SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

Social Media as an Educational Tool

Melissa Misenhimer
California State University, Long Beach

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

Social Media as an Educational Tool

The use of Web 2.0 tools in educational classrooms has become increasingly
more popular as technology has become more mobile and utilized by students and
teachers alike. With technology at the touch of our fingertips and constantly on it is
hard to turn away from the numerous advantages these tools may have on the education
of our students. Although not all applications will be the right fit for each student or
teacher, blogs, Wikis and social media sites such as Facebook, Ning or Twitter are being
looked at in new light from educators and administrators. With over 1 billion average
daily users on Facebook alone (Facebook.com), social media of all forms has become one
of the most used community tools to share and interact with others across the world. Its
increased popularity is usually due to the ease of use and personalization of homepages
and profiles. With such a large number of the population using social media sites, can it
be used successfully in the classroom as an educational tool? There is new research and
data emerging from a new learning theory regarding connectivity and networking called
Connectivism that thinks social media and other Web 2.0 tools can assist students
become greater thinkers and communicate in new ways (Bell, 2011; Chen & Bryer, 2012;
Kop & Hill, 2008). Other teachers are also finding that using social media in the
classroom provides a greater sense of community, better peer assessment and increased
communication (Cite). The implementation of these sites may be difficult at first since
the idea of turning a traditional classroom virtual can be daunting but educators are
finding a way to increase the use of these in their classrooms to create 21st century
learners (Cite). This paper will explore the learning theories, student benefits and
implementation methods from educators of social media in the classroom.

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

Connectivism as a theory
In the new world of technology and education, new learning theories have begun
to emerge that focus on the connectivity and nature of the Internet and Web 2.0 tools and
their uses in education. Connectivism is a theory that was originally blogged in 2005 by
George Siemens and Stephen Downes, two networkers who wanted to use their
networking background to further education. Kop and Hill (2008) explain Connectivism
such as the starting point for learning occurs when knowledge is actuated through the
process of learner connecting to and feeding information into a learning community (pg.
2). They also stress that this two of the important aspects of this theory are that the
learner has the ability to seek out new information and the ability to filter superfluous
information (pg. 2). The Internet has given society a growth of information with more
people becoming producers of information and it is important for students to understand
the information and how to use it. Bell (2008) explains that there needs to be a shift in
the theories of learning from just classroom and teacher based which do not provide an
adequate framework for us to think and act in the digitally saturated and connected world
in which we live and educators in the profession are trying to integrate technology into
learning formal and information settings, looking for theories that can inform their
actions in useful ways (Bell, pg. 100). One of the major attractions of Connectivism is
that its possible for educators to introduce Web 2.0 tools and connect formal and informal
learning in ways that were not possible before the Internet and would have a framework
of principles to pull from. Chen & Bryer (2012) explain that the use of social media in
the classroom could blur the lines between formal and informal learning and allows
users to become more engaged in the learning process, and it entices users to collaborate

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

on projects in real-world situations (pg. 89). The importance of this is profound if

students are able to take the information they have received from their education and use
that later in life. Social media could also be used to create more interactions between
students and instructors in multimedia formats and connect with peers and experts across
the world (Chen & Bryer, 2012).
Community and Connection
The connections made in social media can be deep impacting for students and
faculty alike. Educators have found a large correlation between social media and
increased interaction in students, peer assessments and a sense of community. Social
media also provides resources beyond the school campus that they can use to further their
support and education. Fewkes and McCabe (2012) explain that for learners to sustain
meaningful educational experiences, a sense of community if a must (pg. 93). If
students are able to interact with their peers and teachers outside the classroom, it gives
them a better option of resources and also provides them with more interaction to
resources. If teachers were to incorporate social media in the classroom going virtual
provides students with greater access to multimedia presentationsand ultimately
provide students with instructional interaction outside the classroom.online
collaboration on an assignment could occur, or students could in engage in more than one
class simultaneously (Fewkes & McCabe, 2012; pg. 93). For students in distance
education programs, this could prove to be vital to their education and their learning.
Berge (2013) explains that many students in distance education environments may feel
isolated to their peers or teachers. Social media in education could further bring a sense
of community and online presence could share their opinions, ask questions, and

