Using social media to enhance the peer mentoring experience at the University of Southampton
Using social media to enhance the peer mentoring experience at the University of Southampton
This case study explains how social media was used in the pilot year of a student-led peer mentoring initiative. The University of Southampton, faculty of Humanities, peer mentoring scheme was launched in September 2014 with a cohort of 750 undergraduate students across seven subject areas. The scheme is part of the wider, student-led, careers activity across all year groups within the faculty, otherwise known as the ‘mission employable’ project. Social media, including Facebook and Twitter, was used to engage mentors and mentees and to communicate with students throughout the scheme. Facebook groups were introduced to help maintain contact, initially between the student peer mentoring coordinator and the student mentors, then between the mentors and their mentees. The familiarity of Facebook was a deciding factor in the selection of appropriate media for use within the scheme. At the mid- and end- point evaluation reviews, mentors praised the inclusion of social media platforms and asked that greater use be made of them in future. The case study concludes that social media led to an increase in student engagement and an enhanced student experience within the faculty.
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Quince, Eleanor
bc2eefa3-e6f8-41d2-b52b-100794003aaa
Medland, Charlotte
a3fb80db-4faf-4f2b-a6fb-7d239e0e5b19
April 2016
Quince, Eleanor
bc2eefa3-e6f8-41d2-b52b-100794003aaa
Medland, Charlotte
a3fb80db-4faf-4f2b-a6fb-7d239e0e5b19
Quince, Eleanor and Medland, Charlotte
(2016)
Using social media to enhance the peer mentoring experience at the University of Southampton.
[in special issue: Academic Peer Learning (Part II)]
Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, 10, .
Abstract
This case study explains how social media was used in the pilot year of a student-led peer mentoring initiative. The University of Southampton, faculty of Humanities, peer mentoring scheme was launched in September 2014 with a cohort of 750 undergraduate students across seven subject areas. The scheme is part of the wider, student-led, careers activity across all year groups within the faculty, otherwise known as the ‘mission employable’ project. Social media, including Facebook and Twitter, was used to engage mentors and mentees and to communicate with students throughout the scheme. Facebook groups were introduced to help maintain contact, initially between the student peer mentoring coordinator and the student mentors, then between the mentors and their mentees. The familiarity of Facebook was a deciding factor in the selection of appropriate media for use within the scheme. At the mid- and end- point evaluation reviews, mentors praised the inclusion of social media platforms and asked that greater use be made of them in future. The case study concludes that social media led to an increase in student engagement and an enhanced student experience within the faculty.
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More information
Accepted/In Press date: 3 March 2016
Published date: April 2016
Organisations:
Faculty of Humanities
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 396611
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/396611
ISSN: 1759-667X
PURE UUID: 6ce997b5-ddc9-47b3-aa15-77d4e77bec2a
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Date deposited: 14 Jun 2016 11:01
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 12:46
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Contributors
Author:
Eleanor Quince
Author:
Charlotte Medland
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