SOCIAL MEDIA AND STUDENTS’ STUDY HABITS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN BUKWO DISTRICT, UGANDA

BY
KUSURO ALFRED
Reg. No.  2019-04-08836

A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, OPEN, DISTANCE AND E-LEARNING IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT
FOR THE AWARD OF MASTER OF EDUCATION IN EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT OF KAMPALA
INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

AUGUST, 2019 
DECLARATION

This thesis is my original work and has not been presented for a Degree or any Academic Award in any University or Institution of Learning

_____________________________________
  KUSURO ALFRED
2019-04-08836
  Name and Signature of Candidate

Date:_______________________________________

APPROVAL
I confirm that the work reported in thesis was carried out by the candidate under my supervision.

---------------------------------------------------
DR. SOFIA SOL T. GAITE
Supervisor

Date:________________________

DEDICATION
I dedicate this work to my family and my friends, for the unconditional support and encouragement to my education.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

At first,  I am grateful to Almighty God for giving me strength to complete my master’s thesis. I would like to acknowledge my supervisor Dr. Sofia Sol T. Gaite for the guidance, assistance suggestions and constant support on this study. Your assistance has been instrumental. Also I thank my lecturers for their professional support either directly or indirectly. 
Special thanks goes to my classmates and friends with whom I weathered through the storms, giving each other encouragement and for their positive criticism.
Last but not least, I would like to thank my family members who have given a lot of encouragement and motivation to complete my study. May Almighty God reward you all.

ABBREVIATION AND ACRONYMS

CVI		Content Validity Index 
SPSS 		Statistical Package for Social Sciences 
PLCC		Pearson Linear Correlation coefficient

TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION
APPROVAL
DEDICATION
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
ABBREVIATION AND ACRONYMS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF FIGURE
LIST OF TABLES
ABSTRACT

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background of the study
1.1.1 Historical Perspective
1.1.2 Theoretical Perspective
1.1.3 Conceptual Perspective
1.1.4 Contextual Perspective
1.2 Statement of the Problem
1.3 Purpose of the Study
1.3.1 Specific Objectives
1.4 Research Questions
1.5 Null Hypothesis
1.6 Scope of the Study
1.6.1 Geographical Scope
1.6.2 Content Scope
1.6.3 Theoretical Scope
1.6.4 Time Scope
1.7 Significance of the Study

CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 Introduction
2.1 Theoretical review
2.2. Conceptual Framework
2.3 Related Studies
2.3.1 Social Media
2.3.2 Study Habits
2.3.3 Relationship between Social Media and Study Habits
2.4 Gaps Identified

CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
3.0 Introduction
3.1 Research Design
3.2 Target Population
3.3 Sample Size
3.4 Sampling Procedure
3.5 Research Instruments
3.5.1. Structured Questionnaires
3.5.2. Interview Guide
3.6 Validity and Reliability of the Research Instruments
3.6.1. Validity of the Research Instruments
3.6.2. Reliability of the Research Instruments
3.7 Data Gathering Procedure
3.8 Data Analysis
3.9 Ethical Consideration
3.10. Limitations of the Study

CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA
4.0 Introduction
4.1. Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents
4.2. Frequency of Use and Purpose of Social Media
4.3. Study Habits of Students
4.4. Relationship Between Social Media and Students’ Study Habits in Bukwo District

CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.0 Introduction
5.1 Discussion of the Findings
5.1.1. Frequency of use and purpose of social media of students in secondary school in
5.1.2 Study Habits of Students in Secondary Schools, Bukwo District.
5.1.3 Relationship between Social Media and Study Habit of Students in Secondary
5.2 Conclusions
5.4 Recommendations
5.5 Areas of further Studies

REFERENCES
APPENDICES
APPENDIX I
TRANSMITTAL LETTER
APPENDIX II
LETTER TO THE RESPONDENTS
APPENDIX III
INFORMED CONSENT
APPENDIX IV
QUESTIONNAIRE
DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF RESPONDENTS
APPENDIX IV A
QUESTIONNAIRE ON SOCIAL MEDIA
APPENDIX IVC
QUESTIONNAIRE ON STUDENTS’ STUDY HABITS
APPENDIX IV C
INTERVIEW GUIDE
APPENDIX V
LIST OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY
APPENDIX VI
SLOVEN’S FORMULA
APPENDIX VII
MAP OF BUKWO DISTRICT

LIST OF FIGURE

Figure 2.1. Conceptual Framework ……………………………………………………12

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1 Showing the target population and sample size
Table 3.2. Showing Reliability Statistics
Table 4.1. Frequency and Percentage Showing the demographic characteristics of the Respondents.
Table 4.2 A. Means Showing the level of Frequency of Use and Purpose of Social Media
(n=375)
Table 4.2 B. Means Showing the Social Media Sites Used by Students (n=375)
Table 4.3. Means Showing the Students ’Study Habits in Bukwo District. (n=375)
Table 4.4. Pearson Linear Correlation Coefficient Showing the Relationship Between Social
Media and Students’ Study Habits in Secondary Schools in Bukwo District.

ABSTRACT
The study investigated the relationship between social media and students’ study habits in secondary schools in Bukwo District, Uganda. To achieve the purpose of the study set and these included; To determine the frequency of use and purpose of social media, to examine the study habits of students’ in secondary schools in Bukwo District and to establish the relationship between social media and students’ study habits in secondary schools in Bukwo District. The study employed descriptive correlation design involving qualitative and quantitative approaches. The sample size was 375 derived from a population of 5900. Simple random sampling technique was use to select the respondents. Self-administered questionnaires and interview guide were used as research instruments. Validity and reliability of the instruments were determined through Content Validity Index and test and retest respectively. Data analysis was done using frequencies and percentages, mean and standard deviation and Pearson Linear Correlation Coefficient at 0.05 level of significance. The research findings indicated that the frequency of use and purpose of social media is high (mean of 2,91). Among the social media platforms that is commonly use by students is facebook which is high (mean of 3.75). The study habits of students’ was good (mean of 3.18). The correlation results indicate that social media have a significant relationship with students’ study habits and this was justified by r= 0 .985 and the R2 value of 0.985 at the significance level of 0.000. The study concluded that the frequency of use and purpose of social media is high. Most students have cell phones and have access to different social media platforms. The study habits of students’ in secondary schools was good. Students can still improve their study habits. There is a significant relationship between social media and students’ study habits. Social media affects students’ study habits. The study recommended that different schools in Bukwo District should equip teachers with necessary skills in life coaching skills to enable the teachers to counsel the students that may help to curb on spending more hours in social media. Secondary schools administrators should implement strict laws on access of social media. Parents must monitor their children on how they use and access social media.

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION

1.0 Introduction 
This chapter presents the background of the study, purpose, objectives of the study, research question, hypothesis, scope and significance of the study.

1.1 Background of the Study
The background of the study includes historical, theoretical, conceptual and contextual perspective.

1.1.1 Historical Perspective
Social media can be equated as old as mankind age of civilization.  The use of traditional songs and dances by several tribes like Kadodi by Bagisu of Uganda have greatly promoted folk to folk social interaction as well as the Sabinys cultural dances of circumcision as a word of transition from childhood to adulthood is pronounced. 

Drew Hendrieks (2013) interacting with friends and family across long distances has been a concern of human for centuries.  As social animal, people have always, relied on communication to strengthen their relationship.  When face-to-face discussions are impossible or inconvenient, humans have dreamed up plenty of creative solutions.  Avalanche media recently unveiled their interactive info-graphic entitled “the complete history of social media.

The roots of social media stretch far deeper than you might imagine.  Although it seems, like a new trend outcome of many centuries of social media development. The earliest method of communicating across great distances used written correspondence delivered by hand, in other words letters. The earliest form of postal service dates back to 550 BC and this primitive delivery system would become more widespread and streamlined in future centuries.

In 1792,the telegraph was invented.  This allowed messages to be delivered over a long distance for faster than a horse and rider could carry them.  Although telegraph messages were short they were a revolutionary way to convey news and information.

