The concept that social media could be helpful in a learning environment seemed to be a bit of an oxymoron when I first heard about it. After al I grew up in the era where being social at school was frowned upon, unless it was outside of class!

My introduction to social media was following my kids on Facebook and My Space about ten years ago, and considering some of the things people put out there it was hard for me to see Social Media as a learning environment. So when I began a master’s program where discussions on use of social media for learning were introduced I thought, this should be interesting…

The interesting twist here was that it turns out social media can be a very effective way to share tips, tricks, tools, and techniques! It can be a way for asking questions and getting quick answers from others when you are new to a field or concept. It’s a way for learners and educators to express their perspectives and receive feedback from others. It’s also a place for someone who has been in the field for a very long time to learn new tricks. And the best part is, you can be the “stealth stealer” of information, or be very vested and involved. And I think it’s quite likely that even the “stealth stealers” of ideas and information will be come vested and involved the more they get their feet wet.

In Getting Social to Engage Learners Laurie Goslee notes that we really are social learners, and social media is a way to engage the learner and give them some control over their learning. Think back to the days of the caveman where learning was all tribe based via stories told in face-to-face communication, you can’t get much more social than that.   Now social media may not be face to face but it is communication between people, and it not only has the ability to stretch outside of your realm but it’s also a quick avenue to becoming super connected to bring thoughts, answers, and new ideas into your space, thereby expanding your horizons with very little effort. Another really nifty thing is that it in addition to changing the learning from passive to active, which is more easily and likely to be retained, it engages the learner and gives them more control over their learning.   That ties into personalized learning where learners are connecting with things that resonate with them, and that’s a win since it opens the door for deeper learning.

So I have to admit it, although I never thought I’d ever consider it, Social Media can contribute a great deal to the learning environment. And I am looking forward to testing out the waters with my theory students in the fall by coming up with some social media learning exercises to increase engagement and see just what we can accomplish by using this new tool!

March 14, 2018