Background: Social media has diverse applications for nursing education. Current literature focuses on how nursing faculty use social media in their courses and teaching; less is known about how and why nursing students use social media in support of their learning. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to explore how nursing students use social media in their learning formally and informally. Methods: This exploratory qualitative case study of a Canadian School of Nursing reports on the findings of interviews (n = 9) with nursing students to explore how they use social media in their learning. Data were analyzed using a combined deductive and inductive coding approach, using three cycles of coding to facilitate category identification. Results and conclusions: The findings demonstrate that participants use social media for formal and informal learning and specifically, as a third space to support their learning outside of formal institutional structures. Social media plays a role in the learning activities of nursing students studying both face-to-face and by distance. Accordingly, social media use has implications for learning theory and course design, particularly regarding creating space for student learning communities.
CITATION STYLE
Giroux, C. M., & Moreau, K. A. (2022). Nursing students’ use of social media in their learning: a case study of a Canadian School of Nursing. BMC Nursing, 21(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-022-00977-0
Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.