Two important discoveries happened in the last decade of 1800s.  The telephone in 1890 and the radio in 1891.  Both technologies are still in use today, although the modern versions are.  Much more sophisticated than their predecessors.  Telephone lines and radios signals enabled people to communicate across great distances instantly. Something that mankind had never experienced.  Technology began to change very rapidly in the 20thcentury.  After the first super computers were created in the 1940s, scientists and engineers began to develop ways to create networks between those computers and this would later lead to the birth of the internet.

The earliest forms of internet such as CompuServe were developed in the 1960s.  Primitive forms of email were also developed during this time.  By the 1970’s networking technology had improved and 1979’s UseNet allowed users to communicate through a virtual newsletter.
By the 1980s home computers were becoming more common and social media was becoming more sophisticated.  Internet relay charts were first used in 1988 and continued to be popular well into the 1990’s.The first recognizable social media site, six degrees was created in 1997.  It enabled users to upload a profile and make friends with each other users. In 1999 the first blogging sites became popular creating a social media sensation that is still popular today.

After the invention of bloggers social media began to explode in popularity.  Sites like MySpace and LinkedIn gained prominence in the early 2005 and sites like photo bucket and flicker facilitates online photo sharing.  YouTube came out in 2005 creating entirely new way for people to communicate and share with each other across great distances. By 2006, facebook and twitter both became available to users throughout the world.  These sites remain some of the most popular social networks on the internet.  Other sites like tumblr spotify four square and pinterest began popping up to fill specific social networking niches.

Today there is a tremendous variety of social networking sites such as WhatsApp, facebook, twitter, YouTube among others.  This has allowed an environment where users can reach the maximum number of people without scarifying the intimacy of person to person communication as a result of cross posting of messages on line.  We can only speculate about what the future of social networking may look in the next decade   or even 100 years from now but it seems clear that it will exist in some form for as long humans are live. Many people like to link the history of social media to the growth in communications technology that has been occurring since the end of the 19th century.  A common starting point is Samuel Morse’s first telegraph which he sent in 1844 between Washington DC and Baltimore.

 According to Keith (2019) on his paper entitled social networking evolution.  The history of social media is relatively short in terms of time but this doesn’t make it any less exciting or influential.  Today, social media is an integral part of the lives of people around the world,  there are some 2.62 billion social media users around the world and this number is expected to grow to over 3 billion by 2021.  Edith (2019) continued to enlist the social media platforms and the persons who launched each of them.  The website credited as being the first social media site is the six degree.  It is named after six degrees of separation theory which states that everyone else in the world is connected to everyone else by no more than six degree of separation.  This often called the six degree of Kevin Bacon” theory, although Kevin bacon himself is irrelevant to the phenomenon.  It was launched in 1997 and it lasted until about 2001.  Other social media sites include facebook founded February in 2004 by mark Zuckerberg as well as Eduardo Saverin Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes.

Twitter started March 21 2006 by Jack Dorsey, Noaj glass, Biz stone and Evan Williams.  Instagram started on October 2010 by Kevin system and Mike Krieger which only allows photos and videos to be frame in a square form. Snap chat started in September 2011 by Evan Spiegiel Bobby Murphy and Reggie brown, it allowed users to send photos to one another that would disappear shortly after being opened. My space was created and launched on August 1 2003 and quickly became the largest social media site in the world.  It started as a file storage platform but quickly transitioned to a social network which contributed to its meteoric rise in popularity.

LinkedIn begun on December 28 2002 by Reid Hoffalan Allen Blue, Konstantin, Civericke Ericly and Jean Luc Valliant.  It was a site focused on professional networking allowing people to connect with business and school contacts as well as companies this is its primary purpose.
Study habits are sometimes referred to as study skills.  Study skills were an early and important topic in reading however since the 1970’s they have received relatively little research attention.  The authors systematically analyzed the research conducted on study skills from 1900 to the present.  Several themselves emerged including motivation and effect activities described assessment created, meta-cognition programs described and the use of study skills in electronic environments Richardson et al (2010).The term study skill is used for general approaches to learning skills for specific courses of study according Wikipedia. Marvin Cohn based the advice for parents in his 1978 book helping your teenage students on his experience as a researcher and head of a university reading clinic that tutored teenagers and young adults with skills of writing Manuals.

Dr. Gary Cruber (1986) essential guide to test taking for kids was first published the author had written 22 books on taking standardized tests.  A work in two volumes one of upper elementary grades and the other for middle school, the guide has methods for taking test and completing school work.

1.1.2 Theoretical Perspective
The study employed social theory after the internet by Ralph Schroeder (2018).  According to this theory digital media have been responsible for some of the most wide ranging changes in society over the past quarter century.  At the same time there is little agreement in social sciences about how these changes should be understood.  One reason is increasing disciplinary specialization for example media and communication studies concentrates on specific areas such as the news or influences on social media without a broader analysis of what people do online.  This theory shows a relationship between social media and study habits of students of St. Joseph secondary school in Bukwo District, Uganda.  Nwegbu (2000) asserted that the success or failure of a student in an examination depends on his study habits. A child that forms effective study habits is more likely to budget his time and learn easily while a student, that form bad study habit will not only allot his time wrongly but he will also procrastinate create study problem and he may have difficulty adjusting in school, (Haye, 2002).

1.1.3 Conceptual Perspective
According to Meriam Webster, social media are forms of electronic communications through which users create online communities to share information, ideas personal messages and other content such as videos.

 “Social media” refer to interactive computer mediated technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information ideas, career interests and other forms of expression via virtual communities and networks. Maya Dollarhide on February 20, 2019 review social media definition as a computer based technology that facilitates the sharing of ideas, thoughts and information through the building of virtual networks and communities. Jamie (2018) states that some of the most social media sites used by different age groups include facebook, whatsapp, QQ, Wechat, Qzone, tumblr, instagram twitter, google, baidu, Tieba and skype which are popularly used among others. 

Study habits are strategies that students employee in order to excel in an examination. Sylvan (2018) outlined and discussed some of the ten good study habits to help a student to success in the school year.  These include get organized, know your expectations, designate a study area, develop a study plan, think positively, create a study group, practice actively.,  review test-taking strategies, read actively and look to the future. Study habits are behaviors used when preparing for tests or learning academic material,  A person who waits until the very last night trying to cram the information into his head is an example of someone with bad study habits dictionary definition (2018) by love to know corp.

According to Jarnuer (1974) asserted that the task of learning is not dependent on the teacher alone.  It is not only the teacher responsibility but it is also the responsibility of the learner.  Efficient learning depends on satisfactory learning procedures also.  This depends on learners ability to schedule his time properly to reinforce proper learning and study habits. Good (1973) defined study habits as the students way of study whether systematic or efficient. Patel (1976) study habit include home environment and planning of work, reading and note taking. Azikiwe (1980) study habits are the adopted way and manner when a student plans his or her private readings after classroom learning so as to attain the mastery of the subject. Study habits help the student in critical reflection in skills outcomes such as selecting analyzing critiquing and synthesizing field. 

1.1.4 Contextual Perspective
Social media is a truly global phenomenon with people from all over the globe interacting with each other via social platforms every day. This global reach represents a significant opportunity for brands but global diversity can make things complicated as some of these social media platforms such as facebook and whatsapp may take big portion of students time as they may prefer online chats which are costly and time consuming this will interfere with good study habits of students in secondary schools in Bukwo District Uganda, this have been reported to exhibit problems resulting from the use of social media platform which have directly affected their study habits.  This has often led to poor academic results amongst many students.  Tussing (1962) argued that a student who has acquired good study habits possess a behavior pattern which enables him to work on his assignment with good concentration without much challenges. Ozmert (2005) emphasized the importance of environmental influence as a major factor in the development of students studying habits.  In the same vein Adetunsi and Oladesi (2007) submit that the environment of most children is not conducive for studying.

