Impact of Social Networking on Effective Communication

Students are avid users of social media for personal use, and the same networking skills can also be used to increase students' academic success. How can Facebook or Twitter help students achieve their academic goals and meet curriculum expectations? Students in Mrs. McDonald's Communication Applications classes did just that in their "Impact of Social Networking" project.

For this project, students worked in groups to create an inspirational video based on a quote of their choice. In the video, students explain why the quote is important to them personally or to their generation. The video development process included (1) a written explanation of the importance of the quote, (2) a storyboard for planning the video sequence, (3) recording the video, audio, and/or capture of still images, and (4) video editing. Students chose their video recording devices (GoPro, cell phone, home video camera) as well as their video editing tools (iMovie, MovieMaker, etc.). The goal of the video was to entertain, persuade, or inform their audience, as described by the course curriculum.

Once the videos were complete, the social networking component of the project kicked in. Students uploaded their videos to YouTube and used social media to promote the video and generate interest. Students knew they were successful when the number of YouTube video views increased after using social media promotion.

Example of student product:
"We have spent 113,880 hours at school for a piece of paper and a handshake on a stage."
Link to YouTube video



At the conclusion of the project, students reflected on the impact of the social networking and presented their videos to the class. Students who utilized multiple social media platforms and incorporated a "catch" to generate interest observed a significant increase in the number of video views. Conversely, students who used minimal social media had little to no effect on the number of video views. The impact of social networking was obvious; students increased their mass communication skills using social media in an academic setting.