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It was not too long ago that the term “social media” was considered a buzzword. Today it is a term that is widely used and accepted. This is something that has changed the way that everyone, everywhere in the world, communicates with one another.
The following video explains in "plain English" what exactly social media is in a general sense. This is important to understand before one can know how to use it in education.
Why Should Educators Use Social Media?
As the video demonstrated, there are many benefits for educators to incorporate social media and many reasons why they should use it. There are so many different types of social media available for educators to use, and many students are already familiar with. By utilizing these resources, they are keeping the students more engaged in what they are learning because they like to use these programs. By using the different social media resources, it also allows educators to expand beyond the classroom. It also allows communication outside the classroom with not only students, but with parents and other educators as well.
When Should Educators Use Social Media?
According to "Social Media for Educators", when to use social media depends on a number of factors. To help determine when they should be used there are two questions that need to be asked.
What is your objective? - Social media should not simply be used because everyone else is doing it. Instead, it should align with what you are doing and serve a purpose.
Who is your audience? – Is the communication going to take place between students or perhaps with other educators? You need to decide, based on this, what social media is appropriate for who you are communicating with.
When using social media with students, it should not be limited to just high school and college. This is something that needs to be used in grades as low at the elementary level. Technology is EVERYWHERE and students as young as the elementary age as just as involved and interested in it as anyone else. By educators using social media applications, they “add a spark to those research assignments and classroom discussions by making the content REAL and relevant to students.” ("Social Media in My Classroom?").
Current Social Media Sites Available to Educators
There are many different types of social media that can be used in education. What follows are just some examples of these different types along with how they may be utilized.
Using wikis allow users to share documents that can then be edited by multiple users. Educators can assign students a group assignment where they have to work collaboratively to complete it.
Blogs are like an online diary. Here, teachers can post prompts for students to reply to individually, in groups, or as a whole class. Students could also post blogs about recent readings or in-class activities. They allow for instant communication, require little technical knowledge, and keep discussions organized.
This is a combination of a social networking site and a blog. Educators can remind students about upcoming deadlines, or even give brief assignments for student to post responses to on the site.
This is a place where videos can be shared with others. It can be used for distance learning, supplementary lectures, or even to present students with a break during a lecture. Students can also create videos in the classroom and submit them on this site. According to "News: To Profs, YouTube Tops Twitter - Inside Higher Ed", this is the most useful tool to use teaching for both inside and outside the classroom. “Nearly a third of respondents said they instructed students to watch online videos as homework, and about 73 percent said they thought YouTube videos were either somewhat or very valuable for classroom use, regardless of whether they use them currently.” (News)
This is a social bookmarking site where you can save and store bookmarks online. These bookmarks can be organized by tags or keywords. The users can also send and receive bookmarks to one another.
These are great for distance learning or self-paced learning. It is a great replacement for a lecture because of those reasons. Students can also be assigned the task of creating podcasts on specific topic assigned.
Slideshows can easily be uploaded onto this website for others to view. This makes it easy for educators to post lecture materials for students to at their convenience. Students can also upload any presentations they make onto this site as well.
These social media sites can be beneficial to learning both inside and outside of the classroom. Utilization of these social media resources increases engagement and participation. The following video highlights the benefits of incorporating some of the aforementioned social media sites into the classroom.
What do Educators Need to be Aware of?
Educators need to make sure that students, and themselves, know how to properly use any social media sites they plan on using before they are implemented into any curricula. Also, even though social media offers many benefits, it should never take the place of face-to-face communication between educators and students, “rather it should be used as one of many digital building blocks that, when skillfully integrated into the curriculum has the potential to open lines of dialogue, communication, and learning.” (Baird)
Conclusion
As the use of social media tools grows, so does the demand to use them more. Many educators and students are finding new ways to utilize these tools both inside and outside the classroom. “As new types of social media are developed, teachers will need to find new and innovative ways to harness the power of these technologies to enhance their curriculum, and support differing learning styles.” (Baird). Though some may be resistant to change and to trying and incorporate these tools, it is of the up most importance that they are included since it is the future.
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