Relationship between Social Media Usage and Students’ Engagement in Academics at University Level

Abstract

The use of social media can be seen in every walk of life and its impacts are evident as it has been emerged as a great source of communication and information nowadays. The study aimed to understand whether social media helps or distracts students in learning and participating in academic activities. The objectives of the study were to identify the usage of social media among students; to find out the students’ engagement in academics and to analyze the relationship between social media usage and students’ engagement in academics at university level. This study was descriptive, and survey method was used. The population of the study was consisted of fourteen hundred thirty-four (1434) students from all the departments of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, University of Kotli AJ&K. the researchers selected three hundred (300) students as a sample by using simple random sampling technique. Researchers collected and analyzed validated questionnaire data from all departments using SPSS to study students’ experiences and well-being. The researcher used frequency, mean, standard deviation and Pearson’s Correlation for the analysis of data. Students use social media for academic success, skill-building, and entertainment, but valid privacy concerns arise due to platforms collecting personal data and tracking activities. It is recommended that the university administration may organize workshops and seminars about social media usage and students’ engagements in academic, in this way students may know how to use social media platforms a positive way.