Use of Social Software”. [11],
educational goals for using Social Media are:
- Initiating new ways of learning.
- Giving control to student.
- Providing transferable skills.
45
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)
- Supporting peer-to-peer learning.
- Enhancing reflective learning.
- Creating a digital identity.
- Fostering social engagement.
46
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

Benefits from using Social Media
in Higher Education include:
- Retention.
- Socialization.
- Collaborative learning.
- Student engagement.
- Sense of control and ownership.
- Problem-solving.
47
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)
- Sense of achievement.
- Visibility of artifacts created.
- Integrative of multimedia.
- Adding novelty and excitement
to the learning environment.
- Overcoming isolation and geographic difference.
- Students’ positive perception of the teachers.
48
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

From <www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/newuniversity-of-phoenix-social-network-connects…>
[15], on 24 September 2010,
University of Phoenix announced
“PhoenixConnect” which is its own Social Network
for students, alumni and faculty.
49
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)
During the first week of announcement
the adoption rate was 95%.
 As of 31 August 2010,
Phoenix has 470,800 students.

50
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

Some of the resources offered
by PhoenixConnect include:
- Academic for professional networking.
- Tools for collaboration and discussion.
- Personalized profiles.
- Directory of all active PhoenixConnect Communities.
- Recent activity feed.
- Widget displaying people with similar interest.
51
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

From the University of Phoenix web [23],
PhoenixConnect provides:
- Academic and professional conversations.
- Answers to questions.
- Updates activities stream.
- User profile.
- Status updates.
52
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)
- Network and connect.
- Joining or starting a group.
- Keeping up with University news
and announcements.
- Establishing privacy settings.
53
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

From <www.capellacommons.com> [3],
as of 30 June 2011,
Capella University has more than 38,000 students
from 50 states of the US and 59 other countries.
54
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

Capella Commons is the Social Networking portal
from Capella University students, faculty
and staff to share:
- Blogs.
- Podcasts.
- Photos.
- Others.
55
Social Media in University-Level eLearning (Cont.)

Capella also has FaceBook pages:
- Capella official FaceBook page.
- Capella’s Military and Veterans FaceBook page.
- Capella’s Mental Health FaceBook page.
- Capella’s Higher Education FaceBook page.
- Capella’s Doctoral Degree Programs
FaceBook page.
56
5. Social Media in K12 eLearning.

From thejournal.com.
“5 K-12 E-Learning Trends”. [21], ,
B. McCrea stated that popular in classrooms,
social networking such as FaceBooking
and Twittering become popular in classrooms.
57
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)
K-12 sector should use Social Networking
to its advantage.
 A Program Director at Walden University
recommended:
- FaceBook.
- Twitter.
- Delicions.
- Diigo.

58
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)
Using Diigo, teachers can
- Set up electronic reading lists.
- Post assignments.
 Using Diigo, students can
- Access on their own time.
- Read the posting without having to wait for email.

59
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)

From K. Waters. “google+ May Open
Social Networking for some K-12 Schools”. [25],
the author commented that:
- Special care must be used
to safeguard K-12 student’ personal information
in using social network.
Because of privacy concern.
60
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)
K-12 schools have blocked student access to:
- FaceBook.
- Twitter.
- Flicker.
 With better privacy safeguard,
many K-12 schools have allowed Google+.
 As of August 2011,
Google+ has more than 25 million users.

61
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)

To control users’ privacy, Google+ provide
a feature called “circle” for users to divide
their contacts into groups and specially
which group can access which information.
62
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)

From C. Kanfman. “Top 10 e-learning
trends in Kindergarten to grade 12”. [8],
the author stated that:
- eLearning has become a part of K-12 standard
curriculum.
- social networking provides new level of:
* Interaction.
* Communication.
* Collaboration.
63
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)
The K-12 generation is familiar
with social networking forums.
 When properly supervised, Twitter and FaceBook
have a place in K-12 classrooms.

64
Social Media in K12 eLearning (Cont.)

At the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia,
K-12 students use social networking to:
- Message each others.
- Share documents and blogs.
- Upload their work onto school network.
- Make their work available thru podcast.
65
6. Social Media in Corporate eLearning.

