Schools Should Adopt Social Media or Face Irrelevancy

Educators just have to start teaching in the times we live in. There are A BILLION people checking through Facebook every day! Twitter users tweet at an average of 6,000 times every second of every day with over 300 million users. Your students and their parents are using Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Periscope, YouTube and other apps to connect with their world while MOST educators either use very little of it, are afraid to engage their students on it, do not know how to use it or how to leverage on it for their own personal financial growth.

Students are experiencing the world through more than just books and assignments; they are learning and adapting to the world using a relatively new form of communication. In a world where connections are important, graduates are coming into the workplace with a lot to offer. 

Many educators around the world are leveraging on social media to boost their opportunities. Learning and connecting with each other there. Pinning their classroom walls/activities on Pinterest, showing teaching ideas to parents on Youtube, organising online group sessions with their students on Facebook, sharing picture posts of their students work on Instagram, creating classroom blogs and the list goes on.  

These social media platforms offer a huge opportunity to meet our core clients where they are. They allow us to share content, engage in educational discussions, connect with other teachers from around the world, promote school events and our own ideas…and SO much more.

Technology is moving almost at the speed of light and social media is changing the field of education. As teachers, we must adopt it especially in getting our students interested in learning (which is now known to increase success rates) or risk irrelevancy. To that I add being an outdated teacher. There is so much waiting out there for educators to gain from….getting into your students’ world and a much wider world of growth opportunities for oneself. See benefits of social media from edudemic.com

What exactly will educators and our students be learning?

Web engagement

Whether they are sharing personal pictures, links to other sites or even commenting on someone’s post, students engage, stretching beyond social interaction purposes alone. Students use social media day in and day out to interact with their peers and even teachers about class-related subjects. In a world where online engagement is important for businesses, these students are becoming experts at developing a sense of Internet presence. Not only do they know how to interact with others on the internet, they know how to use basic and even complex functions in order to do so.

Teachers can leverage on this by allowing students take charge of their learning while they direct effectively.The results are always outstanding!

Knowledge

Social media users share among themselves day in and day out, giving and receiving information at rapid speeds. This information is more than funny cat videos; they share views and opinions; tips, tricks, and even DIY projects; and, among students, helpful information for classes. Their ability to assess, analyze, retain and share information is skyrocketing and they often don’t even realize they’re developing these skills. Only people born before the Internet was invented are likely to understand the magnitude of this new style of communication.

Social Media Marketing

The advent and dominance of social media has created a new breed of marketing, which has required professionals to build and further the field. As social media users join the workforce, they bring their skills to their careers. Social media prepares young workers to become great marketers. It has become essential for major businesses to include a social media marketing strategy and students today are the people filling these positions.

Schools can leverage on this to show what they are doing well and even differently. Social media has actually helped many schools grow immensely.

While older generations might not completely understand or agree with the amount of social media activity by today’s student population, younger educators with the school should know they will quickly benefit from it. As technology advances, so does the way the world works with it. Members of the young workforce (coming out from our schools) are keeping up to speed with many forms of social media.

Educators must not be left behind. We must embrace it and build 21st century learners in the same way. Why? So they are not ALSO left behind while meeting a world that has moved ahead of them. Why teach a 21st century learner with 20th century ideologies and methods. Beats me!