The Role of Social Media Sites and the Challenges facing them in Education

Abstract

Although the power of social media to impact learning is recognized, little is known regarding their role and use in the field of education, especially in the Algerian context. Therefore, the current study aims to investigate the role of social media sites and the challenges facing them in education. The study also provided a historical background about social media and highlighted the most popular networks which are Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and WhatsApp. Nevertheless, some challenges that face social media use in education were found including both the learner’s and teacher’s roles towards using these platforms. Therefore, educators and scholars in the field of education had better develop more effective instructional strategies that integrate the use of social media platforms into physical and virtual classrooms for better understanding and achievement.