Does School Social Media Help Students Become More Involved?

In this day of age, social media has a grasp on most people’s lives. Many schools have taken advantage of social media to be able to post and let students and parents alike be aware of events going on. So this gives us the question of how does school social media accounts help students become involved and included in their school?

Social media is very beneficial when it comes to planning and knowing where and when to be somewhere. That being said, it also allows students who may not have the opportunity to be included in activities to now have access to them just through a social media account.

Platforms like Facebook, Youtube, and Instagram allow schools to reach students, parents, and others in the community. School social media accounts give a home network for sending out information about events, achievements, and other announcements. This allows students to be well-informed about upcoming events.

On most social media sites, you are able to make “shorts”, and just like here on The Stinger, staff can ask a variety of students and teachers a question or get them to do a challenge and engage them in their school. This also influences them to interact with others in their school just because they might want to see themselves or their friends.

According to SocialSchool4EDU,“We witness these kinds of moments every single day in our schools. Whether it’s a student helping a friend, a teacher helping someone experience a learning breakthrough, or kids having a blast on the playground – those are the photos and videos that need to be captured and shared on social media.” It makes sense that students would be engaged in these posts because they are only able to see what is going on in the class they are in, however when those photos are posted, not only can peers see it but people all across the world.

Educators at Burley Middle School in Albemarle, VA, “have increased our social media use, teachers now recognize benefits well beyond sharing thoughts, graphics, and articles. Now we’reengaging students and extending learning.”, this shows that teachers and staff are also seeing the benefits of bringing social media into the classroom and a way of sharing creativity and what students are learning in class.

Some may say that school social media websites have the possibility of excluding students or miss spread of information because it is a common occurrence on online platforms. They also suggest that newer generations struggle with managing how much time they are on social media during the day so that just adds more time trying to know when and where to be at an event.

While the concern of students being in the front of social media is a possible problem that could come forward, there are precautions that can be taken to eliminate that problem like managing what is being shared and reposted. It is just like any other account that may be managed by parents or the student themselves. Nea.org gives many examples of how social media is able to be controlled by the owner of the account, so is what schools can do to make sure it is a safe environment to foster.

School social media accounts, when managed correctly, are overall a very powerful and useful tool for broadcasting information and showing pride in schools. There are so many available options whether it’s making people laugh or showing off an admirable art piece, there is an infinite amount of options. It builds a sense of community outside the classroom walls to embrace people and events going on around you.