Social Media in Elementary Schools

 

Social media continues to be popular and more platforms are being introduced. Should we use social media in schools? Should we allow students to use social media at school for educational purposes? these are all questions that do not have a simple answer.

At the elementary level, students do not use social media as a form of instruction. Evans (2024) states "While fewer school-aged young people are using Facebook today (about 32%, Pew finds), it can still be a useful tool for maintaining an online community, posting updates, sharing links and asking questions". Our students are not on Facebook, but their parents, most likely, are. At Indian Valley Elementary School, teachers have Facebook groups for their classrooms that only parents have access to and the school has a Facebook page that keep parents and guardians updated on events, fundraisers, and highlights of the school. For this grade level, it makes most sense for social media to be used as an online community and a place for parents to find information about events going on at school. 

Design by Keley Barnhill

Can we prepare students for social media?

Even though elementary schools do not use student centered social media, we can use social media to teach students about digital literacy. There are many ways that we can prepare students for the future use of social media through digital citizenship and the writing process. 

One thing teachers do everyday is a writing lesson. We can incorporate social media by teaching students best practices while writing. Lawrence (2022) emphasizes the importance of the writing process even in writing for social media (p. 33). Students beginning learning how to brainstorm ideas in kindergarten and begin to develop pre-writing skills. Students may start with a word or a sentence, but they have to start with their pen to paper. When they are ready, students may begin publishing their writing by typing it on the computer. As the technology teacher, my second grade students will bring a writing piece to class and we will publish their writing. My students are learning keyboarding skills and can transfer their words to a digital format. Although students may not use social media at school, we can prepare them by teaching them to draft their words and revise them before putting them on the internet (Lawrence, 2022, p. 34). 

Another way we can prepare students for social media is by teaching them about digital citizenship. "Educators can teach students about healthy digital technology habits and help them recognize how technology can potentially affect their well-being" (“Promoting Digital Citizenship for Students,” 2024). Schools that have a technology or a library rotation can learn about digital citizenship. This year I partnered with our school librarian to teach students about their online community, keeping information private, giving credit, and technology breaks. "Teaching digital citizenship to students involves helping them understand the permanence of their digital footprints and how to avoid harming themselves or others when they post online" (“Promoting Digital Citizenship for Students,” 2024). 

Educators cannot control what our students are exposed to outside of our schools. However, we can prepare them for what they may encounter now and in the future. 

References

            Evans, M. (2024, October 22). Social Media in Education: 13 Ideas for the Classroom. University of San Diego - Professional & Continuing Education. https://pce.sandiego.edu/social-media-in-education/

            Lawrence, D. (2022). Digital Writing: A Guide to Writing for Social Media and the Web. Broadview Press.

            Promoting Digital Citizenship for Students. (2024, April 15). School of Education Online. https://soeonline.american.edu/blog/digital-citizenship-for-students/