This document summarizes Dr. Stella Porto's presentation on using social media tools to support student retention in distance education programs. It discusses how social media can be used beyond instruction to cultivate virtual communities, provide a sandbox for experiments, and enable content sharing. It then describes the social media suite developed at the University of Maryland's Master of Distance Education program, including blogs, wikis, forums, and social networking. It concludes by discussing lessons learned, such as the need for leadership and coupling activities to instruction, and ideas for future initiatives like graduate-led projects and virtual conferences.

1. Using social media tools
to support student retention
Dr. Stella Porto
Master of Distance Education
Graduate School of Management & Technology
University of Maryland University College
http://www.slideshare.net/sporto/uceama09-porto

2. Agenda
• Focus of this presentation
• Introduction
 Student support in distance education
 Context & background
 Social media in distance education
• The Social Media experience in the MDE
 Our activities
 Lessons learned
 Synergy and future
• Final remarks

3. Focus of this presentation
“As distance education has evolved
from a teacher-centric to a much more
learner-centric model, the roles and
activities instructors and other learner
support providers have changed to being
more proactive than reactive” (Brindley et
al., 2004, p.9)
The lack of campus life imposes difficulty in keeping students and
graduates connected beyond the ties of the online classroom.
Using social media to provide further student support in a
sustainable way is the focus of this presentation.

4. Introduction:
Student Support in Distance Education
• Necessary shift from a campus based perspective
 Needs go beyond those addressed in individual courses
• Focus on the needs of this specific target audience
 Part-time
 Full-time employment
 Family duties
 Long time away from school
 Diverse academic and professional background

5. Introduction:
Context & Background – MDE is a partnership

6. Introduction
Context and Background: U of Maryland U College

7. Introduction
Context and Background: U of Maryland U College

8. Context and landscape
Oldenburg

9. Introduction:
Context & background: the program
• Core competencies
 Managing the DE system in a Corporate
variety of settings Training &
 Planning, budgeting, Learning
development, delivery, and
support of distance education Faculty Media &
and distance training programs Support technology
• Target Audience
 Potential managers of the Distance
distance education enterprise in: Education
 Educational organizations
 Corporate / Business Instruction
Higher
 Government & Military Design &
Education
 Non-profit and associations Support
• Entirely online for part-time Leaders &
working adults Managers
• International
• Collaborative

10. Introduction:
Institutional Student support
• Enrollment management / Registrar
 Admissions
 Financial aid
 Registration
 Advising
 Graduation
• Portal with self-services
• Academic specialist within the
department
• Program director
• Library
• Office of disabilities

11. Social media: what it is

12. Social media: what it can do for us
BEYOND instruction
• Virtual communities: cultivate a blend of challenge and support
 Sharing beyond virtual classroom
 Social network
 Peer support
 Tools: any social network tool or online group tools
• Sandbox for experiments, especially useful for distance
educators
 Learning with technology
 Learning through technology
 Acquiring skills
 Developing technological competencies
 Tools: ALL

13. Social media: what it can do for us
BEYOND instruction
• Individual and collaborative means for producing and sharing
content
 Generation of user content
 Building collective knowledge
 Tools: blogs, wikis, collaborative documents, etc.
• Information diffusion and immediate feedback
 Immediate communication with stakeholders
 Collective feedback and appreciation
 Tools: blogs, social networking, wikis, …
• Expanding knowledge in field of interest
 Sharing new information and utilizing new media
 Program-wide projects
 Tools: audio, video, and image tools, blogs, social networking, …

14. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite
BLOGS
WIKIS VIDEOS
SOCIAL NETWORKING

15. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE Hub
The MDE Hub
•The one-stop-shop for ALL
MDE related information
•Extremely flexible platform

16. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE Blog
The MDE Blog
•Initially was the one-stop-shop
for all MDE information
•Now, works exclusively as a
blog
•One-way communication - no
interaction

17. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE Lounge
The MDE-lounge
•Real interaction
•Privacy, listserv mode,
discussion board, simple and not-
invasive

18. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE Faculty Forum
The Faculty-forum
•Management effectiveness
•Privacy, listserv mode,
discussion board, simple and
not-invasive

19. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE wiki
The MDE wiki on new technologies
•Knowledge-base
•Information sharing
•Meta-learning

20. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE capstone wiki
The MDE capstone
wiki
•Support for final
capstone: e-portfolio &
research project
•Information sharing
•Direct relationship with
instruction

21. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The capstone tutorial
The MDE tutorial
•Support for e-portfolio
•Precursor of the MDE
capstone wiki
•Direct relationship with
instruction

22. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: MDE Orientation
The MDE orientation
•Workshop with direct
instructor-led support
•Information sharing
•Direct support to instruction

23. The MDE Student Support Social Media Suite:
The MDE internship program
The MDE internship
program
•Getting your feet wet as
a distance educator
•Supporting the program
•Engaging in action
research

24. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE Buddy Program
The MDE buddy-system
•Peer-support
•Student initiative
•Action research project

25. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: social networking
Presence in social
networks
•Connections with
graduates and
prospective students
•Marketing

26. The MDE Student Support
Social Media Suite: The MDE Itinerant Video
The MDE Itinerant
video project
•Graduate initiative
•Celebration of the 10th
anniversary
•Community
involvement

27. Tools and more tools: Allison’s toolbox
Who is Allison?
Allison is an MDE 2008 graduate and an collaborator in the MDE network…

28. Lessons learned
There is a need for an active leadership role in all initiatives
Continuously invite community
Reach out to new students
Most participants are lurkers
Coupling blog posts to listserv
Students want to get involved, but they need a HAND
A few active members generate
significant impact
Being personal is key
Ongoing projects and activities
Respond to the needs of stakeholders

29. Synergy and future
Projects led
by graduates
Relationship Virtual
with other conference for
UMUC units 10th anniversary
Partnerships celebration
in publishing Podcast series
and academic Webinars
work Special interest
groups

30. Final remarks
Thinking beyond the
classroom
Enthusiasm is contagious
Experiment, experiment
and experiment…
Count on your graduates
and students
Networking is essential to
everyone for different
reasons

31. Thank you!
Questions?
Presentation can be found at:
http://www.slideshare.net/sporto/uceama09-porto
Contact: sporto@umuc.edu