Introduction

The contemporary world moved to the stage of development at which every individual has a free access to the diversity of devices providing the simple methods of communication and interaction. In fact, social media has become an integral part of the modern life meaning that it is time to think about various ways of using social media for the benefits of the society. The following discussion reveals the essence of the topic dedicated to social media and its role in shaping of the appropriate academic adaptation of the students. Moreover, it considers the messages of the different writers who have already analyzed the idea.

Actually, the paper focuses on discussing such articles as “How Social Media Can and Should Impact Higher Education” by Mark Blankenship, “How Higher Education Uses Social Media [INFOGRAPHIC]” by Matt Silvermann, and “International Student’s Challenge and Adjustment to College” by Hsiao-ping Wu, Esther Garza, and Norma Guzman.

Synthesis

The first portion of the information related to the topic presents the core of the social media in the educational process and academic adjustments. Various literature supports the idea that social media is a significant constituent in the educational process of the majority of the current teaching practices. Namely, Mark Blankenship argues that the usage of YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, blogs, and Skype are the primary sources of collaboration with students during the educational process (Blankenship, 2011). Notably, social media encourages the development of creativity and the implementation of comfortable means of communication with students. The author also states that social media has a positive effect on the advancement of communication by avoidance of the conflicts and barriers. For example, the article mentions that chatting helps to enhance the interest of students in the exchange of the information with a professor. In this way social media helps students to accommodate to the terms of the educational process as well as to the requirements of the academic writing. In addition, the support of the professor by means of the social networks helps students to receive the answers to any questions which they may feel shy to ask in the class.

Matt Silverman, in his turn, also shares the information on the usage of social media in the educational process. In detail, the information graphic included in the article defines the usage of the message boards, blogs, LinkedIn, and other social networks for the general outreach, professional development, and potential students (Silverman, 2012). Hence, the author supports the idea that social networks and social media in general are the necessary elements of the daily routine of each student and professor. Undoubtedly, the digital era has made it possible to apply the benefits of the breakthrough technologies in every sphere of life. Consequently, the educational segment continues to evolve and increase the usage of the social media tools.

Another synthesis refers to the second part of the topic and reveals the difficulties of the adaptation of the international students and the role of social media in this adjustment. Hsiao-ping Wu and his co-authors managed to outline the divergent academic barriers and accommodation strategies in the article dedicated to the issue. Notably, the authors mention that the main challenges of the international students comprise academic, social, and cultural obstacles (Wu, Garza, & Guzman, 2015). These three aspects of the educational process follow the difficult period of adjustment faced by the international students. Regardless of the fact that all the students indicate the politeness of their professors as well as their profound knowledge, it is still complicated for the majority of them to get accustomed to the contrasting expectations and language differences. Over and above, the article implies that the interaction with professors, isolation from classmates, language barrier, and pressure of the parents’ expectations are the paramount dilemmas for the international students. Subsequently, the authors discuss the miscellaneous adjustment strategies which help every student to handle the problems of the educational process. To enumerate, dormitory and campus activities, language support, campus counseling service, and students’ organizations are the main strategies aimed at assisting the international students in feeling comfortable during their studies. As a matter of fact, the authors stated the need to have the English-language program targeted to avoid the barrier of another languages. In general, the article illustrates another substantial portion of information based on the topic of the research. It means that the second synthesis discussed the essence of the challenges of the international students which, as a result, led to the following conclusion.

Conclusion

The synthesized ideas presented in the paper reveal the evidence of using social media in the adjustment to the educational process and challenges faced by the international students. It is obvious that social media tools help to enhance the connection between the professor and students which results in the improved knowledge and creativity. Another idea proved that international students experience many challenges that entail not only cultural but also social issues. Therefore, the synthesis of both concepts shows that there is a need to work on the reduction of issues faced by the international students in the adjustment to the educational system. For instance, it is possible to use the same social media tools in order to create blogs and online communities including the multicultural diversity of students. Thus, it would be possible to enhance the adaptation process of every student regardless of the race, ethnicity, or spoken language. What is more, the analysis of both ideas covering the topic helped to understand that universities require an additional usage of the social media tools. To demonstrate, campuses may offer students to exchange their opinions via chatting which would reduce the tension felt by the international students. Finally, blogging can be very advantageous for students since they can share diverse thoughts with their peers and professors that would, simultaneously, encourage young people to participate in the educational activities together with others.

References

Silverman, M. (2012). How higher education uses social media [INFOGRAPHIC]. Mashable. Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2012/02/03/higher-education-social-media/#wLFr1IQ6YZqA

Wu, H., Garza, E., & Guzman, N. (2015). International student’s challenge and adjustment to college. Education Research International, 1-9.