Facebook in Education

The use of Facebook, and other social networks, is rapidly spreading across the United States like wildfire.  People believe that like the Internet, social networks are here to stay for a very long time.  Facebook is incredibly popular throughout the world, and within all age groups.  But does Facebook’s popularity and usefulness truly validate it’s place in education?  Or should educators steer clear of Facebook altogether?

In my opinion, any digital, online tool that can be useful to students, easy to navigate, and reduce the stress of learning should be actively utilized in every classroom.  However, I do not believe that children should be bombarded with media and information from sites like Facebook on a daily basis.  As with everything else in life, Facebook must be used in moderation, especially in the classroom.

The usage of Facebook as a learning tool intrigues me, as I believe that it has great potential to stimulate and increase students’ engagement in class.  However, it is absolutely necessary for teachers to educate their students about safety and responsibility on the web prior to employing the site.  As Bernie Poole stated in his blog, children need to be made aware of “effective strategies for acquiring knowledge, decision-making skills, motivation, and self-control to behave in a safe, responsible, and legal manner when using the Internet and other information technologies.” (Poole, Risks Involved in Integrating the Internet into the K-12 Curriculum)  Teachers play an enormous role in educating students about this web-etiquette as, “teens are still looking to them for examples of how to be good citizens online and offline.” (Facebook, Teaching Digital Kids) 

Privacy and safety are two of the biggest issues that most teachers, including myself, have with introducing Facebook into the classroom.  If one is unaware of Facebook’s privacy settings, much information can be leaked and the students’ privacy and safety can come into jeopardy.   Facebook has a great privacy feature that limits who can access the information of users under the age of 18.  However, if a child says that they are older than 18, these features are not included, so there is far less protection. (Phillips, Baird, Fogg, Facebook for Educators)  This is why I believe that if students are to use Facebook in a classroom, it should be through a teacher created group or page, so as to avoid problems.  I wholeheartedly believe that teachers should also be aware of the fact that Facebook and similar websites are not the answer to their teaching issues.  As Stewart states, “it is not the tool that is important, but how you use it.” (Stewart, Just to Let You Know)

On a more positive note, I do believe that Facebook has many appealing uses that are suitable for classroom use.  Facebook requires the class to shift to a Student-centered learning environment in which the student needs to take more responsibility and action in their learning.  Facebook is very student-centered as it,  “can provide students with the opportunity to effectively present their ideas, lead online discussions, and collaborate….(and) as students share their thought processes with their peers online, they are able to help each other work through difficulties, while also building (this) collaborative peer support system.” (Phillips, Baird, Fogg, Facebook for Educators)  I believe that overall, Facebook usage in the classroom is a great tool for alternative learning.  Facebook allows students unique online learning experiences such as the ability to create and share work, collaborate with peers through critiques and comments on others’ assignments, work in teams, have discussions, etc. (Kessler, The Case for Social Media in Schools) Facebook also has a great advantage in teacher-parent communication as it facilitates and simplifies sharing information with parents.  Parents are kept informed, sent permission slips, given announcements, and can view media from their child’s activities and trips. (Facebook, Teaching Digital Kids)