Social Media in the Classroom

In today’s society, one of the most prominent and efficient ways to communicate is through social media. People can communicate with others who are hundreds or even thousands of miles away by sending a message online or posting an image or video on a public site.

While teachers or schools may not allow their students to use their phones or devices during class time, there are ways in which social media in the classroom may be beneficial. When used properly, social media can be a useful tool to help students learn on a platform with which they are familiar.

As social media becomes more prevalent not only in our daily lives, but also in many workplaces, it can be a huge help to know how to manipulate social media sites to work in your favor for academic or professional outcomes.

Blogging

Personal blogs, depending on the topic of a post, can be an educational resource that teachers can use to teach new and interesting concepts to students. As blogging becomes more popular, there are more articles to be found online that might display the same information in a way that is more understandable and relatable to today’s youth.

Networking

Teaching students to use social media as a way to network can help students prepare for their future. By using sites like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, students can work on projects together and help each other learn in ways that provide new insight into a topic. Many accounts and pages are convenient for people to use in learning about businesses, products and services, especially when they are not well known. Any student with the hopes of becoming an entrepreneur or independent business owner can increase their personal brand by knowing how to market themselves online. A strong social media presence is something that is constantly boosting companies and the way their businesses are run.

Writing in Short Form

Being social media savvy can help students to convey their ideas in less space. Social media is all about sticking to a short, reader-friendly style of idea sharing. By becoming more concise with their writing, students can learn to edit their work to only include ideas that are essential to the overall project.

Whether it be a blog or a Twitter page, there are many ways teachers can use social media in the classroom to engage students in learning concepts. Using social media responsibly and professionally could prove to be beneficial to students across many age groups.

Considering a career in education? Grand Canyon University’s College of Education offers education degrees that help you prepare to learn, lead and serve. Visit the GCU website for more information.

Written by Jessalyn Johnson, a freshman majoring in English and professional writing at GCU.