Social Networking in the Classroom Essay Example
Cheyenne Bevins
ENG112B- L. Preston
Argument Essay 1
Social Networking in the Classroom Social media is largely becoming, if not already, a large part of everyday life. Now it has even become a part of education and the classroom. The site Facebook has over five-hundred million users and the vast majority of the people in society today, even grandmas, use Facebook daily. According to OnlineUniversities.com, “Social media may have started out as a fun way to connect with friends, but has evolved to become a powerful tool for education and business. Sites such as Facebook and Twitter and tools such as Skype are connecting students to learning opportunities in new and exciting ways.” Social networks are causing younger students to pay less attention in classes which causes them to be unprepared for higher education or the workforce. In most classrooms around the world, using cell phones to send text messages and laptops to access sites like Facebook and Twitter are very much discouraged. Considered a high-tech distraction that impedes the learning environment, such actions often end in the student being reprimanded, penalized and even having their devices confiscated. Things are a little different now; in some cases professors--especially those who teach in large lecture halls--have come to embrace social networking as an instructional aid. Using an application developed on campus, the educators who enrolled in the program have come to think of social networking via texting and online portals as a tool, rather than a distraction. After all of the praise of Facebook and Twitter and other social networking sites being used in education and business there are still some who feel as though these social networking sites are to blame for students’ poor grades. According to the article, Social networking: teachers blame Facebook and Twitter for pupils’ poor grades by Andy Bloxham, “Children who spend much of their time online
ENG112B- L. Preston
Argument Essay 1
Social Networking in the Classroom Social media is largely becoming, if not already, a large part of everyday life. Now it has even become a part of education and the classroom. The site Facebook has over five-hundred million users and the vast majority of the people in society today, even grandmas, use Facebook daily. According to OnlineUniversities.com, “Social media may have started out as a fun way to connect with friends, but has evolved to become a powerful tool for education and business. Sites such as Facebook and Twitter and tools such as Skype are connecting students to learning opportunities in new and exciting ways.” Social networks are causing younger students to pay less attention in classes which causes them to be unprepared for higher education or the workforce. In most classrooms around the world, using cell phones to send text messages and laptops to access sites like Facebook and Twitter are very much discouraged. Considered a high-tech distraction that impedes the learning environment, such actions often end in the student being reprimanded, penalized and even having their devices confiscated. Things are a little different now; in some cases professors--especially those who teach in large lecture halls--have come to embrace social networking as an instructional aid. Using an application developed on campus, the educators who enrolled in the program have come to think of social networking via texting and online portals as a tool, rather than a distraction. After all of the praise of Facebook and Twitter and other social networking sites being used in education and business there are still some who feel as though these social networking sites are to blame for students’ poor grades. According to the article, Social networking: teachers blame Facebook and Twitter for pupils’ poor grades by Andy Bloxham, “Children who spend much of their time online