INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA ON THE ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF UNIVERSITY OF BENIN STUDENTS.

ABSTRACT

The study investigated the influence of social media on the academic achievement of students. Four research questions were raised to guide the study. The population of the study comprises of thirty-nine thousand two hundred and forty-three (39,243) students in University of Benin while the sample for the study comprised six hundred and forty-nine (649) students randomly selected from different groups of faculties. A structured questionnaires, titled: Influence of Social Media on The Academic Achievement of University of Benin Students was used for data collection. The questionnaire was validated by the researcher's supervisor as well as two other experts in the Department of Curriculum and Instructional Technology while the Cronbach’s alpha reliability method was adopted to ascertain the reliability of the instrument which yielded a co-efficient index of 0.718. Data were analyzed with mean and standard deviation. The study found that students in University of Benin are exposed to Social Media Platforms; it also revealed some of the activities being carried out by students on these platforms. The study further identified some influence of using social media on academic achievement of students; these included both positive and negative factors. Based on the findings of the study, the following recommendations were made for the study: Students should be enlightened on the influence of Social media on their academic performance. Students should be monitored by teachers and parents on how they use the social media. Teachers should ensure they use the social media as a tool to improve the academic performance of students in schools to mention a few.