This week we were asked to consider whether or not we would use social media in a grade 9 classroom. As defined by James Surowiecki in The Wisdom of Crowds, social media are “web-based platforms that facilitate collaboration, interaction, and exchange of user-generated content” such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and other similar platforms. A quick Google search of “social media in the classroom” will present you with a number of reasons why it is a helpful teaching tool that can enhance learning. These reasons suggest that it engages and motivates students, increases collaboration, continues this collaboration and engagement outside of the classroom, provides students with a way to keep up with current events, and connects students to a global community. As articulated by the authors of The Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, “integrating these applications into learning and teaching practices has the potential to trigger significant educational innovations as they enable new forms of interactive and collaborative learning.”
While this all sounds very exciting and useful, my answer to this week’s question is not a simple one. There are also several potentially negative impacts to consider. It provides students with a platform for cyber bullying, can decrease human interaction, can create distractions, and puts students at a risk of seeing inappropriate content. Additionally, if not all students have equal access to technology outside of school, then the introduction of social media to the classroom could create a disparity in educational opportunities. It is also quite likely that under these circumstances, a teacher may assign homework that some students do not have the means to complete which is simply unfair and again, widens a learning gap.
The writers of Using Sentence Openers to Foster Student Interaction in Computer-Mediated Learning Environments argue that “just as the classroom needs its teacher, social media spaces require a skilled moderator for effective learning to occur during the collaborative knowledge creation process.” I would agree and suggest that before teachers integrate social media into their classrooms, they first question if they have the skills and knowledge to be this moderator and ensure the social media is used in an intentional, effective, equal, and safe way. If the teacher is capable of this, then I believe that the use of social media in a grade 9 classroom could be very beneficial. Not only could it increase engagement and enhance learning, but also provide teachers with an opportunity to have a conversation with students about social media use. According to a 2014 Daily Mail article, “children are most likely to post an image or video of themselves online or set up a fake profile for the first time at the age of 11, try Twitter and message a stranger at 12 and try services like SnapChat and Ask.fm at the age of 13.” Based on this information, it is evident that grade nine students will likely be experiencing the negative impacts of social media in their lives regardless of it’s use in the classroom, so teachers may as well use the opportunity to have this conversation and help students navigate the digital world of social media in a way that may actually enhance their lives and learning.
Teaching with Technology 