Since its inception, the Internet has become an intricate part of life where people depend on its access for daily activities such as shopping, social networking, education, banking, home security, and other related activities. Among these, social networks, which seem to be the main attraction of the Internet, can be seen as both a blessing and a curse. In education in particular, social networks are considered a positive indicator of progress in education and its practices. However, we cannot deny the negative influences that can accompany it, which seems to be a distraction for many students today.

Students frequently become familiar with computers while browsing these social networks. They gain valuable skills on an instrument that has become indispensable in the world in which they reside as students and will enter upon completion of their studies. Additionally, it encourages networking with a variety of people, which can be seen as a necessary skill in the business environment. This is also the case for teachers and administrators. With the existence of social blogs, Twitter, and Facebook, teachers can share and record through various media, instructional methods, as well as teaching theories and practices in real time. Additionally, many are able to extend learning techniques and also interact with students on an ongoing basis outside of the classroom.

On the contrary, the rise of social networks and advances in other interactive communication technologies have produced negative impacts inside and outside the classroom. While social media can be seen as a positive tool for education, this tool has the potential to hinder student achievement, social growth, and communication skills. Similarly, it can affect a teacher’s overall efficiency in a number of ways. What is the reason for a decline in academic performance as a result of its impact? What are the social ramifications of social networks? What factors are directly responsible for the inability to educate students effectively? How are teachers affected by social media both inside and outside the classroom?

For most, Internet access for educational purposes would be seen as a great resource of information; however, for students, the Internet poses many problematic factors in academic performance. In general, children who spend more time online find it more difficult to concentrate, resulting in shorter attention spans. Students who rely solely on social media for information rather than researching other resources are likely to experience difficulty concentrating on learning and retaining information. It significantly affects study habits as students attempt to multitask and end up easily distracted because they are too busy tweeting and/or posting on Facebook instead of completing assignments.

Advances and excessive access to technology are direct factors in how social networks have affected the student inside and outside the classroom. Today, students spend most of their time on these networks through mobile devices. However, some schools prohibit the use of these devices; many of them sneak them into the school. They use these devices to record videos; taking photos of themselves and others, searching the internet, tweeting, and logging into Facebook, making it hard to focus during instructional time. These activities also seek to inhibit effective instruction. In addition to this, many of these activities have caused many problems in the school and the community, for example, fights, bullying, lawsuits, etc. Therefore, excessive and unproductive time spent on social media can be very unhealthy and therefore have a negative effect on teens and children. So we can argue that teaching/learning is in direct competition with social media, when they should be partners in educating students.

The use of social media has also significantly decreased the use of proper grammar and syntax in writing. Students have found it difficult to differentiate between the proper use of language as a result of abbreviated writing and abbreviated forms of word formulation. Many jargon terms have become common in written class assignments. These terms IDK (don’t know), SMH (shaking head), BTW (btw), YW (you’re welcome), TNX (thanks), IMO/IMHO (IMHO/IMHO) ) just to name Some, students have slipped into typing so much that they can’t understand the differences between the correct and incorrect way of writing correctly. Teachers see declines in proper capitalization, punctuation, and subject-verb agreement, to name a few. Students are so immersed in poor grammar usage while online that they rely heavily on computing devices to self-correct their mistakes, resulting in a decline in their proficiency in using the English language. Subsequently creating a conflict in the use of grammar.

Another key point that should not be overlooked is the effect of social media on face-to-face communication. Clearly, if students spend more time on social media then we can agree that they spend less time socializing in person. The lack of face-to-face interpersonal interactions can be directly related to the lack of social skills and etiquette. We learn important behaviors and emotional cues from close personal contact that cannot be learned online. As a result, some students never learn to read body cues and other nonverbal cues, such as pitch and inflection. Social networking sites should not be seen as a replacement for personal contact, but as a valuable addition that can create a socially balanced individual.

Nowadays, many students have become less sociable with each other and prefer to interact online and live in a virtual world based on fake people who can be easily accessed through social networking sites. Of course, this can have a lasting effect on the family unit, where effective face-to-face communication is essential to maintaining healthy relationships. Can we then blame some of today’s social ills and break the family structure on social media? Often we go to restaurants or other public spaces and everyone is busy on a device, so there is very little face-to-face communication. The question is how can we create a balance? How do we compete with this valuable tool we call the Internet while maintaining healthy relationships?

Social networks affect both students and teachers. For example, cyber bullying can be seen as the main negative defender of social networks. Many times violence in schools has started through a social networking site. Teachers are also affected by cyberbullying. The perpetrators are sometimes students and/or parents. This abuse can be very damaging to a teacher as it lowers overall efficiency and confidence in the classroom. Teachers experience increasing levels of emotion ranging from being sad to being angry about online bullying. The experience can be humiliating and embarrassing. Character slurs are quite common in the online world and continue to affect teachers and students alike.

Obviously, social networks affect us all in one way or another, either positively or negatively. The technology will continue to evolve, therefore; It is imperative that parents, teacher administrators, and students come together to encourage positive, productive, effective, safe, and responsible use of this valuable tool. The long-term effects of misuse can be very dangerous for progress in education and social development.