Authors: Ed Dittfurth, Paul Sowell, Casie Hansen, & Julie Miller
Social media includes a variety of forms of electronic communication (as Web sites for social networking and microblogging) through which users create online communities for sharing information, ideas, personal messages, and other content, such as videos (Merriam-Webster, 2015). When addressing social media and the possible effects on student learning in a classroom, we must ask, “Will social media enhance student learning experiences or be a distraction?” When answering this question, we see there are three emerging groups. Group one, educators who see social media in classrooms as an enhancement to learning. Group two, educators who see social media only as a distraction. Group three, educators who see social media as both a learning tool and a distraction. Kapko (2014) wrote “putting technology in the hands and laps of students opens a vast pool of opportunity and knowledge, but it can also be distracting" (para. 2). If technology and social media are in some way enhancing the learning outcomes of our students, then proactive planning to prevent misuse of the technology in educational settings may benefit the teachers and students.
The potential social media provides education is undeniable; however, teachers should build acceptable use guidelines and proper protocol for students to remain engaged with course content. Without the accountability from guidelines and clearly expressed expectations, many students could be left behind while others could be distracted. Twitter, for instance, may provide instructors with an effective way to incorporate current events and real world views into student content and give a mechanism to measure student engagement (Journell & Ayers, 2014). However, teachers should monitor student engagement by requiring students to include hashtags within a deliverable. Scott Silverman (as cited in Kapko, 2014) upheld the negative aspects of social media usage can be effectively managed if the engagement strategies teachers employ are well thought out.
Teachers may ensure social media is used effectively by teaching students digital citizenship. Digital citizenship is the norms of appropriate, responsible behavior with regard to technology and social media use in the classroom (Ribble, 2015). Owens (Kapko, 2014) wrote “teachers have to educate students to be disciplined and responsible in their use of technology” (para. 8). By introducing students to the elements of digital citizenship, teachers provide students with opportunities to learn and practice 21st century skills, which are necessary for successfully functioning into today’s digital world. Therefore, instilling good behavioral traits and educating students on the proper and productive uses of social media is imperative.
There is little doubt, internet use among teens, young adults, and adults has risen steadily (Pew Research Center, 2014). Subsequently, social media usage is on the rise (Duggan, Ellison, Lampe, Lenhart, & Madden, 2015). Churcher, Downs, & Tewksbury (2014) reported 73% of teens use social networking sites. Of the college-age adults who surf the web, two thirds visit social media websites (Churcher, et. al., 2014). The most popular social media site continues to be Facebook with 900,000,000 monthly visitors. Twitter comes in at a distant second with 310,000,000 monthly visitors. Rounding out the top 10 is Linkedin, Pinterest, Google+, Tumblr, Instagram, VK, Flickr, and Vine (eBiz, 2015).
While people generally look to family and friends to provide social interaction, social media usage has enabled people to connect and interconnect with larger and more diverse populations. Present day interaction and communication know no boundaries. Often times, these new connections challenge long-standing definitions of public and private, home and work, and home and school. None the less, social media provides a platform in which people can, literally, interact with almost anyone in the world. In fact, one source defined social media loosely as a medium from which “non-linear asynchronous collaboration” occurs between users (Martinez-Aleman, 2012, p. 14). Facilitated by Web 2.0 technologies, the ubiquitous use of social media has become a powerful tool for learning.
As well, colleges and universities use social media to reach enrolled and potential students. This powerful platform provides institutions of higher education with effective marketing & recruiting tools, an individual and mass communication system, and a community and culture building apparatus. Individual higher education faculty, typically, use social media for personal and professional reasons (Moran, Seaman, & Tinti-Kane, 2011), while Tinti-Kane (2013) found higher education instructors are less likely to use social media in course design. It is evident, teens, young adults, and adults use social media on a regular basis. With a knowledge of the frequency students engage in social media, educators in higher education and K-12 should determine ways to incorporate social media into classroom curricula to increase student engagement.
Teachers who integrate social media into the classroom have the opportunity to provide students with a tool that can help them to become engaged in learning. According to McMeans (2015) incorporating social media into the classroom will provide a positive, upbeat learning environment where students are engaged on a regular basis. Students can learn to collaborate, discuss, and be critical thinkers by learning to use social media in learning environments. Higher order thinking skills may develop as students use social media for learning.
As technology is ever-changing, educators should use the most current forms of technology according to McMeans (2015). Learning can and should be fun for students. Social media, when successfully used in any classroom, gives the teacher an advantage by creating an atmosphere for the students to use the highest levels of critical thinking stated by McMeans (2015). Critical thinking creates a learning pathway ensuring student success. Furthermore, according to Graham (2014) social media may give college students an idea of practical application to the subject matter. In addition to seeing the practical use of a topic, the innovative approach may increase students' retention of the information. Social media is not just a trend in education; it is a tool that will remain, allowing cutting edge educators to use it for increasing student engagement and subsequently enhancing student comprehension (Graham, 2014).
As technology is ever-changing, educators should use the most current forms of technology according to McMeans (2015). Learning can and should be fun for students. Social media, when successfully used in any classroom, gives the teacher an advantage by creating an atmosphere for the students to use the highest levels of critical thinking stated by McMeans (2015). Critical thinking creates a learning pathway ensuring student success. Furthermore, according to Graham (2014) social media may give college students an idea of practical application to the subject matter. In addition to seeing the practical use of a topic, the innovative approach may increase students' retention of the information. Social media is not just a trend in education; it is a tool that will remain, allowing cutting edge educators to use it for increasing student engagement and subsequently enhancing student comprehension (Graham, 2014).
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