1.2 Statement of the Problem
Social media platforms started in developed countries of the world such as, U.S.A Russia, Germany, Britain, France among others by the years 2006 and then extended developing African countries like Uganda by the year 2010 and Facebook was alredy active and spreaded to up country districts like Bukwo where most students had accessed mobile phones which facilitates online communication. Despite the fact that there has been schools rules and regulations to abolish usage of phones by students by schools but this did not yield positively as most secondary schools in the district operate on the day programmes while other day scholars rent hostels facilities which are in the hands of private owners.

During the number of years since 2010 to date has been increased number of school drop outs due to associated problems related to social media and these problems should be addressed now all the future of many young students in Bukwo District is doomed academically. This has warranty the researcher to investigate the effects of social media on study habits of secondary school students in Bukwo District.

It imperatively important to know that students at secondary schools are teenagers and their bodies are actively growing and hence forth need a lot of guidance and counseling from their teachers as well as the parents and the general community so that the environmental influences of western culture through social media interactions does not distort students concentrations on their books for improved academic performance.  

1.3 Purpose of the Study
The study investigated the relationship between social media and students’ study habits in secondary schools in Bukwo District, Uganda.    

1.3.1 Specific Objectives
i)	To determine the frequency of use and the purpose of social media on the common platforms of students in Bukwo District in Uganda..
ii)	To examine the study habits of students in Secondary Schools-Bukwo District in Uganda.
iii)	To establish the relationship between social media and students’ study habits in Secondary Schools-Bukwo District in Uganda. 

1.4 Research Questions
i)	What is the  frequency of use and purpose of social media on secondary school students in Bukwo District in Uganda?
ii)	What is the  study habits of students in Secondary Schools-Bukwo District in Uganda? 
iii)	Is there a relationship between social media and students’ study habit in Secondary Schools-Bukwo District in Uganda? 
1.5 Null Hypothesis
Ho: There is no relationship between social media and students’ study habits in secondary schools in Bukwo District in Uganda..
1.6 Scope of the Study
The scope of the study includes geographic scope, content scope, theoretical scope and time scope.

1.6.1 Geographical Scope
The study was conducted in ten secondary schools in Bukwo District in Uganda. Among them are Chesower SS which is located in Nyalit village, Chesower parish, Chesower sub-country Bukwo District, Uganda, it has a student population of 900, 500 are boys and 400 are girls. The school is government aided since the year 1996, it foundation body is catholic church of Tororo Diocese. The school is both “O” and “A” level, headed by Mr. Kitiyo Lasto with about 25 teachers and 10 support staff and 4 non-teaching staff.

Tulel SS is located in Kapseyo village Tulel parish, Tulel sub-county, Bukwo district. It has students population 500, 300 are boys and 200 are girls. The school is grant aided by the government but licensed by the minister of education and supports to carryout teaching and learning activities. The school comprises of only “O” level students and it started in the years 2000 under the foundation body of church of Uganda.

Kamet SS is located along Kamet trading centre in Yemitek village, Kamet parish, Kamet sub-county.  The school has a population of 400 students; it was taken by the government in 2014 as a SEED school and currently O level and mixed day school.

Kabei SS is found in Kutung village Kabei parish, Kabei sub-county besides KABEI trading centre on the North, it has a population of 600 students, it is mixed ‘O’ and ‘A’ level day secondary school taken by the government 2006 with Mr. Miringa Daniel as the first Head teacher but currently Mr. Sabila James is the head teacher of the school.
Kortek SS is a girls school taken by the government in 2016 with an intend to stop female circumcisions practiced by Sabiny Community. The current head teacher is Mr. Yeko Ronald, the school is day and ‘O’ level base.

Riwo SS is located in Brim village Riwo village, Riwo parish, Riwo sub-county the lower belt of Bukwo sub-county, it has a population of 150 students, not government aided, the school started in 2010 with church of Uganda as foundation body since then to date Mr. Kurwa Alex has been the head teacher. The school is mixed day and ‘O’ level.

St. Joseph SS is located in Bukwo town Council near Acacia Hotel, it is a girl school founded by Catholic Church of Tororo diocese in the year 2000, currently Mr. Opolot Raymond Benald is the head Teacher. The school is O and A level day with a population of 700 students, the school was grant aided by the government in the year 2005.

Border College is mixed Day and Boarding Secondary School and privately owned by the family of the late honorable Toskin Bartile John who was the area MP of Bukwo County from 2001-2006. The school is in Bukwo town council 100m away from St. Joseph SS on the East with the students’ population 650.

Amanang SS was established in 1980 under church of Uganda, is the first secondary school to be put in place in Bukwo district and founded by the Government, the school is mixed day and ‘O’ level with the students population 1200, 650 are boys and 550 are girls.  It is located in Amanang parish, Bukwo sub-county along Amanang trading centre on the West.
Chekwasta SS is located in Chekwasta village, Checwasta parish, Bukwo sub-county. The school is government aided since 2008 with the current population of 500 students and the school is ‘O’ level mixed day, the current head teacher is Mr. Limo James.

1.6.2 Content Scope
The study focused on the social media and students’ study habits in Secondary Schools of Bukwo District in Uganda.  Social media include use of sites such the reasons of using social media and different social media platforms such as facebook, Whatsapp, twitter and youtube that facilitate online communication while study habits which are personal reading and group discussion. Also to establish the relationships between social media and study habits.

1.6.3 Theoretical Scope
The study was based on the social theory after the internet by Ralph Schroeder (2018).  According to this theory there is a relationship between social media and students’ study habits.

1.6.4 Time Scope
The study was carried out from May 2019 to July 2019.

1.7 Significance of the Study
The findings of the study will be beneficial to the following stakeholders; school administration teachers, parents, students and other researchers.

The findings of the study will benefit the school administration because it will give them baseline information on the effect of social media on the study habits of students. The school administrators can make a policy on how the students can use the social media properly.

The findings of the study will help the teachers enforce students to minimize the use of social media especially in school because it affects their study habits as well as their performance.

It will help the parents to monitor their children on the use of social media as well as their study habits.

It will encourage the students to minimize or avoid the use of social media especially during class hours and concentrate on their studies.

The findings of the study will help other researchers to study on the effects of social media and study habits of students.

CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW

2.0 Introduction
This chapter presents theoretical review, conceptual framework, related studies done by others researchers and gaps identified.

2.1 Theoretical Review
The study employed social theory after the internet by Ralph Schroeder (2018).  The theory is all about the role of rising technology on social media and its effect on global access of information across all age groups.  This theory draws a relationship between social media and study habits of students.  Social media are mainly platforms, that allow access of information to the people using the same web such as facebook, Whatsapp and twitter among others.  Study habits are ways that ensures successful understanding of given concepts in a particular part of knowledge.  Social media may have negative or positive influence of learning especially for students at lower secondary schools.

Couldry (2012),  mediatization theory which argued that social life is increasingly mediated and this process is intensified by the internet across the world. Smartphone increasingly tether people to information and to each other but technology matters and in the case of smart phones it can also limit engagement in comparison with access via computers, Napoli and Obar (2015). 
The increasing online content production leads to great political liberalism or pluralism Bankler (2006).  The internet does not generate more resistance in an increasingly globalized network society that is becoming borderless castles.

Media theories and the facebook influence model, the emergence of new digital technologies signals are potentially radical shift of who is in control of information experience and resource, Shapiro (1999).  The new media are digital and often have characteristics of being manipulated, networkable, dense compressible and interactive ( Flew and Smith ,2011)).

