Role of Social Media in Reshaping the Academic Activities of Teacher Educators in Nigeria: A Review of Literature
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53103/cjess.v6i2.479Keywords:
Social Media, Teaching Effectiveness, Digitalised Learning, Teacher Educators, Academic Success, Computer-assisted LearningAbstract
This study examined how social media reshape the academic activities of teacher educators in Nigeria through the use of social media platforms for teaching and learning, dissemination of scholarly works, and research collaboration. The research work was anchored on the Connectivism Theory, which emphasized that learning is not confined to individual cognition, but could occur through the formation of networks that link people with information, through digital tools. The study explored the nature of social media, their composition, usage patterns and perceived benefits. Also, the study interrogated the motivation for social media use in Nigeria; the social media forms that could be used in teacher education and their areas of involvement in the education process; the social media that are mostly in use by university lecturers in Nigeria and their educational purposes; and the challenges users face in using social media in teacher education. Finally, strategies for accessing a rewarding social media usage in teacher education, such as development of clear institutional social media policies, building digital professionalism, and fostering student and staff’s digital literacy, were suggested, as means of integrating social media, to reshape the academic activities of teacher educators.
Downloads
References
Adamu, M. J., & Nathaniel, U. (2017) "A review of connectivism theory as a benchmark for 21st century teachers and students," Journal of Technical Vocational Education, Training and Research, Centre for Technical, Vocational Education, Training and Research, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, vol. 2, pp. 187-194.
Adebayo, C., Ogbodo, I., & Adekunle, F. (2023). Digital inclusion: Motivations and barriers to social media use in Nigeria. African Journal of Educational Technology, 15(2), 45-62.
Allais, S. (2023). African insights: competency-based training – limits and opportunities in informal labour markets. UNESCO-UNEVOC.
Alhassan, A., Boateng, R., & Gyamfi, S. A. (2023). The role of social media in digital communication and learning. Journal of Educational Media Studies, 15(2), 45–58.
Auxier, B., & Anderson, M. (2021). Social media use in 2021. Pew Research Center.
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-media-use-in-2021/
Bello, S. A., & Ahmed, Z. L. (2021). Professional development in the age of connectivity: Social media adoption among teacher trainers. Journal of Nigerian Educational Studies, 8(1), 112-128.
Carpenter, J. P., & Green, T. D. (2023). Educators and social media: Understanding digital professionalism. Journal of Digital Learning, 11(2), 45–56.
Carpenter, J. P., & Krutka, D. G. (2022). How and why educators use Twitter: A review of the literature. Teaching and Teacher Education, 110, 103603. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103603.
Chen, X., Wang, Y., & Lee, J. (2024). Social media use, stress, and burnout among teachers: A global survey. Teaching and Teacher Education, 138, 104481.
Chen, Z., Jalaludin, N. A., & Rasul, M. S. (2024). A systematic review on the improving strategies and influencing factors of vocational students’ learning engagement in blended teaching environment. International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research, 23(11).
Chemnad, K., Smith, J., & Huang, L. (2023). The interplay between social media use and problematic behaviors in adolescents: A review. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.987654
DataReportal. (2025). Digital 2025: Global overview report. Retrieved from https://datareportal.com/reports.
Ekpenyong, E. & Udo, S. (2024). Academic integrity and social media use among Nigerian undergraduates: Implications for lecturers. Nigeria Journal of Higher Education Studies, 8, (3), 120-137.
Eze, K. O. (2020). Contemporary issues in Nigerian teacher education: A policy perspective. University Press.
Federal Republic of Nigeria (2013). National Policy on Education National Education. Lagos: Resource and Development Council Press.
Fielding Graduate University. (2023). Academic integrity and the challenges of digital learning. Santa Barbara, CA: Fielding Graduate University Press.
Greenhow, C., & Chapman, A. (2020). Social distancing meet social media: Digital tools for connecting students, teachers, and communities in the time of COVID-19. Information and Learning Sciences, 121(5–6), 331–342. https://doi.org/10.1108/ILS-04-2020-0134
Jebba, M. A., Sanda, U. & Abdulrahman, T.S. (2018). "E-learning: An indispensable 21st century quality assurance mechanism/ platform for technical education lecturers," Niger Journal of Technology Education, NIJOTECH, vol. 6(1), pp. 276-285.
