E&D SERIES: Missed connections: Using online alternatives to improve student social lives

Taking university courses online has become a necessity in the last couple of months. A few weeks ago, Dr Heather Douglas discussed on the blog how more students than ever before are having to move their learning online due to closures and social distancing measures put in place due to the coronavirus. For a lot of students, however, online learning is not new. 

On-line learning has become increasingly popular over the last couple of decades and will remain so beyond COVID, because it offers students the opportunity to be flexible in when and how they complete their studies. To address this new demand, Universities have invested in optimising online engagement in coursework. However there are other vital parts of the university experience that have not been transferred meaningfully to an online context: most notably the social lives of university students.

The friends and networks made at university are important and irreplaceable parts of the university experience. As well as adding to the enjoyment of attending university, UON-led research tells us that being socially active at university has many serious benefits for students during their degrees and beyond. University friends offer social support during what is generally a stressful and busy period of life, provide a sense of belonging and most importantly are a network of people to turn to for help with coursework, assessments and important career decisions.
When students move their studies entirely online they lose the face-to-face interactions that form an important part of their social life at university. Thus, it is important we investigate how students currently manage to engage socially online. And we need to work to improve these aspects of online experiences, so that students can make these vital social connections with other students, even if they never set foot on campus.

To aid in this investigation, myself and A/Prof Mark Rubin have been awarded a research grant from the Australian Research Council to analyse the online social integration of university students. Over the next 3-years we will survey the current online social integration practices of students and then test interventions for promoting online integration.

We will particularly focus on student-led Facebook groups as a social resource for students from non-traditional backgrounds who are unable to afford the time commitment of studying and socialising face to face. In the first year we will investigate how this potential resource is currently being used, and then test some tailored interventions aimed at increasing social activity online. We aim to ensure that university social lives, not just coursework, are going digital.

For more information about this research project, contact chief investigator Dr Olivia Evans: Olivia.Evans@newcastle.edu.au