Abstract

COVID-19 has led to an increase in the use of distance learning and social media for educational and communication purposes. The paper aims to investigate the factors that impact communication and collaboration in a distance learning environment in and outside of the virtual classroom during the COVID-19 pandemic and the role of social media in this process. The online survey was used to collect the data and test the research hypotheses. In total, 234 students’ answers were analyzed. The study findings indicate that the increasing use of Facebook (FB) for professional purposes improves students’ communication and collaboration during distance learning courses. High activity on FB and LinkedIn (LKND) is important for communication with educators. In line with engagement theory, active participation in distance classes and high assessment of the online tools used positively influence the processes of communicating and collaborating among students. The study contributes to the distance learning literature as it adds to our understanding of distance learning in the midst of a pandemic through the lenses of engagement theory. It also has practical implications for all active participants in the educational process.

摘要

COVID-19 导致远程学习和社交媒体用于教育和交流目的的增加。本文旨在调查在 COVID-19 大流行期间影响虚拟教室内外远程学习环境中的沟通与协作的因素以及社交媒体在此过程中的作用。在线调查用于收集数据并检验研究假设。总共分析了234名学生的答案。研究结果表明，出于专业目的越来越多地使用 Facebook (FB) 可以改善学生在远程学习课程中的沟通和协作。FB 和 LinkedIn (LKND) 上的高活跃度对于与教育者的交流很重要。根据参与理论，积极参与远程课程和对所用在线工具的高度评价对学生之间的交流和合作过程产生积极影响。该研究为远程学习文献做出了贡献，因为它通过参与理论的视角增加了我们对大流行中远程学习的理解。它还对教育过程中的所有积极参与者具有实际意义。