Connecting Communities: Empowering Students, Parents, and Educators through Social Media
In a world that is becoming dominated more and more by our digital lives, social media emerges as a potentially powerful tool that can be harnessed for good. This blog post will explore the positive potential of social media and how students, parents, and educators can use social media to become more aware of the communities around us—both locally and globally. This post will also touch on how social media can be used to foster empathy and empower positive change.
Building Awareness and Staying Informed
The accessibility of social media makes it a dynamic platform for amplifying the voices of local communities. Whether it's sharing information about neighborhood events, promoting local businesses, or addressing concerns that impact the local community, these social media platforms quite literally bring neighbors together. Social media is a great place to get inspiration for weekend activities in your local area, or even find groups and organizations to connect with in person.
Beyond geographical boundaries, social media also facilitates a global exchange of ideas. Various platforms connect individuals across the world by similar interests and empower them to engage in global issues. As social media increasingly transforms into a primary source of news (while remaining mindful of misinformation), it offers you and your loved ones a gateway to explore issues around the world, including different cultures, political events, science, art and literature, and more.
Developing Empathy
It may seem difficult to develop empathy via social media due to its often impersonal nature, but it’s certainly not impossible! In fact, the diverse range of voices on social media exposes people to a wide array of perspectives for students, parents, and educators to gain valuable insights from. Seeing the world through so many different lenses allows the development of a more empathetic understanding. Here are a few ways students, parents, and educators can use social media to develop empathy:
Participate in discussions: Engage in respectful conversations with other people, and encourage peers to also share diverse viewpoints. Don’t forget to keep an open mind!
Support one another: Respond to other people’s posts with kindness and understanding. Social media is also a great place to share resources with each other and check in on friends and family no matter how far away they may be.
Promote perspective-taking: Encourage individuals to consider different perspectives and to approach issues from various viewpoints before forming opinions. Consider the importance of understanding where you are getting your information from, and leverage social media as an opportunity to interact with accounts that represent diverse backgrounds.
Giving Back
Especially after the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, social media can be a catalyst for youth-led initiatives, empowering young minds to organize and participate in various community service projects or other charitable activities. Different platforms create avenues for young minds to promote their causes, mobilize support, and spark change in the community. Here are some examples of youth-led social media initiatives:
The #NeverAgainMovement (March for Our Lives) was initiated by survivors of the Stoneman Douglas High School Shooting in 2018 on social media. This group of students used social media to raise awareness of gun violence and civic engagement, organize marches around the country, and advocate for legislation on gun violence.
The Malala Fund was founded by Malala Yousafzai when she was a student, promoting education for girls by using social media to raise awareness and advocate for policy change to improve girls’ access to education around the world.
Fridays for Future is a youth-led movement started by Greta Thunberg and other young activists who protested the Swedish parliament’s lack of action on the climate crisis. Using “#FridaysForFuture across social media, they sparked an awakening around the world, uniting activists to take action on the climate crisis.
Remember to Stay Safe on Social Media
While this blog post discusses some of the many ways social media can be harnessed to empower individuals and communities, it is still crucial to remember how to stay safe on social media.
Avoid sharing sensitive, personal information (address, phone number, school, etc) online
Recognize cyberbullying and block or report abusive users. Confide in trusted adults when facing harassment
Check-in with trusted adults and guardians. Keep them in the loop regarding online activities and any concerns or uncomfortable interactions you may come across
By being proactive, thoughtful, and aware of how you engage with social media, we can all navigate through social media platforms more safely, and maximize social media’s potential to do good online and around the world.
