Despite extensive proliferation of social media in different domains, higher education academics' use of social media remains unclear. This paper addresses this gap in the literature by providing a scoping review, covering the last five years of extant literature. It compiles and analyses previous empirical studies concerning academics' usage of…

Many higher education institutions around the world are increasingly motivated to incorporate social media for pedagogical benefit. At the same time, many institutions are also attracting an ever-growing number of students from overseas countries. With this in mind, researching how the use of social media applications impact on international…

Despite, and perhaps because of its amorphous nature, the term "academic success" is one of the most widely used constructs in educational research and assessment within higher education. This paper conducts an analytic literature review to examine the use and operationalization of the term in multiple academic fields. Dominant…

Although eLearning is the use of technology for teaching, learning and assessment, there is no common approach to it across South African Higher Education Institutions. There is therefore a concern that the full potential of eLearning approach is not utilised. This paper examines the nature and the extent of eLearning activities in South African…

The boundaries between on-line and "real-world" communities are rapidly deteriorating, particularly for the generation of young people whose lives are pervaded by social media. For this generation, social media exchanges are a primary means of communication, social engagement, information seeking, and possibly, a central component of…

ePortfolio has become ubiquitous in higher education over the course of the last decade, with faculty and institutions devoting both time and monetary resources to its use. Given this trend, the purpose of this study was to investigate the landscape of ePortfolio research to determine what evidence exists for ePortfolio's impact on student…

This paper contrasts the arguments offered in the literature advocating the adoption of open source software (OSS)--software delivered with its source code--for teaching and learning applications, with the reality of limited enterprise-wide deployment of those applications in U.S. higher education. Drawing on the fields of organizational…

This article reviews past empirical studies on the use of audio podcast (hereby referred to as podcast) in K-12 and higher education settings. Using the constant comparative method, this review is organized into three major research areas or topics: (a) participants' podcast usage profile, (b) effects of podcast on learners' outcomes, and (b)…

Recommends how chalkboard displays of well-designed diagrams can be used in sociology courses on the college level to complement verbal lectures. Specific advantages of diagrams are that they appeal through visual imagery to the right hemisphere of the brain and encourage a nonverbal dimension to the teacher's presentation. (Author/DB)

Suggests evaluation strategies (principles of procedure) for use by curriculum evaluators who work in the "illuminative,""responsive," and "democratic" modes. Principles include independence, disinterest, negotiated access, negotiation of boundaries, negotiation of accounts, publication, confidentiality, and accountability. (DB)

Claiming that movies are used increasingly as teaching aids in sociology classes on the high school and college levels, this article evaluates their potential and their limitations. Suggestions are offered on how to avoid sociological distortion while viewing films. Also discussed are ways in which film can be seen as a source of cultural…

Explores possible uses of electronic mail in three areas of the academic setting: instruction, research, and administration. Electronic mail is defined, the components needed to get started with electronic mail are discussed, and uses and benefits of electronic mail in diverse educational environments are suggested. (12 references) (DB)

Discusses a survey undertaken to determine how much attention natural and social scientists pay to the works of philosophers of science. A citation analysis revealed that social scientists are more than 25 times as likely as natural scientists to cite the works of prominent philosophers of science. Implications and explanations are presented. (DB)

Discusses general findings reported in the literature of use and citation studies on the use of citation counts as found in "Journal Citation Reports" for identification of periodical titles for cancellation in a university library. Principal reasons for retention of little-cited journals are noted. Twenty-one references are cited. (EJS)

This description of Info Trac, a laser disc periodical reference system, reviews professional reactions to the system and several user studies. Criticisms are discussed to define the role of such systems in research libraries, and data are presented in five tables. (17 references) (MES)