Exploring the Use and the Impacts of Social Media on Teaching and Learning Science in Saudi

Abstract

This article reports on a study conducted on Saudi middle school science teachers and students. The study implemented a 46-item Likert-scale questionnaire, aimed to investigate teachers’ vs. students’ positions and views in regards: smart devices use and access, the current use of social websites, the use of the web, views of the impact of social media on education, and views of possible impact of official use of social media on teaching and learning. From the basic characteristics of Saudi middle school teachers and students, it is apparently that smart phones are the best possible device to enhance the use of social media in education, where all teachers and almost 75% of students own it, and almost 85% of the students have Internet access at home vs. 95% of the teachers. In regards the social media applications, teachers and students use WhatsApp as a main tool, with 100% for the teachers, and almost 73% for the students. Both the teachers and the students are willing to use social media in education, and they believe it will enhance their educational experiences, but the practice is significantly low; in the meantime, there are agreements that the use of social media is for socialisation only. The infrastructure is available, but the comprehension educational view is absent, the researcher suggest that there is a need for training to evaluate own use of social media, and to enhance the abilities to use available properties.