College Students Use Twitter to Boost their GPAs

As the majority of college students already know, social media sites are becoming more and more popular every year. A whopping 94% of first year college students use them almost every day. While the use of these sites could be thought of as a distraction, a recent study has shown that incorporating Twitter into the classroom has helped a group of 125 students outperform those that continued traditional learning practices. In addition to earning a higher GPA, these students were also found to be more engaged in the classroom.

There's no denying that social media's popularity is not going to decrease anytime soon, so teachers and students are starting to take advantage of sites like Twitter, to encourage participation in a classroom setting. The use of this social media outlet allows students to create discussions with their classmates not only during class, but outside as well. They are able to see what their peers are posting while using the site as a forum for questions.

A recent CNN article interviewed eighth grade teacher, Enrique Legaspi, on how he has incorporated the site into his middle school classroom. "For a lot of them, what it did is help find their voice. I have many students that do not participate in my classes or share what's on their mind, so Twitter became that vehicle." Similar to Legaspi's classroom, it is evident in a university setting that only a small group of individuals usually participate during class time, but with encouragement to use the technology they use constantly, education may evolve for the best.

Has social media helped you in the classroom? Read more statistics from the study here.