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

generally create the sense of belonging to the group (pg. 379). It is important to note
that while social media may have benefits in educational settings, if teachers are going to
be using Facebook or another popular social media platform, its important to distinguish
between entertainment and intellectual engagement. Another important aspect of social
media is peer assessment, which seemed to increase when students were interacting
online. Casey & Evans (2011) described this of their students interacting on Ning:
students supported one another when solving problems and were able to draw upon
relevant and integrated knowledge and skills that many had honed outside the classroom
(pg. 7). The students were able to use Ning to ask questions, receive help from students
and communicate in a way that was not possible before. They also explained it was
helpful for students to see what other peers had posted so they could essentially self
assess their own work and it allowed students to become involved in the assessment
process rather than relying solely on the teacher (Casey & Evans, 2012, pg. 8). McArther
and Bostedo-Conway (2012) also discussed teacher immediacy as they described teacher
immediacy as the perceived physical or sociological closeness between teacher and
student (pg. 287). When studying the effects of the Twitter in the classroom, teacher
immediacy was significantly higher with students who felt that Twitter was a positive
communication tool and allowed for an insight into the teachers life and teaching. They
also discovered that Twitter gave students the ability to engage in thoughtful discourse
and improve their creative and critical writing skills (pg. 289).
Implementation of social media in the classroom
Integrating social media in the classroom may not be an easy feat, even for a
seasoned teacher because of the unreliability they may have with the students or the

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

application itself. This may be why we do not see many teachers implementing social
media instructional strategies into their day to day curriculum. Certain teachers have
found success implementing social media sites like Ning and Storify to help cultivate
student learning and success. Chen and Bryer (2012) study describes teachers
implementing videos and case study materials for students and one the major successes of
the study was that the students were active with social media outside of the classroom.
They would share learning news articles, videos and other engaging content and facilitate
discussions outside of the classroom and one common theme is that the focus of these
activities is learners personal interest and preferences, rather than institutional or
instructors requirements (pg. 95). It is important that students are given the opportunity
to learn in a way that is comfortable for them in a informal learning environment and give
them the chance to discuss topics they are interested in if they are in line with the
curriculum. Casey & Evans (2011) discussed the implementation of Ning from a teacher
in Australia who found great success with his students as well. The students were
provided with anonymity on the Ning social media site, which gave them a greater
chance for conversation and peer review (pg. 4). Throughout the period of research as
many as 75 students would be interacting on the Ning site in a group based upon the
project they were working on and there could be as many as 75 discussion forums about
each project. Students were able to provide positive and constructive feedback about
their peers and receive it in return and eventually began to develop self and social
meaning (pg. 7). Casey & Evans also bring up the fact that the projects that were
assigned on Ning allowed students access to a multitude of multimedia resources. These
resources encouraged students to be creative while publishing their work for the Nings

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

wide audience, often giving them a reason to produce high quality work (pg. 17).
Another social media site that was used in research was Storify, a curator software, which
Mihailidis & Cohen (2012) explain curation is important in a digital world because there
is a need to understand how individuals choose to pull together, sift through, organize
and present information within these spaces (pg. 3). As a student, their task is to
organize information they receive and share it with others in a clear and coherent manner
and through Storify and other curator applications students can access content, analyze
and evaluate the messages, create presentations, reflect on findings, and work together in
collaborative environments (pg. 5). One of the teaching points for Storify in the
classroom was to teach students the benefits and disadvantages of certain media tools
such as video, images or text. Certain scholars have discussed that the way we receive
information is no longer linear because of the abundance of multimedia and the attention
span of the human mind can only devote a certain amount of time to one linear text at a
time. Students were asked to use Storify to create using these different media tools and
discuss the advantages or disadvantages they had based on a specific subject. Mihailidis
& Cohen (2012) explain that this type of curation allows students to think about how
integrating platforms and formats allows students to think about how integrating
platforms and formats can lead to depth, accuracy, and balance while remaining
engaging, interactive, and thorough (pg. 11). This is an important skill for students to
take away because they will need to know how to curate information throughout the rest
of their lives. Throughout college or their career they will need to find the important
pieces of information to share with others.

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

Conclusion
In conclusion, social media can be a strong tool to use to teach students in either
K-12 or higher education classrooms. Students need to learn how to network and dissect
information they come across online just the way they do in a formal education
environment. Through social media students can become strong communicators, critical
thinkers, peer coaches and autonomous learners. They can also adopt the skills they will
need later in life to wade through the abundance of information that is given to them and
present it with a strong, intellectual viewpoint.

SOCIAL MEDIA AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL

References
Bell, F. (2011). Connectivism: Its place in theory-informed research and innovation in
technology-enabled learning. International Review of Research in Open and
Distance Learning, 12(3), 98-118.

Berge, Z. L. (2013). Barriers to communication in distance education. Turkish Online

Journal of Distance Education, 14(1), 374-388.

Casey, G., & Evans, T. (2011). Designing for learning: Online social networks as a
classroom environment. International Review of Research in Open and Distance
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Chen, B., & Bryer, T. (2012). Investigating instructional strategies for using social media
in formal and informal learning. International Review of Research in Open and
Distance Learning, 13(1), 87-104.

Facebook Key Facts. (2013). Facebook.com. Retrieved December 5, 2013, from

http://newsroom.fb.com/Key-Facts

Fewkes, A. M., & McCabe, M. (2012). Facebook: Learning tool or distraction? Journal
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Kop, R., & Hill, A. (2008). Connectivism: Learning theory of the future or vestige of the
past? International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 9(3), 1-13.

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