Social Technologies (Dec 2012)
University Presentation to Potential Students Using Web 2.0 Environments
Abstract
Choosing what to study for school graduates is a compound and multi-stage process (Chapman, 1981; Hossler et al., 1999; Brennan, 2001; Shankle, 2009). In the information retrieval stage, future students have to gather and assimilate actual information, form a list of possible higher education institutions. Nowadays modern internet technologies enable universities to create conditions for attractive and interactive information retrieval. Userfriendliness and accessibility of Web 2.0-based environments attract more young people to search for information in the web. Western universities have noticed a great potential of Web 2.0 in information dissemination back in 2007. Meanwhile, Lithuanian universities began using Web 2.0 to assemble virtual communities only in 2010 (Valinevičienė, 2010).Purpose—to disclose possibilities to present universities to school graduates in Web 2.0 environments.Design/methodology/approach—strategies of a case study by using methods of scientific literature analysis, observation and quantitative content analysis.Findings—referring to the information retrieval types and particularity of information retrieval by school graduates disclosed in the analysis of scientific literature, it has been identified that 76 per cent of Lithuanian universities apply at least one website created on the basis of Web 2.0 technology for their official presentation. The variety of Web 2.0 being used distributes only from 1 to 6 different tools, while in scientific literature more possibilities to apply Web 2.0 environments can be found.Research limitations/implications—the empiric part of the case study has been contextualized for Lithuania; however, the theoretic construct of possibilities to present universities in Web 2.0 environments can be used for the analysis presentation of foreign universities in Web 2.0 environments.Practical implications—the work can become the recommendation to develop possibilities for Lithuanian universities to be presented in Web 2.0 environments.Originality/Value—possibilities to apply Web 2.0 environments at schools and universities have been analysed in different aspects of the application (administration of students’ or pupils’ activity, communication, collaboration, learning); there are the studies of Web 2.0 environments aimed to manage career of specialists. Meanwhile in the aspect of study choice process the possibilities of presenting universities in Web 2.0 environments have not been analysed.Research type: case study.
