A number of Boston University professors have entered the social media stratosphere, dishing out exam review questions and class assignments to their students via websites such as Facebook and Twitter.
The trend is especially prevalent in the College of Communication, where some professors have encouraged students to live tweet lectures and join a class Facebook page.
On first thought, this sounds like a clever way to keep students engaged.
A quick glance around any one of BU’s lecture halls features students slumped over their computer screens, scrolling their Facebook newsfeeds. A professor who requires his or her students to interact on a class Facebook page would most likely yield positive results.
Asking students to use Twitter, on the other hand, is not that simple. The Twitter newsfeed is overwhelming, and many students will not want to sit there, sifting through every one of their professor’s tweets because there may or may not be a review question.
Then there’s the issue of privacy. Where do we draw the line between “this is an innovative, exciting way to get my students to pay attention” and “I’m asking my students to give up their privacy?” Many students will not friend their professors on Facebook or want them scrolling through their personal Twitter feeds.
Looking forward, it will be interesting to see whether any other BU professors jump on the social media bandwagon.
Then again, it’s hard to see social media being used as a communication tool between students and professors outside of COM. Would science professors send out a Facebook message reminding students their labs are due? Some of them refuse to touch Blackboard, so probably not.
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