Social media has become an important part of learning for students today. It allows for collaboration, communication, and developing critical thinking skills. Teachers can use various social media platforms like Twitter, Edmodo, and wikis for class discussions, sharing content, and project-based learning. When implementing social media, schools should examine their culture, generate clear policies, and provide teacher training. Case studies show benefits like reduced absenteeism and increased student engagement and grades. Overall, thoughtfully integrating traditional and digital tools can greatly enhance the learning experience.

1. Social Media in Education
Presented by:
Amy Borges

2. Overview
1. Why is it important?
2. Methods of use
3. Do’s and Don’ts
4. Case studies
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3. Why is it important?
3

4. The Learning Revolution
• Social media tools are critical to learning and
working in the 21st century
• 73% of online adolescents are already social
networking outside of school1
• Exploration of social media sites is part of the
adolescent identity
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5. Social Media and Intellectual Dexterity
• Each day, school-age children pack almost 8
hours of media exposure into 5.5 hours of
time2
• Media tools allow for self-expression and
cooperation which create a democratized
learning space
• Students “compose” within social media
environments, and teachers should capitalize
on this trend
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6. The Benefits of Social Media in
Education
• Students are more engaged
• There is collaboration, communication, and
interpersonal relationships
• Students develop critical thinking and problem
solving skills and also become global
participants
• There is increased participation in class
discussion and assignment completion
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7. Methods of Use
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8. Twitter for Class Discussions
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9. Academic Excellence in 140 Characters
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10. Glogster
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11. Diigo
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12. Learnist
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13. Edmodo
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14. Lore
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15. Spruz
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16. BuddyPress
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17. Ning
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18. Grou.ps
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19. Educational Wikis
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20. Do’s and Don’ts of Social Media in
Education
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21. Do’s
1. Examine school culture before making
choices
2. Consult and discuss with a team of
administrators and staff
3. Generate a plan with specific policies
4. Clearly separate the spaces where
conversational and formal writing occur
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22. Don’ts
1. Don’t underestimate the significance of
student culture
2. Don’t fool kids with inferior social media
tools
3. Don’t assign faux Facebook assignments
4. Don’t introduce too many social media
channels in one year
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23. Case Studies
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24. New York City and School Social Media
• NYC Department of Education recently created
a director of digital literacy and citizenship
position4
• The goal is to help NYC teachers develop Web
2.0 skills
• A future goal is to achieve online interaction
between students
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25. Around the World With 80 Schools
• The goal is to introduce students to peers in
countries around the globe5
• The social networking sites Ning and Skype are
used for the student meetings
• Through their prepared questions and
interactions, the students gain communication
skills, technology experience, and global
awareness
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26. Oregon Education Association
• A pilot social media program in one Portland
school reduced chronic absenteeism
• For the first time in its history, the school met
its adequate yearly progress goal for
absenteeism6
• 20% of students school-wide were completing
extra assignments for no credit6
• Grades had gone up more than 50%6
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27. In Summary
• The blending of traditional and digital
instruction has a large effect on student
learning
• Professional development for teachers should
include Web 2.0 technologies
• It is important to provide students with the
technical skills they need in the 21st century
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28. Sources
1. http://www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/wp-
content/uploads/2012/11/jgcc_kidsonline.pdf
2. http://www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/wp-
content/uploads/2011/03/jgcc_alwaysconnected.pdf
3. http://theinnovativeeducator.blogspot.com/2010/08/innovative-
educators-learning-network.html
4. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/18/school-social-media-new-
y_n_2506285.html
5. http://www.edweek.org/dd/articles/2010/06/16/03networking.h03.htm
l
6. http://mashable.com/2010/09/29/social-media-in-school/
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