2.2. Conceptual Framework
The conceptual frame presents the independent variable and dependent variable and the intervening variable which many affect the dependent variable.
Independent variable 				Dependent variable 

SOCIAL MEDIA
•	Platforms  
•	Frequency  of use 
•	Purpose of social media 

Study Habits 
•	Personal reading 
•	Group discussion 

Peer influence 
Family background 
School environment 

				   Intervening Variable 

Source: Olutola and Adekunle Thomas  (2016) .
Figure 2.1: Diagram showing the relationship between social media, study habits and intervening variables
 Social media according to Ugodulunwa (2008), are means of interacting and accessing information with people on same platforms while study habits platforms while study habits are strategies used to ensure effective understanding of a subject knowledge for purpose of passing examinations. Assessment involves the collection of information about an individual’s knowledge skills attitudes judgments interpretation and using the data for taking relevant decisions about the individual instructional process curriculum or program 
According to Murthy (2013) social media can be defined as the many relatively inexpensive and widely accessible electronic tools that enable any one to publish and access information collaborate on a common effort or build relationship. Social media refers to computer mediated tools that allow people to create, share or experience information ideas and pictures in virtual communities and networks.  Study habits can be measured directly through assessment inventories, reports, examinations and rating scales.  Ayodeleand  Adebiyi (2013) said that  good studying habits produces positive academic performance while inefficient study habit leads to academic failure.

2.3 Related Studies
2.3.1 Social Media
Social media is a website and applications that enable users to create and share and share content or to 
participate in social networking. It is also an interactive  technology that allow the creation or 
sharing/exchange of information, ideas, career, interest and other forms of expression. 
(Wikipedia, August, 2021)
On the other hand, these are the platforms that enable the interactive web by engaging users to participate in comment on and create content as means of communicating with their social graph, other users and the public, social media encompasses wide variety of content format including text video, photographs, audio, PDF and power point.  Social media is a by-product of creating content with your community, laptops, ipads, itough and mobile phones particularly smart phones are used for front-line interactions.

Also, social media allows individual to keep in touch with friends and extended family. It is also use to find career opportunities, connect with people across the globe with like minded, interesting and share their thoughts, feelings and insights. Although studies have found out a strong linked between heavy social media and an increased risk for depression, anxiety, loneliness, self-harm and even suicidal thoughts. It can also promote negative experience such as inadequacy about life and appearance. (https://www.helpguide.org., August,2021)

Meanwhile, social media has also manypositive effect on education including better communication, timely information, socializing, online learning, enhancing skills, making career among others. But the same has some negative effects which include identity theft, cyber bullying and social isolation. (https//tis.edu.in. ( August 30, 2020). Also, social media plays an important role in every students life. It is often easier and more convenient to access information, provide information and communicate via social media. Tutors and students can be connected to each other and can make use of these platforms for the benefit of their learning and teaching. 

While the digital media has become a significant factor in many young person’s day to day routine. On an academic level social media can have a negative effect on student productivity when it comes to concentration in the classroom, time keeping, and conscientiousness.                  ( Wikipedia, August, 2021)

Nusayba Kawsar (2014) while conducting a survey on social media use engagement and addiction as predictors of academic performance, during the study he  came to know that 99% of the students were facebook user, 84.7% used YouTube, 72% used WhatsApp and 52.7% used instagram, 46.7% used Viber and 30.7% used Google plus.  Similarly Cabral (2010) also found 98.4% are facebook users.  It means facebook is the most popular social media also every participant of studies were user of it.

Megan A Moreno and Rosalind Koff (2016) while analyzing media theories and the facebook influence, model found out that facebook is influential to behavior and so it should provide a comprehensive base for theoretical consideration to form future work and the potential for intervention development using facebook.  The Rand report (2010) argued that interventions based in new media or incorporating new media or incorporating new media components should be developed and tested.  The report also recognized that these interventions must be informed by sound theory either existing or newly developed.

Online social networking provides users with web-based platforms to interact collaborate and share multimedia resources in ways that expand the opportunities for citizens engagement including-e-participation. Kathy, Mcgrath (2012) argued these out while on exploring the democratic potential of online social networking.

As the Internet expands opportunities for people to interact with others, it contributes to increases in not only intensity but also the scope of social interaction. Social media can be a stimulating tool for learning (Greenhow &Robelia, 2009). Adolescents can learn much more from their colleagues such as a national school and a county school could exchange information about their studies. This can improve their reading and learning skills especially those from poor schools (Howard, 2001; Nie, 2001; Orleans and Laney, 2000) identified these opposite perspectives with the zero-sum and non zero-sum game perspective. The former assumes that the use of media and technology is more likely to reduce the opportunity for users to engage in existing personal relations, while the latter assumes that the media and technology are more likely to expand the opportunity to engage in personal relations by increasing the demand of social interaction (Boyd, 2006) This could make them spend a lot of time surfing through the internet at the expense of their studies. From this perspective, activities in the virtual and real space are not contradictory but complementary in producing and strengthening social capital.

Internet use is assumed to make up for a weak point of social capital embedded in the real space by increasing communications. A complicated network emerges from Internet interaction. This network has attributes such as cooperation, voluntariness, and sharing information Boyd (2006). These attributes are exactly coincides with the characteristics of social capital. This could help those with low self esteem to gain confidence and begin to participate in class discussions and answering classroom questions. As individuals spend more time on the Internet, it necessarily reduces available time for people to interact with parents, teachers and books (Howard, Raine& Jones 2002). Excessive engagement in social media has deleterious effect on learning and academic performance. For example if they spend much time communicating in social media, their virtual communication becomes their real world. This limits their time for vital activities such as reading, learning, developing mental and social skills.

Research by Pew Internet and American Life Project (2014) found that 93% of youth aged 12-17 were online users visiting MySpace and Facebook. Further, a study by Magin and Larry (2011) concluded that adolescents spend more time on the social media networking sites than any other leisure time. Abramson (2011) also reported social media addiction among adolescents to a point that some adolescents visit their social media accounts nearly every hour. Another study established that some adolescents frequently visit their social media accounts even when classes are ongoing (Ahmed &Qazi, 2011). This implies that adolescents may not concentrate fully in their academic work because their attention is divided between their social medial engagement and class attendance, which could lead to poor academic performance

A study by Lenhart and Madden (2009) on the use of social media by school going children reported that 61% of persons aged 12-17 years had used social media networks to send messages to their friends on a regular basis. Similarly a study by Akindehin and Akindehin (2011) on the use social media by primary school children revealed that over 30 million children in primary schools use social media in the United States. The same study noted that social media is used by as high as 93% of the children Netherlands. Prior to these studies, a study by Lewis Kaufman and Christakis (2008) showed that teenagers now use social media for much of their daily preoccupation. Further, a survey done by Kist (2008) on internet access by teenagers revealed that about 90% of teenagers in the United States have Internet access, and about seventy-five percent of these teens use the Internet more than once per day. This study also showed that approximately half of all teens who have Internet access are also members of social networking sites, and use the Internet to make plans and socialize with friends.

While analyzing the amount of time spent by college students on social media on a daily basis, Junco (2012) established that10% of students spent half hour, 35%spent two hours per day and 25% spent more than two hours. Junco (2012) found no students who spent zero hours on the social networks. This implied that all students surveyed spent at least some time on the social media daily. Although this study was done at college level, it still remains relevant to the proposed study given the findings suggest that students have considered visiting social media as part of their daily routine.

2.3.2 Study Habits
Study habits  are strategies that a student record in place to ensure systematic learning process of the subject matter for purpose of passing exams. Azikiwe (1998) argues that study habits are the adopted way and manner when a student plans his private reading after classroom learning so as to attain mastery of the subject.

Also study habits refers to  how one studies. That is the habit which students form during their school years. Without good study habits a student cannot succeed.  (https://files.edgov. August, 2017).One of the authors suggested how to improve study habits during this pandemic. First, the student must stay organized, avoid multitasking, make the most video lectures, set a schedule and trade your strategies with new one. In this way the students can learn better especially during this pandemic. (https://brainly.ph, October, 2020)

Nneji (2002) states that study habits are learning tendencies that enable students work privately. Wolf (2007) noted that the undistracted brain forges the requisite neural connections enabling synthesis and learning to take place.  The common cores of control enable the brain o enter into a state of deep reading deep processing, learning and synthesis. The artificial environment sharpens the brains focus on to the subject basing studied. A study conducted by Steinberg et al (1992) clearly shows that adolescents whose parents are warm, firm and democratic achieve more in schools than their peers.

