Social Media Engagement and Domestic Intercultural Immersion Trips : An Examination of Social Media Platforms as Avenues for Assessment of Student Learning in Higher Education

Abstract

This study analyzed the extent to which social media engagement enhances domestic intercultural immersion trip experiences. Dumford and Miller (2018) examined students’ use of social media as an assessment of student learning outcomes and found that it is an efficient and convenient method for assessing such. While there is research in the literature related to the advantages of using social media as an assessment of student learning outcomes, there is a paucity of studies pertaining to social media as an assessment tool for immersion programs. The purpose of this study is to contribute to existing literature with a focus on social media usage to assess students who participated in the Something New Alternative Spring Break (SNASB) immersion experience at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Data was collected via a closed (by invitation only) Facebook group of students registered for the SNASB trip. Students were instructed to create posts in response to eight prompts related to the university’s liberal education responsibility outcome. Data was analyzed via content analysis with thematic analysis as a secondary form of examining data. Results reveal that students engaged across a variety of social media platforms, utilizing multiple communication tools in sharing their immersion experiences.