Social media has become a large part of the lives of people in today’s society; especially in the lives of our students. Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, and other platforms have become the way our students feel connected to each other and the outside world. While I am personally a big fan of a face-to-face conversation, social media is not going away and technology is only going to increase as new discoveries are made.
In the article, “How We Use and Are Used by Social Media in Education,” Nicholas C. Burbules discusses the different forms of social media and the implications these platforms have in the education realm. In order to connect with students and make sure they remain interested in learning, it is important for teachers to incorporates some of these technology platforms into education. Now, I’m not saying you should go make nonsense TikTok videos all day and disregard any academic instructional time; however, the students may become more engaged in learning the academic content if you connect learning to things they enjoy such as social media.
Burbules discusses the use of social media as a communication tool for students to participate in collaborative forums (2016, p. 560). This can be done through a class blog or a small group blog project so that student can have creative freedom on the design of the blog page but also implement academic content as directed by the teacher (Burbules, 2016, p. 561). I have also seen a teacher implement a character development project where students create “finsta,” or fake Instagram, account for a character in a novel they are reading. The students had to show the change in the character’s development through pictures, posts, and biographical information. The students had so much fun with this project and really took the time to understand what character development was so that they could create the best Instagram accounts they possibly could.
Unfortunately, as technology increases, so does the opportunities for cyberbullying and isolation. It becomes a slippery slope when our students become so consumed with the latest technology and having the most followers on social media. As an educator, it is so important to recognize these signs, encourage students to communicate verbally, and help students develop a moral compass alongside internet etiquette.
Reference
Burbules, N. C. (2016). How we use and are used by social media in education. Educational Theory, 66(4), 551–565.
Travel, Teaching, & Educational Technology 