The reality today, it is difficult stop people to visiting Facebook especially students. aOn the other hand, Facebook is a fantastic social networking tool, and can be used to help students communicate with each other about all kinds of things. Fall asleep in history class and need someone’s notes? Looking for a tutor or a study partner? Need a ride home for the weekend? Need a lead on a campus job? Wondering where the party is? Moreover, since many professors are on Facebook too, this may be a good place to ask a quick question about an assignment.
Perhps even more importantly, Facebook can continue to serve as a networking resource after college, when it comes time to look for a job. Those hundreds of college friends on Facebook, who live all over the country and the world, will work for hundreds of companies in the near future. That constitutes a significant network.
Facebook has also proven to be a great resource for high school seniors and others who need information about schools. Need to know what a school is really like? Log onto Facebook and find some school fan pages, and ask students about their experiences. Once students are admitted, Facebook is a great place to meet classmates ahead of time and to get to know college roommates.
Since many college students are away from home, another advantage of Facebook is that it gives students the opportunity to stay in touch. Students who are homesick can keep in touch with family members and friends back home, and students who are in long distance relationships can have an easier time feeling connected.
As for the issue that students are tuning out more serious issues to hang out on Facebook, there’s the matter of political organizations and other groups that have a Facebook presence. Students who want to get involved in campus or off-campus organizations, or who want to learn more about issues and ideas, may be able to find information and a network of like-minded people on Facebook.
Ultimately, Facebook is what students make of it. For many, it truly does serve as a distraction that makes it hard to study, and for many others, it’s a valuable social networking tool (and, of course, for many students, it’s both). At any rate, Facebook has greatly changed how students interact on college campuses in a very short period of time, and until something else comes along, it appears to be here to stay.