Awareness and Utilization of Social Networking among Teacher Trainees

Digital literacy is important for every digital native throughout the world since technology is changing day by day. Digital literacy is the ability to find, evaluate, utilize, share and create content using information technologies and internet. Activities like creating multimedia presentations, posting information about the individual and others online are the activities in day today life for teacher education students. These require varying degrees of digital literacy. Social networking sites (SNSs) have been defined as web based services that enable individuals to construct a semi-profile within a bounded system, articulate a list of other users with whom they share connections and views (Boyd D and Ellison N, 2007). 300 teacher trainees of both genders were taken as a sample for this survey. Questionnaire was used as a tool for collecting data which consist of 5 dimensions (i.e) General information, Communication, Education, Personality development and Difficulties in using social networking. Results revealed that teacher trainees of both genders with science background out performed the arts background teacher trainees in the awareness and utilization of social network in all the above said dimensions.