Various studies also have shown that warm and affectionable behavior towards children (Epstein and Radin (1976); Kind Funli (1974).  Nuttal and Nuttal (1976) lead to their higher achievement in school.  Praise and approval given by parents were related with children high achievements Tibbets (1955). Students’ academic performance takes place in teaching and learning process, social media utilization is supposed to enhance the students study habits and help to attain greater height in their academic pursuits.  De Escobar (2009) observed that students need to be familiar with the relationship between good study habits and academic achievements to accomplish great success in any level of education.

Ayodele and Adebiyi (2013) argued that study habit can be measured directly through assessment, inventories, reports, examination and rating scales.  It literally means that good studying habit produces positive academic results and vice versa. Rolf W. Seebach (2011) postulate that people and animals learn best when given breaks between tasks and provide a persuasive new.  This justification for office day dreaming during her study on acquiring effective study habits in five easy steps.

Ebele Uju F and Olofu Paul A (2017) while conducting their survey on study habit and its impact on secondary school students academic performance in biology in the federal capital territory in the federal capital territory Abuja, Nigeria, recommended in line with their findings that teachers and school guidance counselors should collaboratively guide students on how to develop good study habits thereby enhancing their academic conflicts. Study habits, skills and attitudes Marcus Crede and Nathan R. Kuncel (2008) suggests that study skills, study habits study attitudes and motivation play a critical and central role in determining students’ academic performance.
Thomas Harboe and Rikkevon Mullen (2007) while conducting a study skill for international students in the teaching and learning unit of Social Science University Copenhagen, Denmark, suggested six simple rules to avoid long series of conflicts so that that good study habits are not affected, these rules include; Establish a joint level of ambition, Agree on time to spend, Keep appointments, Concentrate on academic matters, Communicate in a proper manner and make ongoing evaluations.

Today’s world is moving in a speed which was unheard in the past. Everyone wants to excel. Individual’s success affects personal and social dimensions of life. In this regard, academic performance is one of the major factors that influence individual’s success in any educational setting. It is any body’s guess that good habits and skills will help us to promote efficiency in our tasks. In education, proper study habits and skills entail to proficiency as well as high quality of learning (Dehghani and  Soltanalgharaei, 2014). Productive study requires conceptualization and intention. It could include some skills such as note-taking, observation, asking question, listening, thinking and presented idea regarding discovering new information. Thus, learner should be interested in learning and must be able to apply needed skills. On the other hand, inefficient study leads to waste of time and learner’s energy (Hashemian and  Hashemian, 2014). Study habits and skills like other skills can be taught and learnt. Accordingly, educational researches intend to find out effective ways to improve students’ study habits, and most suitable age of learners where they can learn those skills.

2.3.3 Relationship between Social Media and Study Habits
Social media plays an intermediary role of either, aiding study skills positively or negatively but this will depend on the level of learners as social media provides different platforms for information accessibility and interaction. According to Ariel R. Juddila and Raymund B. Gemora (2016) while conducting their study on influence of social networking on the study habits and performance of students habits and performance of students in a state university of West Visayas Philippines found out that the extend of influence of social networking on students as an entry group regardless of age, sex, socio economic status and educational attainments of their parents was high.  It also provided that the respondents study habits and academic performance were to a high extent influenced by social networking.  This is as a result of easy access to end brought about by the accessibility of gadgets like cell phones with mobile data and wi-fi connection likewise many students have not realized that spending a lot of time on social networking could be a hindrance to a good academic performance.  The findings mean that being active in social networking could affect students socially, emotionally and academically.  Students should utilize certain time for advance utilize certain time for advance student aside social networking that parents should get guidance and counselling about dealing on how to develop good study habits for educational development of their children.

Adekule Thomas et al (2016) assessment of social media utilization and study habits of students of tertiary institution in Katsina state Nigeria.  Based on the data collected the findings of this study revealed that there is significant influence of students level of social media.  Utilization on their study habits therefore the use of social media is an important factor in predicting students study habit.  This is contrary to the study of Adomi and Elirete (2012) which stated that majority of students used facebook for connecting with friends or relatives and others also as a platform for keeping in touch with close acquaintance which discourages reading habits among other students.

Social media could provide a means of more effectively managing development programs which aim to foster technology adoption and economic inspirational change drawing on new advances in network science and benefiting from the social media Robert Ackland, (2016) Development impact of social media.

 While Cengiz Sahir (2018) on social media addiction scale student form.  The reliability and validity study revealed that since social networking deeply affects the daily lives of students, it reveals the necessity of a measurement tool to determine social media addition.  As a result of a literature survey in Turkey, it has been observed that social media are widely used among 12-22 year olds.  However, no scale or test was found to measure the addition levels of students in this age group.  For this reason, it can be though that this measurement tool can provide important contributions to the literature survey Amany Elbanna et al (2012) Exploring the democratic potential of online social networking concluded that online social networking provide users with web-based platforms to interact, collaborate and share multimedia resources in ways that expand opportunities for the citizens engagement while challenging our current understanding of what it means to participate in democratic process.

A study conducted  by Kabilan, Ahmad and Abidin (2010), identified a number of benefits of SNS which include increased student interactions with other students and their teachers, increased students‟ satisfaction with the course, and improved students‟ learning and writing ability. Liccardi et.al (2007) revealed that students are socially connected with each other for sharing their daily learning experiences and discuss several topics. Students can easily contact each other with regards to school projects and assignments. It is also possible for them to work on group assignments from the comfort of their homes (Bukvova et al 2010). High achievers could tutor low achievers as they build their social relationships this could help the low achievers to shed off their shyness and participates actively in discussions however; it is also possible that they may pick on a nonacademic topic that may negatively influence them at the expense of their academic work.

However, studies in the education sector focusing on the influence of the use of social media on students‟ performance have reported contradictory results. For example a study by Enriquez (2010) found that students who frequently use social media networking sites are likely to have 20% lower grades than their counterparts who rarely use social media networking sites. The author attributed the lower grades among students who frequently use social media to the tendency of such students to have the social media sites running on the background on their phones or computers while at the same time studying. The student is thus forced to attend to both his/her studies and social media site at the same time, which undermines their overall performance in their studies. As is suggested here, it is possible that limited and divided attention between social media and academic work may eventually adversely affect students‟ academic performance, as need to concentrate fully in their studies in order for them to get the concepts right more so in technical subjects if they are to score good grades in the subjects under study.

Similarly, Banquil et al. (2009) found a continuing drop of grades among students who were frequent users of social networking sites. The author particularly noted that limited use of social media had minimally affected students‟ performance. However, continued and frequent use of social media negatively affected students‟ performance. Although the author has not particularly elaborated on how continued use of social media resulted in a drop in students‟ performance, the drop in performance could be probably due to negative influence such as cyber bullying from social media network friends. This implies that they have to devote more time on social media so as to reach a wide network of their friends, leaving very little time to attend to their studies. The proposed study will among other things establish how much time students spend on social media,
and how this affects their performance.

In one of the studies conducted on the assessment of social media and study habits of students, it was found out that there is a positive correlation  between social media usage and aspect of students study habits . But this had a negative impact on student academic achievement. It also found out that students who spent more time using social had “fever academic behavior” such as completing homework, attending classes and lower academic confidence. (https//;zenodo.org.files, August, 2021) .

On the other hand, in the study conducted by Ezeji and Ezeji,2018), on the effect of social media on the study habits of students it was found out that social media was prevalent among students . It indicated that social media usage negatively affected students revision of their lecture notes daily as well as submission and carrying out their assignments. This is because most students spent more time daily on social media . Most students indicated that social media affected their ability to gwet sufficient sleep at night. It can therefore be concluded that social media usage negatively affected students study habits.

2.4 Gaps Identified
Based on the literature very few studies have been conducted on social media and study habits and hardly no study has been conducted in Bukwo District Uganda. The items in the each of the variables like independent variable  and dependent variable are different from other studies.  The theory  used in this study is different from theories used by other researchers.  The study used both qualitative and quantitative approaches while most of the researchers used qualitative approach only.

CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY

3.0 Introduction
This chapter presents research design, target population, sample size, sampling techniques, research instruments, validity reliability, and data gathering procedure, data analysis, ethical consideration and limitation of the study.

3.1 Research Design
The study employed descriptive correlation research design. Descriptive correlation was used to determine the relationship between social media and students’ study habits in secondary schools in Bukwo District in -Uganda.  It used both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Quantitative data was based on the perceptions of the respondents using the questionnaires while qualitative data was used to get the in-depth information of the respondents on social media and study habits.

3.2 Target Population
The target population of the study was 5900 which were the students of secondary schools in Bukwo District-in Uganda.

3.3 Sample Size
The sample size was calculated using Sloven’s formula. Table 3.1 shows the data.

Table 3.1 Showing the target population and sample size 
Respondents (schools) 	Target population 	Sample size 	
A	900	57	
B	500	32	
C	400	25	
D	600	38	
E	300	19	
F	150	10	
G	700	45	
H	650	41	
I	1200	76	
J	500	32	
Total 	5900	375	

3.4 Sampling Procedure
Mugenda and Mugenda (2003) define sampling as a formulation of a procedure of selecting subjects or cases to be included in a sample. Simple random sampling involves allocating equal chance to selected elements in the population. This method involves giving a number to every respondent in the accessible population, placing numbers in the container and then picking number at random. Simple random sampling was used to select the students who were the respondents of the study.

3.5 Research Instruments
The study used researcher made questionnaire for social media and students’ study habits and interview guide were used for data collection. 

3.5.1. Structured Questionnaires
The researcher constructed a questionnaire that had a close-ended questions. The questionnaire was designed so as to obtain data and information from the respondents. It is contains face sheet to get the demographic characteristics of the respondents, 13 items questionnaires on the frequency of use and purpose of social media and 19 items questionnaire on the students’ study habits. The response modes were Always (4), Sometimes (3), Seldom (2) and Never (1). 

3.5.2. Interview Guide
The instrument had a pre-designed question about social media and study habits as a guide to the interviewer and to ensure that all relevant aspects were covered. The instrument attempted to get extra and detailed information from the respondents on their  opinions on the topic.

3.6 Validity and Reliability of the Research Instruments
3.6.1. Validity of the Research Instruments
The validity of the instrument measured the extent to which the instrument was supposed to measure. To establish the validity of the instrument the researcher consulted three experts in research from the university including the supervisor. The content validity index (CVI) was computed using the formula;
          
                     Number of items rated relevant
CVI =           _____________________________
                    Number of items in the questionnaire
                        31
CVI =     ___________________+ 0.86
                       35
                         
The research instrument is valid with CVI of 0.86 which is higher than 0.7.  It means that the items in questionnaires were relevant and sufficient to cover the content validity index, valid for the study. 

3.6.2. Reliability of the Research Instruments
Reliability of the instrument is the degree to which the instrument consistently measure what it is suppose to measure. (Amin,2005). To establish the reliability of the instrument, the researcher carried  out test and re- test methods to the  students  from other schools were  not respondents of the study. They were made to answer the questions. After two weeks the questionnaires were  given again to the respondents to prove that his or her choice was proved constant.  The internal consistencies of the items in the instrument were established using the Cronbach alpha

Table 3.2. Showing Reliability Statistics
Cronbach Alpha	Number of Items	
0.885	31	

3.7 Data Gathering Procedure
The researcher obtained an introduction letter from the College of Education, Open, Distance and E-learning .The letter was presented to the head teachers of the different secondary schools where the study was conducted. The questionnaires were administered by the researcher himself so that where there are issues not clear to the respondents can be immediately corrected.  Interview was done after the respondents have answered the questionnaire in a place convenient to the respondents to. 
The questionnaires were collected, organize and process through statistical package for social sciences (SPSS)

3.8 Data Analysis
The data was analyzed using frequency and percentage to determine the demographic characteristics of the respondents.  The mean and standard deviation were used to determine the frequency of use and purpose of social media and students’ study habits. . Pearson linear correlation coefficient was used to establish the relationship between frequency of use and purpose of social media and students’ study habits at 0.05 level of significance.
The following mean range was used to determine the levels frequency of use and purpose of social media and students; study habits:
Mean Range              Description                Interpretation (Social Media / Study habits) 
3.26 -4.00                   Always                                       Very High / Very Good
2.51-3.25                   Sometimes                                    High / Good
1.76 – 2.50                 Seldom                                         Fair / Fair
1:00 – 1.75                 Never                                            Low / Poor
Qualitative data analysis began with data organization. The data was grouped in categories which create themes and categories. The data was described, explained more deeply and exhaustively using logical process.

3.9 Ethical Consideration
To ensure confidentiality of the information the researcher assured the respondents that the research is for academic purposes only.  All questionnaires were coded to provide anonymity of the respondents.  The authors quoted in the study were acknowledge through citation and referencing.  The presentation of the findings were in generalizing manner.

3.10. Limitations of the Study
The researcher claim an acceptable 5% margin of error (0.05) level of significance.  In view of the anticipated threats to validity with relevance to the study.
Extraneous variables which is beyond the control of the researcher like honestly and bias of the respondents. Instrumentation; The research instruments are researcher –made.  Validity and reliability was ensured before administering the questionnaires.

CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

4.0 Introduction 
This chapter consists of data presentation, analysis and interpretation of the findings of the study based on the objectives. 

4.1. Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents
Students demographic characteristics in this study included gender, age and class level. The summary of the profile of the respondents is shown in Table 4.1

Table 4.1. Frequency and Percentage Showing the demographic characteristics of the Respondents.
Category	Frequency	Percentage	
Gender			
Male	215	57	
female	160	43	
Total	375	100	
Age			
12-15 years 	58	16	
16- 18 years	172	46	
19 -21 years 	110	29	
22 years and above	35	09	
Total 	375	100	
Class Level			
S1	34	09	
S2	33	09	
S3	85	23	
S4	85	23	
S5	69	18	
S6	69	18	
Total 	375	100	
Source: Primary Data, 2019

Table 4.1 revealed out of 375 respondents 215 or 57 % s were males and 160 or 43% were females. . It showed that there were more male students in secondary schools in  Bukwo District compared to females. As to age, the findings showed that 172 or  46%  were in the age bracket of 16-18 years, 110 or 29 % of the respondents were in the age bracket of 19-21 years, 58 or 16%  of the respondents were in the age bracket of 13-15 years and 35 or  9 % of the respondents were above 21 years. The findings imply that most of secondary school students in Bukwo District have an average age of 17 years. Regarding class level it shows that most of the respondents were S3 and S4 with 85 or 23% respectively while 69 or  18% were from S5 and S6 and 34nand 33 or  9% were in S1 and S2 respectively.  This shows that most of the students are in S3 and S4 and less number of students in S1 and S2.

4.2. Frequency of Use and Purpose of Social Media 
The first objective is to determine the level of frequency of use and purpose of social media. The data is shown in tables 4.2 A and 4.2B respectively.

Table 4.2 A. Means Showing the level of Frequency of Use and Purpose of Social Media 
                                                           (n=375)
Items on Social Media	Mean 	Std. Deviation	Interpretation	Rank	
I use social media to meet new friends	3.63	.565	 Very High	1	
I use social media to connect with friends	3.52	. 704	Very High	2	
I access social media 	3.51	. 682	Very High	3	
I post in social media	3.60	. 734	Very High	4	
In a day I look at social	3.49 	.731	Very High 	5	
I use social media to get information 	3.36	.1.133	Very High	6	
I use social media to find employment	2.93	.866	High	7	
I use social for research	2.92	..926	High	8	
I use social media for news	2.61	 . 895	High	9	
I use social media to communicate with my family	2.36	1.180	High	10	
I use social media for dating	2.07	.665	Fair	11	
I use social media for business	1.07	.407	Fair	12	
Average mean	2.91	.69237	High		
Source: Primary Data, 2019
The findings shown in table 4.2A revealed the level of frequency of use of social media is high with an average mean of 2.19. This means that most of the secondary students in Bukwo District have access to social media using different platforms.  The item “I use social media to meet new friends” was ranked 1 with has a mean of 3.63 with means very high. This means that students usually use social media to meet new friends. Social media is the best way to meet new friends or acquaintances.  The item “I use social media to connect with friends” has a mean of 3.52 which means very high and ranked 2. Social media is used by the students to connect with friends. As has been observed it is easier to talk to a friend using social media rather than meeting personally. Students find it very convenient to use social media through messages to connect to their friends.  The items “I access social media” and “I post in social media” has a mean of 3.51 and 3.50 respectively. It means very high. It showed that students always use or access social media and they also posts on social media. In this age of technology social media is the most convenient way to connect with people in different parts of the globe and also it is easy to get information through social media. Most students aside from meeting new friends or connect with friends they use social media to get employment, research, news, and others.

