Design of a Strategy for the Use of Social Media as an Educational Tool in Secondary School

Resumen

This article is based on a research project on social media as an educational tool. At present, social media has been integrated into students' daily lives, becoming a distraction in the classroom. The main objective is to design a strategy for the use of social media as an educational tool in secondary school. Qualitative research was carried out phenomenologically; the instruments used were observations and interviews applied to 21 teachers and 153 teachers from three different schools. Two categories were used: social media and educational tools. The data were analyzed by triangulation of each category and subcategory. The results revealed challenges the educational field faces with the use of social media; some teachers consider these as distractors in the classroom, and there is no relation to educational tools; however, for most students, social media are useful in their educational environment, and they have been used as pedagogical support. Social media greatly impacts academic achievement and could motivate teamwork, search educational materials, experience learning, and promote motivation.