Title: Evaluation of physiotherapy students' attitudes and engagement with social networking and eLearning systems: implications for education and training

Authors: Garyfallia Pepera; Zacharias Dimitriadis; Varsamo Antoniou; Nikolaos Strimpakos; Eleni Kapreli

Addresses: Clinical Exercise Physiology and Rehabilitation Laboratory, Department of Physiotherapy, University of Thessaly, Lamia, Greece ' Health Assessment & Quality of Life Laboratory, Department of Physiotherapy, University of Thessaly, Lamia, Greece ' Clinical Exercise Physiology and Rehabilitation Laboratory, Department of Physiotherapy, University of Thessaly, Lamia, Greece ' Health Assessment & Quality of Life Laboratory, Department of Physiotherapy, University of Thessaly, Lamia, Greece ' Clinical Exercise Physiology and Rehabilitation Laboratory, Department of Physiotherapy, University of Thessaly, Lamia, Greece

Abstract: Social Networking Sites (SNSs) use increase tremendously among university students, creating at the same time second thoughts and opportunities for their use. This study explored, for the first time, the impact of Social Networking Sites and eLearning platform (eClass) on the education and academic life of Greek students. An online 35-statement questionnaire was administered to 330 undergraduate students of the Physiotherapy Department at the University of Thessaly. Demographic data, nature of SNSs, their application into education, and the use of e-Learning platform (eClass) were collected and analysed. The results revealed the high familiarity of university students with SNSs, the acknowledgment of the potential negative effects of their excessive use and their importance for communication and education purposes, proposing reforms that would embed the use of social media in teaching and learning pedagogies across academic disciplines.

Keywords: healthcare education; social networking; eLearning systems; physiotherapy students; eClass; social media; evaluation; education; training; eLearning platform.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTEL.2022.123649

International Journal of Technology Enhanced Learning, 2022 Vol.14 No.3, pp.231 - 242

Received: 13 Jan 2021
Accepted: 12 Apr 2021
Published online: 30 Jun 2022 *

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