How Social Media Affects Students' Academic Performance
Social media affects academic performance in good ways and bad. See how it distracts students and how teachers can turn it into a useful learning tool.
Advanced technology, the growth of the internet and the arrival of many kinds of social media make it ever easier for us to get information and communicate. Technology, the internet and social media affect each person differently. In education in particular, the effect of social media on academic performance is often seen as a bad influence on students' motivation to learn. That can happen because students tend to prefer spending time online on social media over studying. This effect makes students lazy about studying from their notebooks and eventually lowers their academic performance.
In fact, this can be worked around, turning the effect of social media on students' academic performance into a good one. When social media is used in the learning process, lessons can become more interesting and students can become more motivated to learn. Learning is, after all, a process of passing on knowledge and information. That matches the function and role of social media in spreading information and knowledge in a more practical and interactive way.
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The effect of social media on academic performance can be steered in a better direction by using social media as a learning tool. Teachers can create study groups on social media and share learning materials in more engaging formats, such as videos or infographics. Students can also share what they find out about the lessons being taught. This way, teachers and students both stay active and interactive, which has a positive effect on academic performance.
Besides learning the subject matter itself, students can also learn about information technology and learn to choose accurate information to absorb and share with their friends and teachers. The effect of social media on academic performance also creates a classroom without limits, through e-learning that is not restricted by classroom, distance or time.
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