From S. Rogers. “Corporate eLearning Coming
to a Boardroom Near You”. [16],
the author stated that:
- Corporate eLearning is the way of the future.
* Bringing people together even when
they are thousands of miles apart.
66
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
* Cutting costs.
* Reducing the environment impact
of business travel.
- Social Media is definitely a part
of corporate eLearning.
67
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)

Technology for corporate eLearning are:
- Social networking.
- Multi-authored blogs.
- Social networking games.
- Instant messaging.
- Video Conferencing.
68
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)

From B. Schlenker. “Corporate eLearning Strategies
and Development”. [17],
the author stated that:
- Social Media is no longer a trend
but the main stream of communicating.
- Social Media is not a skill
but a practice.
69
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
- Knowledge of how to use Social Media
is gained by being embedded in it.
- Corporate eLearning developers
should (If not already done):
* Get a Twitter account.
* Join LinkedIn group.
* Join FaceBook group.
* Etc.
70
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
- For Learning Development Practitioners:
* If your corporate
does not have Social Media solution in place,
do not think about it in your design.
71
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
* If your corporate
has Social Media solution in place,
get people to:
 Connect.
 Participate.
 Engage.
72
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
- For Training Managers:
* Engage with your IT department.
* Begin conversations
on how to leverage Social Media functionality.
73
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
* If your IT department
is already familiar with Social Media,
find out who’s using it, how and when
in under to use Social Media
in eLearning effectively.
74
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)

From A. Shea. “Corporate Learning and Social
Media ROI: Show Me the Money”. [18],
the author stated that:
- What you get from Social Media
depends on what you put into it.
- ROI on Social Media on Corporate eLearning
may be difficult to determine.
75
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
- In Social Media, there are many indices to use:
* Number of Tweets.
* Number of FaceBook likes.
* Number of Visit to blogs.
* Number of Comments.
* Etc.
76
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
- HP showed how an integrated Social Media Center
for sales force corporate eLearning training
saved US$ 7,500 per learner
compared to traditional training.
- Chrysler cut delivery time of training to dealer
from 2 weeks to a single day.
77
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
- Cisco created an integrated Social Media
platform with:
* Videos.
* Podcasts.
* Learning Modules.
* Games.
78
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
* Discussion Forums.
* Communities.
* Mentoring Connections.
* Individual Profiles.
* Site-wide Search.
79
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
* Wikis.
* Blogs.
* Tagging.
* Social Bookmarking.
* Polls.
* RSS Feeds.
80
Social Media in Corporate eLearning (Cont.)
- Cisco was honoured for its Social Media
in Corporate eLearning
with Brandon Hall Group Gold Award.
81
7. Concluding Remarks.
Social Media have been successfully
used in eLearning.
 All parties concerned must follow the use of Social
Media in eLearning.

82
Concluding Remarks (Cont.)
There who have not used Social Media in eLearning
must try to do so.
 There who have been Social Media in eLearning
must find more ways to use it more effectively
for the benefits of all concerned.

