Not only is social media being used in public relations campaigns, but it is also being implemented into education as well. From using Facebook to connect with students in class to using Twitter to start conversations with professionals and sharing articles with students on Delicious. There are many possibilities to where this can go in the future. However, what about the emergence of social games and implementing them into education? Will these work for students to learn more about a subject if they participate in a game that is online? Well, according to Mashable, there are many ways in which social media is improving education. From presenting lessons virtually to having students be part of a virtual world in looking at a health related issue, and having students participate in virtual simulations. These are all exciting opportunities for students to grow and learn from these experiences. Social media is being implemented in not only science courses, but history, English, and chemistry classes as well. Social games are not only a benefit in educating in the classroom, but outside as well. The CDC has a great site that has several e-games for students to learn about various health issues, nutrition, stress, diseases, and games focused on safety issues. This is a great channel for students and their parents to participate on and learn together on many issues that are relevant to them.
Overall, the benefit of having students online and actively participating on these games is that they are searching for new ideas and creating knowledge. They are constantly learning and adapting their attitudes and opinions on various issues. Plus, the Internet serves as a gateway for critical thinking. Students today are exposed to many sources of information from multiple channels, and they have to look at what are the main themes that are emerging and make their decision based on all of these facts. We are living in an exciting time where technology is constantly changing and evolving – and being a researcher and educator – I am looking forward to incorporating social media and new technology into my classes.
Hope you all are having a great day and good luck to both the Colts and Saints in the Super Bowl! 🙂
Best Wishes,
Karen
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