Is Social Media Changing Education for the Better or Worse?

What does social media or better yet- Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google Docs and blogs all have in common? The obvious answer is that they are all technologically based online tools. The more surprising response, however, is that each of these programs have so rapidly become embedded and present in the daily lives of people on a worldwide scale, that just be uttering the applications name, most, if not all, immediately know what it is we are referring to.

While this notion holds true for people of all ages, it is especially prevalent among our youth because simply out, they make up the majority of those who regularly use it in a personal capacity. While in that setting it may seem acceptable, what happens when it starts to be commonly used in education? As a result of the recent increase in educators who use social media in their teachings this very question has given rise to a popular yet controversial issue of whether social media improves or weakens our classrooms.

Among those who advocate in favor of social media being used in education, the number appears to be ever growing, That is, according to a survey conducted by the Babson survey research group out of 10000 post-secondary faculty members across the United States, more than 52% reported using blogs, wikis and online videos within the classroom (Blankenship, 2011). Similarly, numerous primary and secondary schools are also taking advantage of social media, Some of the ways this is being done is by creating class Facebook pages for comments and pictures to be shared, allowing students to create projects on video and uploading them to YouTube or having them use Google Docs to work together on group assignments (Schachter, 2011). When consider the benefits of encouraging these types of learning activities, some of the most pronounced are that it strongly promotes collaboration among students and spreads the level of engagement (Koenig, 2011). Another great benefit, especially in regards to blogging and e-portfolios, according to Scott S. Floyd, director of instructional technology at a school in the United States is that it gives students more responsibility over their own learning and better prepares them for their careers and future (Careless, 2012).

While the positive aspects of social media in education seem to be becoming more widely supported, there are still others who remain concerned especially when it comes to student safety. Specifically, the hesitation arises from the fact that despite the many new tools to make its use more secured or filtered, it is nearly impossible to monitor where each individual student will end up in the online world, and so those who do not want to take that risk, remain in opposition. In addition, others are apprehensive that some students will end up using it inappropriately and abusing the opportunity so to speak. Consequently, instead of trying to give the benefit of the doubt, they would rather avoid its use all together (Schachter, 2011).

Thus, even though the downfalls of integrating social media in the classroom are relevant, the fact of the matter is that there are always two sides to one coin and with every new development, in education or otherwise, a potential danger will exist. However, despite that reality, it should not stop educators from exploring the more paramount advantages of exciting and engaging students in a unique way, especially when the result is to better their learning. So, as long as proactive steps are taken to eliminate any possible threats, it can be said that the use of social media has a stronger ability to create a better, not worse overall classroom environment.

References:

Blankenship, M. (2011). How Social Media Can and Should Impact Higher Education. The Education Digest, 7(76), 39-42.

Careless, J. (2012). 20 Ways to Make Tech Work in Schools. Technology & Learning, 6(32), 26-38.

Koenig, D. (2011). Social Media in the Schoolhouse. Teaching Tolerance, 39-42.

Schachter, R. (2011). The Social Media Dilemma. District Administration, 7(47), 27-33.