The role of social media in education: How Twitter can be used in the intermediate classroom as a tool for collaborative learning

With the proliferation of social media applications and student access to technology, teachers are faced with a choice: should they ban these technologies or infuse them into their practice? One social media tool, the microblogging website Twitter, presents a unique way for students to share ideas and communicate. This study explores how Twitter can be used in a classroom setting and whether it can support collaborative learning. A case study approach was used and three teachers were interviewed about their experiences using Twitter in their classrooms. It was discovered that when used as a learning tool, Twitter has many social benefits, including supporting community building, increasing interactions between students and giving students a voice online. Its benefits and uses align well with the tenets of collaborative learning, as students engage in social learning when using Twitter. The significance of Twitter’s authentic uses in a learning context and the role of the teacher were also highlighted in this study. Future research should focus on deeper understandings of Twitter’s use in the classroom and the student experience when using this technology as a learning tool, as well as on how educational policies can match the evolving state of social media technology