The document discusses using social media in assessments for courses. It provides examples of social media assignments, such as creating a marketing diary blog or website. It notes advantages like developing employability skills and ensuring students have a digital presence. However, it also outlines issues to be aware of, such as technical support needs, privacy/legal concerns, cultural preferences of students, and logistical or academic challenges in assessing social media work. Faculty must consider questions around responsibilities, ownership, and clearly communicating assignment requirements and evaluation criteria.

1. USING SOCIAL MEDIA IN
ASSESSMENT
Lorna Walker
Senior Lecturer

2. EXAMPLES OF ASSESSMENTS
eBay Principles of Marketing project
Marketing diary in blog form within Blackboard
Build a website using WordPress
Brandwatch social media analytics project
Assessment of LinkedIn and Twitter profiles
Social media strategy assignment

3. ADVANTAGES
Authentic assessment
Develops employability skills
Ensures students have some kind of digital presence (assuming
outside Blackboard)
Interesting and engaging assignments
Helps tutor develop skills as well as the students
Easy to link to practitioner and academic research

4. ISSUES TO BE AWARE OF
Technical support issues
 Don’t assume that because students are digital natives that means they are skilled users
of social media
 Where is the line between feedback, technical support and free consultancy?
 Do you have the requisite skills to be able to run the assignment yourself?
 If you cannot provide technical help then who will?
Privacy / legal issues
 Social media is outward-facing which means that students’ assignments will be
accessible to everyone
 You may be requiring students to engage with a social network that they would not
otherwise be on
 You have a duty of care to ensure students don’t do or say anything on social media that
may come back to haunt them
 Who is liable if students do run into problems?
 You may need login details for some services yourself e.g. admin access to students’
WordPress sites
 Issues of IP and copyright – plagiarism can have much more serious consequences if it
takes place in the public domain
 Who owns what the students’ develop?

5. ISSUES TO BE AWARE OF
Cultural issues
 LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook aren’t always students’ networks of choice
Logistical issues
 Students may have to pay to access some of these services (webhosting, eBay
listings)
 Do you provide an alternative assignment for anyone who does not want to do this?
Academic issues
 What are the marking criteria that you’re going to use?
 How can you assess students’ academic understanding alongside their practical
skills? Reflective reports can help here.
 Plagiarism – how do you know the student has done the work themselves?
 Make the requirements of the assignment clear in advance e.g. you cannot use an
already existing website, you have to set up the website in English etc.