4 Ways Students Can Benefit From Social Media

In this age of digitalization social media has become a “necessary evil” that requires proper attention and vigilance of parents to convert it to a “necessary friend”. A lot of criticism has been levied at social media and the effect it has on the way students process and retain information, as well as how distracting it can be.

However, social media offers plenty of opportunities for enhancing learning and interactivity, and if you take a moment to think about it, it’s not too hard to see how students are benefitting from using social media. The younger generation is using such web technologies in the classroom to remake the new educational landscape.

Students currently 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 which is faster, time saving & more effective.

However, it comes with its own responsibilities, careful behavior and communication etiquettes in order to enable effective net usage.

How can social media benefit students?

Social media services if used judiciously can offer immense benefits to students. Here are a few of them.

#1 Increases Student Collaboration and Connections

Students can use social media networks to drive public connections, collaborative research, group activities and homework assignments. It gives a convivial atmosphere to the introverts to open up and communicate effectively in public domain without any hesitation. Today’s students are accessing Facebook, Twitter and even Instagram to connect and share knowledge and information with those around them and across the globe. One of the most interesting things about social media is that users can interact and engage with each other solely through a web presence without the hassles of a physical interaction.

#2 Digital Engagement Reinforces Collaborative Participation of Parents, Teachers and Students

Whether they are sharing personal pictures, links to other sites or even commenting on someone’s post, students are stretching social media beyond social interaction purposes. They are using social media day in and day out to interact with their peers, family and teachers about class activities, project assignments and other facets of student life. If the teachers want the class to explore some useful information on a particular website they only have to tweet, WhatsApp or e-mail the group and share the website link and the entire class can view it with one click.

Parents no longer have to wait to fix an appointment with the class teacher or the school authorities to get knowledge about the new developments in the school or the child’s progress. Schools develop their own Apps for such personalized interactions.

In a world where online engagement is important for businesses, these students are experts at developing a sense of Internet presence. Not only do they know how to interact with others on the internet, they also know how to use basic and even complex functions in order to do so, making the virtual world more useful, effective and adaptive to the changing requirements of time/ world.

#3 Social Media Engagement Encourages Knowledge Creation and Knowledge Sharing

Students give and receive information daily on social media at rapid speed. They share their assignments with teachers, ask questions and clear their doubts and even do collective study among themselves.

The range of their sharing information is more than just funny cat videos; they share views and opinions; tips, tricks, even DIY projects; and 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 new skills and creating wealth of knowledge.

For generation Z its part of their daily life. Besides social interactions, the young generation can use social media to explore career opportunities, gain information on courses of their choice and the universities offering them etc. etc.

For millennials, the planet has really shrunk into a small world easily governed and controlled by the touch of your finger. Only people born before the advent of Internet can understand the magnitude and impact of this new style of communication.

#4 Social Media and Entrepreneurship

The advent and dominance of social media has created an enterprising breed of entrepreneurs and marketing professionals.

Amazon, Uber, Flipkart and many other small and big online businesses have found space on net for the growth of their business. This has opened new avenues for our budding business enthusiasts. 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.

Final word

As technology advances, so does the way the world works with it. People are experiencing the benefits of social media as it unfolds daily. Members of the young workforce are keeping up to speed with many forms of social media.

Once you get a proper social media strategy locked in for your growing child, you are ready to touch the sky with a new breed of skilled social media graduates and enthusiasts.

The judicious use of social media will definitely enable our students to keep pace with the changing times. It’s disciplined usage can serve as an useful tool for their life’s success.