DOI: 10.1145/2630008 © 2014 ACM 1072-5520/14/07 $15.00 the Network section of their Facebook profiles, created usernames such as “college kid,” or described themselves in their Twitter and Instagram profiles as college-bound. When we asked about these practices, they asserted that it was important for people within their network to view them as a college-goer. These students used social media to share information with the world, not just to access it—information about their college-going aspirations that may have garnered them valuable support from their network and helped them in their transition from high school student to college-goer.

The potential for social media to help address college-access issues has not gone unnoticed. Several organizations, including the Gates Foundation, the King Center Charter School, and College Summit, came together recently to support the development of software apps, games, and websites aimed at harnessing the power of social media for the purpose of addressing specific college-access challenges. The College Knowledge Challenge funded the development of a wide range of platforms that help students at various stages of the process, from awareness to graduation.

For example, College Connect, a
Facebook application developed by
the first author and colleagues at the
University of Oxford and Michigan
State University, provides students
with the ability to access a network
visualization of their Facebook friends
network, highlighting individuals
who list a college or university in
their profile and thus might be
more likely to help answer a college-
related question. Another Facebook
application, FastFor ward, helps
students throughout the K- 12 and post-
secondary pipeline develop plans for
their future careers. Students choose a
field of study and potential profession,
and then FastForward provides a
visualization of their Facebook feed
that illustrates a pathway toward
achieving that career. For instance,
a student might see screenshots of
themselves posting about graduating
college with congratulatory
comments from their Facebook
friends. FastForward’s imaginary
feed identifies major milestones for
students and uses images of users
from a student’s network to provide
encouraging (imagined) feedback.

CONCLUSION

Our studies have given us the opportunity to meet many different kinds of adolescents, each with their own challenges and their own ways of meeting these challenges. Although it’s easy to be pessimistic about some of the social trends being enacted via social media, our work with young people has made us optimistic about the potential for Internet technologies to be used in ways that can change lives.

We encourage other researchers and designers to consider how to create tools and experiences that can increase access to education and other benefits, for all kinds of people across the lifespan and throughout the globe.

This work is not always easy. Only
by making a concerted effort to recruit
participants from diverse populations
will researchers and designers be
able to understand the diversity of
structured and ad-hoc practices and to
account for them in the interventions
they create. Life transitions are a
particularly challenging time for
many individuals. Better tools to
support these changes, such as easier
ways to segment audiences in social
media, might facilitate network and
identity transitions for high school
seniors as well as others going through
significant life changes, such as a
divorce, college graduation, or moving.
Making personalized information
more accessible is another way in which
designers can support positive change.
Our participants were generally able
to access online information, but this
information was not always usable,
understandable, or even correct. We
are excited about the potential of social
media tools in the area of college access
and other domains where designers,
researchers, and technologists have the
potential to help individuals as they
work to change their lives by creating
transformative tools and experiences
for learners of all ages.

Endnotes

1. The names of our participants have been replaced with pseudonyms.

2. Burke, M., Kraut, R., and Marlow, C. Social capital on Facebook: Differentiating uses and users. Proc. CHI 2011.

3. Ellison, N. B., Wohn, D. Y., and Greenhow, C. Adolescents’ visions of their future careers, educational plans, and life pathways: The role of bridging and bonding social capital experiences. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships 31, 4 (2014), 516–534.

4. Bettinger, E.P., Long, B. T., Oreopoulos, P., and Sanbonmatsu, L. The role of simplification and information in college decisions: Results from the H&R Block FAFSA Experiment. NBER Working Paper No. 1536. Sept. 2009.

5. Leonhardt, D. A simple way to send poor kids to top colleges. The New York Times. Mar. 29, 2013; http://www.nytimes. com/2013/03/31/opinion/sunday/a- simple-way-to-send-poor-kids-to-top- colleges.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

6. Wohn, D. Y., Ellison, N. B., Khan, M.L., Fewins-Bliss, R., and Gray, R. The role of social media in shaping first-generation high school students’ college aspirations: A social capital lens. Computers and Education 63 (2013), 424–436.

 

Nicole B. Ellison is an associate professor in the School of Information at the University of Michigan. → [e-mail]

D. Yvette Wohn is an assistant professor of HCI at New Jersey Institute of Technology → [e-mail]

Michael G. Brown is a doctoral student in the Center for the Study of Higher and Post-Secondary Education in the School of Education at the University of Michigan. → [e-mail]

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