In this digital age, nearly three out of four people are using some form of social media. From February 2005 to May of 2013 the number of online U.S. adults who use social networking sites has risen from just 8% to a staggering 72% (Pew Research Center, 2013a, p. 2). Additionally, a recent Nielson study determined that 80% of active internet users engage in social media (Nielsen, 2012, p. 2).
Among the many social networking sites, Twitter is also seeing a substantial increase in usage. From November 2010 to May 2013, Twitter usage among online U.S. adults has risen from 8% to 18% (Pew Research Center, 2013a, p. 2). Based on the prevalence of Twitter in media today, this rapid increase in Twitter use may not be slowing down any time soon. From news programs discussing famous athletes’ tweets to shows placing a hashtag in the corner of the screen, Twitter seems to be gaining momentum and is even a publically traded company as of Nov. 7th, 2013.
Twitter is considered “social media,” but is social media just for social purposes? This, it turns out, is not a straightforward yes or no question. While a portion of the time students spend on social media is undoubtedly for social and entertainment purposes (Ito et al., 2009), students are contributing to the world wide web in a variety of ways, such as civic engagement (Garcia-Galera, del Hoyo-Hurtado, & Fernandez-Munoz, 2013), identity creation (Mueller, 2009), discussing issues such as education (Ritter, 2010), conducting research (Purdy, 2010), and much more. Participatory culture and the Web 2.0 platforms that exist within it have changed the internet, and it is important that educators change with it (Yancy, 2009; Clark 2010).