The Impact of Social Media Technologies on Adult Learning

Abstract

Technology and social media have presented significant tools for adult learners to learn and advance continually. Fast technological advancements have enabled development of technologies used for learning. Expansion of various tools has given professors, educaters, trainers, instructers, many alternatives towards the implementation of the technology supported learning. The use of social media can improve adult learning outcomes and academic accomplishment. Social media is increasingly proven to be beneficial in adult learning and has a huge potential for adult education. This paper sheds some lights on benefits of social media for adult learners, this is incorporated through the review of previous work and some barriers that encounters social media for learning purposes. Also some social media models are reviewed to show the growth and effect of social media in adult learning context, and suggestions and recommendations are provided.

Learning Innovation Content Creators Social Media-Based Qualitative Analysis to Improve Motivation and Learning Outcomes of Professional Teacher Candidates: A Systematic Literature Review

“…In addition, [13] wrote that technology and social media have provided quality tools for adult learners to learn and progress continuously. Rapid technological advances have enabled the development of technologies used for learning.…”

“…Social media is a platform that provides social connectivity in our daily lives. Content characteristics have changed to a more dynamic state, with higher participation rates [13] Social media can facilitate the development of online communities, enabling collaborative and participatory engagement by emphasizing collective knowledge and social interaction. Like the concept of lifelong learning, Adult learners will need information in a variety of formats, designed to suit specific educational goals to suit different learning styles and preferences, and to fill student gaps over time.…”

The Social Affordances of Social Media for Informal Learners

“…Social media is ultimately a technological platform with several features that contain a set of technical and social affordances. Social media provides more advantages than traditional media, the major benefits being interactivity (Al-Sabaawi & Dahlan, 2018;Alsaadat, 2018;Ersoy & Güneyli, 2016;Fox & Ralston, 2016;Genden, 2018;McCarthy, 2015), familiarity (Al-Sabaawi & Dahlan, 2018;Blaschke, 2014;Genden, 2018), popularity (Garcia et al, 2015), and engagement (Al-Sabaawi & Dahlan, 2018;McPherson, Budge, & Lemon, 2015). People tend to use social media for leisure activities (e.g., watching movies) and communication, but many studies confirm that the use of social media has opened new ways of learning.…”

A Systematic Literature Review on the Social Affordances of Social Media for Informal Learning Environments

“…Social media provides more advantages than traditional media, the major benefits being interactivity (Al-Sabaawi & Dahlan, 2018;Alsaadat, 2018;Ersoy & Güneyli, 2016;Fox & Ralston, 2016;Genden, 2018;McCarthy, 2015), familiarity (Al-Sabaawi & Dahlan, 2018;Blaschke, 2014;Genden, 2018), popularity (Garcia et al, 2015), and engagement (Al-Sabaawi & Dahlan, 2018;McPherson, Budge, & Lemon, 2015). The use of social media as learning tools could be crucial at these difficult times of the Covid-19 crisis.…”