The perceived effectiveness of weekly announcements in the provision of learning support to sociology students

Sadia jabeen
Virtual University of Pakistan
Lahore, Pakistan

Announcements are considered an important source in the provision of academic support to students. They assist students to get information about the university learning mechanisms, courses and time-management skills, which may help them to make their learning smooth and pleasant. In this context, the present study documents the perceived effectiveness of weekly announcements posted for Sociology students in the Virtual University of Pakistan enrolled in the autumn 2013 semester. An online survey was conducted, in which 399 students responded to a questionnaire. For the purpose of analysis, descriptive statistics and Pearson's correlation were used. The results of the study indicated that students perceived weekly announcements as favourable for their learning process. Specifically, the demos in weekly announcements on LMS use for performing different activities were considered to be a very helpful element. Overall, students were satisfied with the initiative of weekly announcements in Sociology courses and perceived this step as useful in learning their subject.