This is the con argument on the effects of social media on students. To read the pro click here.

It has been said that social media can help students learn.

However, if social media is so beneficial, why haven’t we used it in class? No social media whatsoever is used during the day. Teachers are constantly handing out book work, not computer work, and some don’t even let students use their computers in class.

The truth of the matter is that teachers eliminate the use of social media in the classroom because it is not helpful. Teachers are right to do this, it is just too distracting to be an educational tool.

This distraction stems from the variety of websites and platforms that appeal to everyone’s hobbies and interests. They offer pictures of beautiful landscapes, decadent food recipes, and the ability to talk to friends or make new ones around the world. It’s easy to see why JC is addicted.

Feeding the addiction, the administration has just unblocked these sites. While this may help out those in the dorms, the new access to social media sites offers no benefit to students’ productivity during school hours.

How many times have you seen students on social media in class when they weren’t supposed to? Better yet, how many times have you been on social media in class when you weren’t supposed to?

Social media is an escape. An escape from boring lectures, difficult test material, and complicated theorems. It helps students procrastinate in their work and ultimately makes their grades suffer.

Social media is good for connecting with friends, sharing pictures or ideas, and meeting new people. It is not meant to be used in class, where the focus needs to remain on the lesson and not on the computer screen.

The technology program at JC is quickly approaching a decade of use. One would think that if social media were a positive tool in students’ learning, that we would be using it daily in school by now.

Angela DeCarlo is a Copy Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.