83
Reference.
1. Aleckson, J. “2012 eLearning Predictions
and How to Cope”. managingelearning.com/
/2011/12/28/547/. Posted on December 28, 2011.
Accessed on February 3, 2012.
84
Reference (Cont.)
2. Ballas, J. “An Insight into FaceBook
Marketing Infographic”.
www.jeffbullas.com/2012/02/17/an-insight-intofacebook-marketing-infographic/.
Accessed on February 2, 2012.
3. Capella University. “Capella Commons”.
www.capellacommons.com.
Accessed on February 4, 2012.
85
Reference (Cont.)
4. Charmonman, S. “Regional Report 2008
on ASEAN University-Level eLearning”.
Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference
on eLearning for Knowledge-Based Society,
11 - 12 December 2008. pp. 2.1 – 2.13
86
Reference (Cont.)
5. Charmonman, S. and Mongkonvanit, P.
”Recruiting Students for University-Level eLearning”.
Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference
on eLearning for Knowledge-Based Society,
16 – 17 December 2010. pp. 1.1 – 1.5
6. eBizMBA. “Top 15 Most Popular Social Network
Sites, February 2012”. www.ebizmba.com/
articles/social-networking-websites.
87
Accessed on February 1, 2012.
Reference (Cont.)
7. Hoffman, E. “Social Media and Learning
Environments: Shifting Perspectives on the Locus
of Control”. ineducation.ca/article/social-media-andlearning-environments--perspectives-locus-control.
Accessed on February 4, 2012.
8. Kaufman, C. “Top 10 e-Learning Trends
in Kindergarten to grade 12”.
www.onlineschools.com/in-focus/10-elearning-trends.
88
Accessed on February 5, 2012.
Reference (Cont.)
9. Khanacademy.org. “Smarthistory”.
Smarthistory.khanacademy.org /aboutsmarthistory.html. Accessed on February 3, 2012.
10. Matas, E. “Top 5 eLearning Skills for 2011”.
elearningweekly.wordpress.com/2011/02/27/top-5elearning-skills-for-2011/.
Posted on February 27, 2011 .
Accessed on February 1, 2012.
89
Reference (Cont.)
11. Minocha, S. “ A Study on the Effective Use
of Social Software by Further and Higher
Education in the UK: Learning and Engagement”.
kn.open.ac.uk/public/workspace.cfm?wpid=8655.
Accessed on February 4, 2012.
90
Reference (Cont.)
12. Omer, A.H. “Five Social Media Marketing Tips for
eLearning Industry”.
blog.commlabindia.com/elearning/five-social-mediamarketing-tips-for-the-e-learning-industry. Posted
on May 11, 2009. Accessed on February 1, 2012.
91
Reference (Cont.)
13. Oppelbaumer, W. “Three Practical Ideas for Using
Twitter in E-Learning”. www.articulate.com/rapidelearning/three-practical-ideas-for-using-twitter-ine-learning/. Posted on August 4, 2009.
Accessed on February 3, 2012.
92
Reference (Cont.)
14. Overton, L. “How to Make Social Media Work
in eLearning by following these top tips
from marketing”.
insights.elearningnetwork.org/?p=554.
Posted on December 21, 2011.
Accessed on February 2, 2012.
93
Reference (Cont.)
15. PRNewswire. “New University of Phoenix
Social Network Connects Students,
Alumni and Faculty for Personal Success”.
www. prnewswire.com/news-releases/newuniversity-of-phoenix-social-network-connectsstudents-alumni-and-faculty-for-personal-success105336923.html. Accessed on February 4, 2012.
94
Reference (Cont.)
16. Rogers, S. “Corporate eLearning:
Coming to a Boardroom Near You”.
www.mnn.com/green-tech/researchinnovations/stories/corporate-elearning-coming-toa-boardroom-near-you.
Posted on May 11, 2011. Accessed on February 4,
2012.
95
Reference (Cont.)
17. Schlenker, B.
“Corporate eLearning Strategies and Development”.
elearndev.blogspot.com/2011/03/practicing-socialmedia-skills-for.html. Posted on March 18, 2011.
Accessed on February 3, 2012.
96
Reference (Cont.)
18. Shea, A. “Corporate Learning and Social Media ROI:
Show Me the Money”.
www.quicklessons.com/blog/2011/05/corporatelearning-social-media-roi-show-me-the-money/.
Posted on May 9, 2011. Accessed on February 3,
2012.
97
Reference (Cont.)
19. Signorelli, P. “Revolutionizing E-Learning:
Innovation through Social Networking Tools”.
www.learningsolutionsmag.com/articles/128/revolutio
nizing-e-learning-innovation-through-socialnetworking-tools. Posted on October 12, 2009.
Accessed on February 3, 2012.
98
Reference (Cont.)
20. Theelearningcoach.com. “10 Social Media Tools for
Learning”. theelearningcoach.com/elearning2-0/10social-media-tools-for-learning/.
Accessed on February 2, 2012.
21. Thejornal.com. “5 K-12 E-Learning Trends”.
thejournal.com/articles/2012/02/02/5-k12-e-learningtrends.aspx?page=1.
Accessed on February 5, 2012.
99
Reference (Cont.)
22. Trivantis.com. “e-Learning Industry Leader Hosts
Social Media Contest”. www.trivantis.com/e-learningindustry-leader-hosts-social-media-contest. Posted
on January 12, 2012. Accessed on February 3,
2012.
23. University of Phoenix. “PhoenixConnect Academic
of Social Network”. www.phoenix.edu/students/howit-works/innovative_education_technology/phoenixconnect.html. Accessed on February 4, 2012. 100
Reference (Cont.)
24. Waithash.com. “How to Use Social Media as a
Learning Tool”. waithash.com/2011/07/how-to-usesocial-media-as-a-learning-tool/. Posted on July 8,
2011. Accessed on February 14, 2012.
101
Reference (Cont.)
25. Waters, J.K. “Google+ May Open Social Networking
for Some K-12 Schools.”
thejournal.com/articles/2011/08/24/google-may-opensocial-networking-for-some-k12-schools.aspx.
Accessed on February 4, 2012.
102