Table 4.2B. Means Showing the Social Media Sites Used by Students (n=375)
Among the social media sites , I use;	Mean	Std. Deviation	Interpretation	Rank	
Facebook	3.75	.465	Very High	1	
Twitter	1.40	.731	Never	3	
YouTube	1.08	. 390	Never	5	
Google	3.23	. 1.048	Sometimes	2	
Instagram	1.15	.536	Never	4	
Average Mean	2.12	0.634	Fair		
Source : Primary Data, 2019

Table 4.2 B shows different social media sites which are commonly used use by students in Bukwo District.  Based on the findings Facebook is the most used media site by the students with a mean of 3.75 which means very high and ranked 1 among the choices of media sites. This means that students always access facebook because they can meet new friends and also see some updates or information in the facebook. Google was ranked second among the choices with a mean of 3.23 which means high. Students use google when they want to research about their lessons or their assignments. Youtube was the least among the choices with a mean of 1.08 which means fair and ranked fifth or last.

 According to the results of interview; How does social media Help you in your studies? Are you always using social media? Why

       One student said that social media help them in their studies especially when they are doing
       research . Another student volunteered that it is easy to get information from internet  
       especially if there are no books available.
       Most students said that social media help them in their studies but sometimes they are  
       distracted and they even forget to study. They added that they are quite addicted to social 
       media especially facebook because they enjoy seeing the posts of other people and also their 
      friends.
     One student added that it is easy to access or get information from social media.
     Another student said that he agrees that social media is a big help to them as students if they  
     can   use it properly. But he said sometimes they also encounter some problems.
     Most of the students said they enjoy using social media.

4.3. Study Habits of Students 
The second objective was to examine the study habits of students in secondary schools in Bukwo District. The questionnaire in study habits was divided into two parts; for personal and group study habits. The data is shown in table 4.3. 

Table 4.3. Means Showing the Students ’Study Habits in Bukwo District. (n=375)
Personal Study Habits	Mean	Std. Deviation	Interpretation	Rank	
I focus well on what the teacher is saying	4.00	.000	Very Good 	1.5	
I read books other than textbooks	4.00	.000	Very Good	1.5	
I take notes properly during class	3.92	.357	Very Good	3	
I think of my own without instead of counting with others	3.87	. 453	Very Good	4	
I try to memorize as much as possible	3.85	.409	Very Good	5	
I finish homework on time	3.73	..518	Very Good	6	
I prepare for classes beforehand	3.18.	.902	Good	7	
I study at the last minute before tests	3.07	.1.101	Good	8	
I review what Ive learned	2.92	1.011	Good	9	
I study diligently everyday	2.85	1.187	Good	10	
I proactively study without being told at home	2.79	1.146	Good	11	
Average Mean	3.47		Very Good		
Group Study Habits					
I study following teachers’ instructions with my classmates	3.85	.488 	Very Good 	1	
I plan my study schedule with my group mates	3.81	.457	Very Good	2	
I use workbooks and answer many questions with my classmates	3.38	.917	Very Good	3	
I ask many questions and research answers with my group mates	2.63	. 1.201	Good	4	
I organize what Ive learned and compare with my group mates	2.29	1. 183	Fair	5	
I try to use different methods from what Ive learned from school to solve problems with my group mates	2.13	1.207 	Fair	6	
I read many reference books and share with my classmates	2.05 	1.184	Fair	7	
Average Mean	2.88	..83417	Good		
Overall Mean	3.18		Good		
Source: Primary Data, 2019

Table 4.3 revealed that the students’ study habits in secondary schools in Bukwo District was good with the overall mean of 3.18. This means that there still is a chance for the students to improve their study habits. As for personal study habits the average mean was 3.47 which means very good. It implies that students in secondary schools in Bukwo District are really concentrating on their studies. They are doing their best so that they can pass their exams. But for group study habits it was good with a mean of 2.88. The results shows that students prefer to study by themselves rather than with others. 
As to personal study habits items “I focus well on what the teacher is saying” and “I read books other than textbooks” have a mean of 4.00 which means very good.  It implies that students are focus in their studies following the teacher’s instructions and read not only their textbooks but other books to widen their knowledge and get more information related to their lessons. The item “ I proactively study without being told at home” has a mean 2.79 which means good. This shows that students are responsible enough to study on their own without being told by their parents. And because these students live in a boarding school. As to group study habits the item “ I study by following teacher’s instructions with my classmates” has a mean 3.85 and ranked 1 among the items under group study habits . It  means very good. It shows that students always follow what their teachers told them even if they study in groups. Teachers must give proper instructions to their students especially on giving assignments. While item”I read many reference books and share with my classmates” has a mean of 2.05 which means fair and ranked last among the items among group study habits.. It implies that students read many references but don’t share what they have read among their group mates.

During the interview the students were asked the following questions; How do you study? In what way social media affects your study habits?
         One student said he revise what they have discussed after class. Another student said she 
         take down notes during class and read during her free time. She said she always find time 
         to study her lessons. She added she also studied with her classmates .

              Another student volunteered that she made a schedule for her revisions but sometimes 
             she is distracted by the social media especially she likes to browse and see what people        
             are posting in facebook and she enjoyed it.
            One student said that she prefer to study in groups that being alone. She said being alone      
          she is always distracted.

4.4. Relationship Between Social Media and Students’ Study Habits in Bukwo District
The third objective was to establish the relationship between social media and students’ study habits secondary schools in Bukwo District. Pearson Linear Correlation Coefficient was used to analyze the data at 0.05 level of significance. Table 4.4 has the data.
Table 4.4. Pearson Linear Correlation Coefficient Showing the Relationship Between Social 
                 Media and Students’ Study Habits in Secondary Schools in Bukwo District.

Correlation 				
		Study Habits 	Social Media	
Study Habits 	Pearson Correlation 	1 	.985	
	Sig. (2-tailed)		.000	
	N	375	375	
Social Media	Pearson Correlation	.985	1	
	Sig (2-tailed)
	.000		
	N	375	375	
Source: Primary Data,2019

The findings in table 4.4 revealed that there is significant relationship between social media and students’ study habits in secondary schools in Bukwo District. This relationship is affirmed by r-value of 0. 985 and significance value of 0.000 at 0.05 level of significance.  The hypothesis which states that there is no relationship between social and students’ study habits is rejected. 

CHAPTER FIVE
DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.0 Introduction
This chapter presents the discussion of the findings, conclusions and recommendations ..  

5.1 Discussion of the Findings
5.1.1. Frequency of use and purpose of social media of students in secondary school in 
        Bukwo District

The findings revealed that the frequency of use of social media is is high which means that students in secondary schools in Bukwo District. Students use social media to access information like employment, research, news, communicating with friends and family, dating and the least is business.. The findings are in agreement with literature by Murthy (2013) who asserts that social media are many inexpensive electronic tools used for building relationship Also in the study conducted by Magin and Larry (2011).found out that adolescents spend more time on the social media networking sites than any other leisure time. This is in agreement with the findings of the study that students in secondary schools in Bukwo District. Students are in their adolescents stage and they are always using social media for different purpose.  The findings of the study are in line with findings of Junco (2012) who established that most of the students spent of their time accessing social media. . The findings of the study are in line with the literature by Lenhart  and Madden (2009) on the usage  of social media by students  aged 12-17 years had used social media networks to send messages to their friends on a regular basis.

