Arab Educational Information Network

Due to the increasing use of social networking sites in the last couple of years, these virtual communities have often been blamed for distracting students and taking more of their concentration and time. However, many studies have revealed that students use this social media platform not only for communication and entertainment reasons but for educational purposes as well. Our objective in this work is, therefore, to investigate the potential role that Facebook plays in enhancing students' learning experience. In this respect, based on the survey we conducted amongst Moroccan higher education students, it was demonstrated that 87.4% of the respondents have recourse to this social network for educational purposes. In fact, most of the surveyed students reported that they use Facebook to gain access to valuable learning materials, check for homework assignments and class-related information and activities, discuss various topics with peers as well as get help on academic-related materials. Nonetheless, despite the major role that Facebook plays in improving the students' learning experience, it was found out that communication between students and instructors on this social network was minimal. (As Provided)