Social media technology is very prominent in education. Social media is being used by both teachers and students in different ways for educational purposes. Social media can increase knowledge in a matter of minutes. By simply scrolling through your newsfeed, you can get updates on the latest current events and news. Social media can keep parents, teachers, and students on the same page about what’s going on in the classroom. Teachers can easily post homework assignments, upcoming project dates, and school event information to their social media page. Long gone are the days where you must sit and wait by the phone to get a reply. Students and teachers can send and receive instant responses about homework, topics from the day or basic school information.
In my classroom, I have used Remind, ClassDojo and Google Classroom. With these 3 sites, I can send instant messages and updates to parents, as well as assign homework to students if we have no school or if they have missed school due to illness. Students have also been able to use these types of sites during class to complete independent work. The students can complete their work and I can receive instant grading of their assignments.
An issue of concern for me for students using social media is the lack of privacy. Students can meet many other people whom they never had met before, seen before or even had talked before. They share their very personal and private information which many times may be used against them. Students will share too much information and could put themselves into danger or their families into danger. Another issue of concern is that students will not have the opportunities to create friendships with people outside of the internet. Through social media, students could meet many people outside of their comfort zone, however the students will not know how to interact with people face-to-face if they only have the chance to make friends online. Students can lose social skills due to only talking to people on the phone or internet.
Social media can be used by churches in a positive way. The church would be able to get news out to the community about emergencies such as church closings due to weather and needs of church members. Using social media could help connect the members of the church that span multiple generations. People in the church can feel that they have a closer relationship with other members by being able to keep up to date on information about other members of the church. This can unite the church, but also open the door to new members who see information about the church.
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