The findings from the study reveal that most of the respondents mostly use facebook as their social media platform, most students in secondary schools in Bukwo District use facebook as their social media platform. The study findings are in line with the literature by Nusayba Kawsar (2014) while conducting a survey on social media use engagement and addiction as predictors of academic performance, during the study he came to know that 99% of the students were facebook user.

5.1.2 Study Habits of Students in Secondary Schools, Bukwo District.
The findings of the study revealed that students’ study habits has a mean of 3.18 which means high. The findings are in line with the principles of good study habits by Thomas Harboe and Rikkevon Mullen (2007) The findings of the study is in line with the findings of   Hashemian and  Hashemian, (2014) in his study on the best practices of  study habits  As to personal study habits the findings showed that it has a mean of 3.47 which is very high. It means that students prefer to study by themselves than with their group mates or classmates. Although there were students who also prefer to study in groups so that they were not distracted. And in group study habits they asked questions for areas they don’t understand and they discuss.

5.1.3 Relationship between Social Media and Study Habit of Students in Secondary 
       Schools-Bukwo District.
The findings from the study show that there is a significant relationship between social media and study habits of students in secondary schools in Bukwo District. Therefore social media frequent usage has an influence on the study habits of secondary students in Bukwo District. The findings of the study is in agreement with the  study  by Banquil et al. (2009) who found out continuing drop of grades among students who were frequent users of social networking sites. Also in the study of Ezeji and Ezeji, 2018 , showed that social media has a negative effect on students revision as well as submission and carrying out their assignments. In another study, it showed also that there is a positive correlation between social media usage and aspects of students study habits.

5.2 Conclusions
Based on the findings the following conclusion were drawn.
On the frequency of use and purpose of social media the findings revealed that it is high. The students in secondary schools in Bukwo District have access to all social media platforms and they use social media for different purpose. Students have cell phones where they use to access social media for whatever purpose they want. 
The study habits of students in secondary schools in Bukwo District is good. This means that there is still a chance for them to improve to study habits. For personal study habits the findings showed that it is very good. Students are really doing their best to study, learn and improve their performance in school. For group study habits the findings showed that it is good. It shows that not all students want to study in groups.
The findings showed that there is a relationship between social media and study habits. The frequency of use and purpose of social media affects the study habits of students in secondary schools in Bukwo District.	

5.4 Recommendations
From the findings of the study, the following were the recommendations;
Different schools in Bukwo District should equip teachers with necessary skills in life coaching skills that will enable teachers to counsel students and this may help to curb on  spending more hours on social media  Parents need to monitor how their children access social media and the purpose of using it.
The secondary school authorities in Bukwo should implement strict laws on access of social media either through the computer lab or mobile phones. This will curb on students on accessing social media tools that may enhance their performance 
Teachers should give assignments to students to develop their study habits and they must have a way to check if they really do their work or not. Assignments can be individual or in group which will help them to interact with other students. Parents must also encourage their children to develop a good study habits.

5.5 Areas of further Studies
The study suggests the following area for further studies;
1.	A critical analysis on the usage of social media among adolescents.
2.	The impact of social media on the academic performance of students in tertiary institutions. 
3.	Social Media and Moral Values of Students in Secondary Schools in Iganga District, Uganda.

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APPENDICES

APPENDIX I
TRANSMITTAL LETTER

APPENDIX II
LETTER TO THE RESPONDENTS

Dear Sir/Madam
Greetings!
I am Kusuro Alfred a master’s student of Education Administration and Management of Kampala International University. This is part of the requirements for the Award a dissertation.  My study is entitled, Social Media and Study Habits of Secondary Students in Bukwo District, Uganda. May also I request you to participate in this study by answering all questions. Any data you will provide shall be for academic purposes only and no information of such kind shall be disclosed to others.
I shall be much obliged if my humble request shall meet your kind consideration.
Yours Faithfully, 
KUSURO ALFRED 

APPENDIX III
INFORMED CONSENT
In signing this document, I am giving my consent to be part of the research study of Kusuro Alfred that will focus on social media and study habits of students in secondary schools in Bukwo District. 
I shall be assured of privacy, anonymity and confidentiality and that I will be given the option to refuse participation and right to withdraw my participation anytime.
I have been informed that the research is voluntary and that the results will be given to me if I ask for it.
Name and Signature of Respondent
Date________________________

APPENDIX IV
QUESTIONNAIRE

DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS OF RESPONDENTS
INSTRUCTIONS: Please tick the appropriate box by supplying the facts about yourself. 

Gender: Male ______ Female _______
Age: 13 – 15 years _______
         16 – 18 years ________
         19 – 21 years _______
         Above 21 years ________
Class Level :S1____
                   S2____
                  S3____
                  S4-------
                  S5-------
                  S6------

APPENDIX IV A
QUESTIONNAIRE ON SOCIAL MEDIA
INSTRUCTION:  Below are items for measuring the use and purpose of social media. You are requested to read the statement very carefully and put a tick on any of the four alternative response category that represents your feeling. The four (4) options are; Always. Sometimes, Seldom and Never.

	Items on Social Media	Always	Sometimes	Seldom	Never	
1.		In a day I look at social media					
2.		I post social media					
3.		I access  social media 					
4.		I use social media to communicate with my family					
5.		I use social media to connect with my friends					
6.		I use social media to meet new friends					
7.		I use social media for business					
8.		I use social media to get information				
9.		I use social media for research				
10.		I use social media for news				
11.		I use social media for dating				
12.		I use social media to find employment				
13.		Among the social media sites, I use				
	Facebook				
	Twitter				
	Youtube				
	Google 				
	Instagram				

APPENDIX IVC
QUESTIONNAIRE ON STUDENTS’ STUDY HABITS
INSTRUCTIONS: Below are items meant for measuring study habits. You are requested to read the statement very carefully and put a tick on any of the four alternative response category that represents your feeling.
In this questionnaire statements are given accompanied given by four (4) options in the form of Always, Sometimes, Seldom and Never.
                Items on Study Habits	Always	Sometimes	Seldom	Never	
A.	PERSONAL 					
1, I take notes properly during class.					
2.I think of my own without instead of counting with others					
3.	I read books other than textbooks					
4.	I try to memorize as much as possible.					
5.	I focus well on what the teacher is saying.					
6.	I finish homework on time					
7.	I prepare for my classes beforehand					
8.	I review what Ive learned					
9.	I proactively without being told at home					
 .10  I study diligently everyday					
11.I study the last minute before tests.					
					
B.	GROUP					
1.	I use workbooks and answer many questions with my classmates					
2. 	 I study by following teachers’ instructions with my classmate					
3	I try to use different methods from what Ive learned them from school to solve problems with my classmates					
4	I read many reference books and share with my classmates					
5	I organize what I’ve learned and compare with my group mates					
6	I ask many questions and research answers with my group mates					
7	I plan our study schedule with my group mates					

APPENDIX IV C
INTERVIEW GUIDE

          How does social media help you in your studies?
1.	Are you always social media/ Why?
2.	How do you study your lessons?
3.	In what way social media affects your studies?

APPENDIX V
LIST OF SECONDARY SCHOOLS THAT PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY

1.	Chesower Secondary. School	
2.	Tulel Secondary .School	
3.	Kamet Secondary .School	
4.	Kabei Secondary .School	
5.	Kortek Secondary School	
6.	Riwo Secondary School	
7.	St Joseph Secondary. School	
8.	Border College 	
9.	Amanang Secondary. School	
10.	Chekwasta Secondary. School	

APPENDIX VI
SLOVEN’S FORMULA

S=
S   sample size
N is the target population of the study.
e is the level of significance (0.05)
                      5900
S =  ___________________
         1 +5900 (0.05)2

S = 375

APPENDIX VII
MAP OF BUKWO DISTRICT