The Pros and Cons of Social Media

There has always been social media in the world but the forms of social media in the last decade has changed DRASTICALLY! 

          Students have had the opportunity to grow up with the newest social media applications and trends to date. They will forever know more about these apps and trends than the adults that are teaching them in the classroom. This does not mean that social media should be banded from the classroom but there are several major points that need to be considered by both teachers and administrators before social media is banned or allowed into the classroom. There are some major pros to allowing students to use their social media in the classroom but there are also some cons. Below we will look at both and discuss how heavily each should be weighted as well as an overall decision on whether social media should be in the classroom.

Pros:

·         Increasing student collaboration (School is Easy Tutoring, 2014)

·         By using social media student participation could be increased (School is Easy Tutoring, 2014)

·         Resources can be quickly shared for the benefit of students (School is Easy Tutoring, 2014)

·         Social Media can assist in keeping all parties (parents, teachers, and students) all on the same page (School is Easy Tutoring, 2014)

Cons:

·         Students can become distracted by social media and use the applications inappropriately (School is Easy Tutoring, 2014)

·         Having students using social media in the classroom can prevent the students from interacting face-to-face in the classroom (School is Easy Tutoring, 2014)

·         Social Media can be time consuming in the classroom (Hosler, 2013)

·         Bullying could be a very big problem if social media use is not managed tightly (Hosler, 2013)

There are some great pros to using social media in the classroom but it definitely needs to be tightly managed in the classroom. If the media is tight managed then the classroom can be a great environment to teach students how to be safe on social media as well as create some strong conversations in the classroom (School is Easy Tutoring, 2014). These conversations can include not only how to be safe in that environment but also how to communicate successfully in that environment which becomes vitally important when students need to collaborate in their work environment (Hosler, 2013). Students can be actively engaged and working collaboratively in the same environment in the classroom (Hosler, 2013). Students and teachers need to be aware of the dangers that can be brought into the classroom with social media.

As teachers we are responsible for our students. This includes when they are using social media in our classroom. It is very important to discuss with students the expectations we have as teachers when our students are on social media. Students need to understand that when using social media in our classrooms the expectations are that the media is classroom related at all times and that the conversations are professional and courteous.  Students also need to understand what that means and we as teachers need to demonstrate what we mean. Overall the pros of using social media are large as long as the necessary research and preparation is done before implementing the policy and using social media in the classroom.

Hosler, A. (2013, December 28). 6 Pros and Cons of Social Media in the Classroom. Retrieved from teachthought: http://www.teachthought.com/uncategorized/6-pros-cons-social-media-classroom/

School is Easy Tutoring. (2014). 5 Pros and Cons of Social Media in the Classroom. Retrieved from School is Easy Tutoring: https://www.schooliseasy.com/2014/02/social-media-in-the-classroom/