Social Media in Education

My research into social media in education introduced me to a new term, “the Fifth Estate.” According to Dutton (2009), the social networks, Web 2.0, really all of the Internet has come together to allow users to connect and influence each other in new ways (as cited in Torphy & Drakem 2019). Before I jump further into the Fifth Estate, I should back up and explain the history of the previous two estates. The Third estate, conceptualized as far back as the medieval era, consisted of the clergy, the monarchy, and the nobility. These three parts were at the center of the “sphere of influence,” (Dutton, 2009, as cited in Torphy & Drake, 2019). With the introduction of print, the three estates evolved into the Fourth Estate, was made up of the original three parts, and now included journalism, or later mass media in the form of Web 1.0 tools and media broadcasting, as the fourth member. Broadcast media shared the information to the general public, whereas before the clergy, monarch, and nobility controlled the flow of information and by extension determined the way of life within their societies (Dutton, 2009, as cited in Torphy & Drake, 2019).

The Fifth estate came about due to the advent of the Internet and the introduction of Web 2.0 tools. The Fifth Estate has empowered educators to connect with each other outside physical boundaries of school districts, regions, states, and countries. On a social level, the Fifth Estate allows all participants within the field of education to engage in professional learning communities (PLC). Social media access to PLCs allow educators to tap into perspectives, ideas, and resources different from their own, and allows for anonymity away from their in-person communities. For example, the authors share that Twitter is frequently used by educators to stay informed on education related issues, while Pinterest is a common teacher goto for seeking and sharing resources (Torphy & Drake, 2019, p.9).

The use of Pinterest is a stepping off point for the seeking of resources by educators. Pinterest allows for virtual pin-boarding of ideas for all parts of education–lessons, strategies, resources. The pins on Pinterest often lead to blogs, and allow teachers to connect together peer-to-peer. Teachers report trusting each other over education experts (Will, 2016, as cited in Torphy & Drake, 2019).

In their study, the authors evaluated 73 pre-service teachers at Midwestern University. The 73 students were enrolled in an elementary mathematics course. They were tasked with creating groups and locating instructional tasks online. They were tasked with using Pinterest specifically, but ventured to other websites. Within the study, the students would use Pinterest as a jumping off point and from there rabbit hole their way to other websites.

The study revealed certain themes present among pre-service educators and their ideals about education. These themes include credibility, autonomy, teacher-to-teacher trust, and creativity (Figure 5). Furthermore, the study reinforced the idea that teachers are more trusting of each other. Discussions that occurred within the course showed that the preservice teachers found that resources and information shared by peers was considered more credible. The authors attribute this to the perception that the more frequently a resource is shared, the more credible the author is. Furthermore, resources found on blog sites usually had an accompanying post that the author shared how this resource was utilized in their classroom. That further supported the credibility of the author to the preservice teachers. Pinterest also supported creativity among preservice educators. The study showed that some of the preservice educators gravitated towards free and modifiable resources, allowing them to save money and make adjustments to their students’ needs.

The study shows that rationality only partially impacts social media engagement; the other part of social media engagement is shaped by the desire to meet students’ needs, connect with other professionals, seek resources, and creativity. Dr. Al-Rodhan describes this conclusion perfectly, “It turns out, from an experimental standpoint, our most rational decisions are actually intertwined with emotionality,” (Al-Rodhan, 2016, as cited in Torphy & Drake, 2019, p. 19). The authors conclude their study by acknowledging the inherent social nature of education. Social media, Web 2.0 tools, available in the Fifth Estate allow educators to reach across physical barriers and redefine the field of education. This study further draws attention to the overarching impact the Fifth Estate will have on the entire field of information management.

Torphy, K. T., & Drake, C. (2019). Educators meet the fifth estate: The role of social media in teacher training. Teachers College Record (1970), 121(14), 1-26. https://doi.org/10.1177/016146811912101406