How to use social media in educational content
There are many different ways to use social media in educational content. These channels have plenty of uses in the classroom, as well as for marketing and promoting schools and corporate universities, and for supporting content created by companies.
Because we believe in the power of social media to make almost everything easier (even a teacher's life), we've identified 12 ways to use social media in educational content, especially if we talk about customer education.
This text is for both teachers and companies.
How to use social media in educational content
Social media and technology have long been part of our routine. Some people wake up and check their updates right away. So integrating them into the classroom is more natural than before, given how used to them people are. Of course, we won't cover mental health and the risks of heavy social media use here, because that's another topic, a very important one, by the way.
Each social media platform offers many different ways to be used in the classroom, after it, or as a content generator. These range from sharing announcements to hosting live talks and much more.
First, social media provides a smoother, more direct communication tool between learners, teachers and instructional designers. That way, everyone can create content, interact and follow the results.
Social media also enables different learning opportunities. As remote jobs and online classes become more popular, people are going beyond traditional video and text content and trying new formats.
It's important to understand the impact of social media on education before using it, but we firmly believe it will help learners progress in technology.
First, we'll talk about the different ways of using social media in educational content, looking at it as a teaching tool. Then we'll look at it from the point of view of a company that wants to work with content to educate its customers, through the lens of customer education.
1) Use a Facebook or Instagram page to share updates and alerts
Both social networks can be the perfect social media platform to bring into your content. Instead of putting instructors and learners through a learning curve with a traditional online classroom dashboard, stick with something everyone already knows.
Ask learners to follow the class or company page, and the instructor can use it to post class updates, share homework and encourage discussion.
Even if a learner doesn't have an account on one of these platforms, the pages can be viewed without logging in. Keep in mind, though, that Facebook and Instagram pages are public and anyone with an account can comment on posts. So more sensitive information should be handled through another channel.
Of course, we've also seen private pages (an Instagram-only feature) that only accept followers who are their students.
If you're an instructor with a personal "brand," you can use this channel to elaborate on explanations, generate case studies and test new content. Here at Poly we follow the work of Brasileiras Empreendendo, and Diana does a fantastic job talking with those who are her students while creating content for those who may become future students.
2) Use Facebook groups for live talks and discussions
Instructors can also create Facebook groups for each of their classes, public or private, and stream Facebook Live talks, post discussion questions, assign homework and make class announcements.
Keep learners engaged between one live session and the next, for example by opening discussions, answering questions, posting links to new content and building a stronger connection with you.
When using social media in educational content, it's important to keep a professional boundary. So when you set up a Facebook group, moderators don't need to send friend requests. Email parents and learners with a direct link to the Facebook group for access.
Groups are the perfect "home base," especially for an online course, and can make it easier to connect with learners.
3) Use Twitter (X) as a class discussion channel
Twitter (now X) can be great as a forum for a class. Instructors can create a single account per class and reuse it every year, or create a new channel for each course. The character limit makes learners think critically about concise, effective communication, a beneficial skill to develop. Of course, some nuance can get lost, so keep in mind that you can't write a book review or a literary work on the platform.
Instructors and companies can use Twitter to post reminders of class dates, new content, inspiring quotes and useful links for their learners and their niche.
The instructor can also create discussions and chats on Twitter around a specific hashtag they created.
4) Use Instagram for visual content
In a visual-heavy subject, instructors and companies can use it to create content that explains things in a more "native" way for users. People are used to the carousel, video, reels and stories formats for interacting with content.
Learners can create Instagram accounts specific to the class and delete them after the course ends, if they wish.
Also, ephemeral features and content creation tools allow very, very close interaction with the audience.
5) Create a blog for discussions
Writing blog posts gives learners another outlet for digital content that they can easily link back to the class's social channels. There are many platforms available, such as WordPress, Squarespace, Wix, Blogger, Tumblr or Medium, where teachers can create a blog on the subject.
Learners themselves can even create accounts to interact with the posts or even publish content.
It's a great way to liven up content in new formats, taking advantage of having text, images, links, videos, HTML5 and everything else on the same post page.
6) Use the blog for homework
Having learners create their own blog content or short essays is another strategy for combining social media with educational content.
Writing a post for the school blog as an assignment can improve learners' writing, logical thinking and consolidation of learning, as well as critical thinking.
Create an assignment, set a minimum word count and give a deadline. If they don't know how to write for blogs, that's fine. If you're interested in publishing these articles, you can rework the content or even share links and instructions on how they can do it.
7) Create a Pinterest board specific to the class
Instructors can create Pinterest boards for each of their classes and save pins that are relevant to the lessons.
Pinterest is a great social media platform for teachers to prepare and organize resources, lesson plans and worksheets for their classes in one place. Create boards by class or subject and create subtopic boards for weekly units or all worksheets.
Pinterest can also be useful for learners to curate a digital bibliography for research projects, articles or group work. Learners can pin websites, books or videos to a board on a single topic and refer to them when writing.
8) Include social media links on your school's website
Make it easier for learners to find your school's or professional page's social media profiles by adding links in the site's main navigation or on a page.
Many people will check your website first if they're interested, and offering even more ways to follow your work will give them a new perspective on who you are.
You can additionally create a "Contact" page or even a link aggregator, like Linktree.
9) Share events and photos of the facilities or screenshots of lessons
If you want to attract new learners and parents to your courses, share photos and events to show what they can expect. From photos of in-person events to screenshots of your LMS (learning management system).
Highlighting events and extra activities can make your brand stand out from the others. While traditional school websites tend to follow the same mold, social media lets you be more unique and casual.
10) Create interest-based Facebook groups
Many people want to stay involved with their schools even after finishing the content. Even people who aren't yet ready to become your learners will be interested in following your content, if it's good. Creating Facebook groups for current learners and alumni can increase engagement and school spirit.
Alumni groups and groups for different topics let learners get involved and meet other people with common interests.
Groups can be closed or secret, meaning they can only be seen by invitation or admin approval, or they can be open so prospective learners can check out the kinds of conversations and events these groups have before asking to join.
Just be sure of your strategy so you can plan well the type of content that will be run and created for such an open group.
11) Create a social media crisis strategy
One thing we always tell our clients is: don't start by using all social networks in educational content at once. Make a plan. For that, you can count on Poly Studio to guide you through the process of aligning marketing with education.
What's best for posting content: Instagram, a blog or Facebook? Where should discussions be hosted: on Twitter, a personal forum or Discord? Where should videos go: YouTube, Vimeo or an LMS?
All these decisions should come from a conscious choice and clear goals. Deciding on every network right now without clear direction behind it will only undermine your efforts and dilute your impact. Count on Poly to make these decisions with you and for you.
12) Manage your accounts under one roof
Social media marketing for your company or as your personal brand should focus exclusively on making your brand look like the best option to future learners or other companies.
One thing you need is a social media management tool that makes it easy to publish content to each of your school's social media platforms.
You should look for a tool that connects to your social networks and lets you produce and distribute content and interact with your audience according to your plan. That said, there is no "best" content management tool, only the one that fits your individual needs. Even Facebook's native Business Manager can do the job.
Start using social media in educational content
Are you ready to try these social media tips for educational environments? There are many different uses for social media in the classroom and in educational marketing, and it's time to adopt them!
So put together your strategic content plan, decide which channels you'll start with and keep track! It will be crucial to test the results to see what's worth it. You may end up deciding to shut down one channel or another and move on to another. What matters is to keep an eye on whether the metrics you defined at the start are valid and compare them with the impact of your content on social networks.