Johnson, L. T. (2019). The power of the crowd: Social media and the formation of Professional Learning Networks (PLNs). Educational Technology Research and Development, 67(3), 551-568.
Kamar, Y. M., Kubo G. B & Ibrahim, R. (2016)."Emerging communication technologies in sciences education and existing issues of compliance among science teachers in Nigeria," 57th annual conference proceedings of STAN held at Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria.
Kemp, S. (2025). Digital 2025: Global overview report. DataReportal. https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2025-global-overview
Kepios. (2025). Global social media statistics. https://kepios.com/social-media
Kietzmann, J., & Canhoto, A. (2023). Bittersweet! Understanding and managing electronic word of mouth. Business Horizons, 66(3), 257–269.
Lamberthus, J. L. (2024). Harnessing social media for independent learning: Insights from higher education students. Journal of Ecohumanism, 4(1), 3746-3764.
Lim, K. Y., Gottipati, S., & Cheong, C. (2025). Artificial intelligence and education: Emerging trends and challenges. Computers & Education: Artificial Intelligence, 8, 100232.
Liu, M., Chen, R., & Zhang, T. (2024). Usage patterns of short videos and social media among adolescents. Computers in Human Behavior, 152, 107042. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2024.107042
Manca, S. (2020). Social media in teacher education: A literature review and future research directions. British Journal of Educational Technology, 51(6), 2089–2103.
Martínez-Domingo, J. A., Aznar-Díaz, I., Romero-Rodríguez, J. M., & Victoria-Maldonado, J. J. (2025). Use of Instagram as an educational tool with pre-service teachers and the impact on digital competence in communication and collaboration. Education Sciences, 15(2), 149. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15020149
Marín, V. I., Carpenter, J. P., & Tur, G. (2022). Preservice teachers’ perceptions of privacy and data use on social media. Education and Information Technologies, 27(5), 6511–6532.
MuhammedZein, F. A., & Abdullateef, S. T. (2025). Quality education for sustainable development: Evolving pedagogies to maintain a balance between knowledge, skills, and values: Case study of Saudi universities. Sustainability, 17(2), 635. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17020635
Nwosu, E. G., & Okoro, I. C. (2024). Ethical dilemmas in digital pedagogy: Teacher boundaries and student privacy in Nigerian universities. Journal of Educational Ethics and Policy, 11, (1), 78- 95.
Ojiemhenkele, A. E., Ofangbonmu, U., Emosoga, J. A. & Aluede, O. (2025). Making teaching an enviable profession in Nigeria: The new mandates of the Teachers’ registration council of Nigeria. European Journal of Education Studies, 12, (9), 422-440.
Okafor, V., & Musa, H. (2022). Technology integration in Nigerian tertiary institutions: Challenges and prospects. West African Journal of ICT in Education, 5(1), 20-35.
Perez, E., Manca, S., & Fernández-Pascual, R. (2023). A systematic review of social media as a teaching and learning tool in higher education: A theoretical grounding perspective. Education and Information Technologies, 28, 11921–11950.
Pew Research Center. (2024). Teens, social media and technology 2024. Retrieved from https://www.pewresearch.org
Pew Research Center. (2022). Teens, social media and technology 2022. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teens-social-media-and-technology.
Pew Research Center. (2024a). Americans’ social media use.
https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2024/01/31/americans-social-media-use/
Pew Research Center. (2024b). Social media fact sheet. https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/social-media/
Siemens, G. (2005). Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age. International Journal of Instructional Technology & Distance Learning, 2(1), 3–10.
Sprout Social. (2025, January 20). Social media demographics to inform your 2025 strategy. https://sproutsocial.com/insights/social-media-demographics/
The Guardian. (2024, July 15). How social media algorithms shape what we see and think. https://www.theguardian.com
Trust T., Carpenter, J. P., & Krutka, D. G. (2020). Moving beyond silos: Professional learning networks in teacher education. Computers & Education, 146, 103751. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2019.103751
Trust, T., Krutka, D. G., & Carpenter, J. P. (2020). Navigating the digital shift: Professional learning networks and the pandemic. Computers & Education, 157, 103753. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2020.103753
UNESCO. (2024). Social media, wellbeing, and education: Insights from global youth research. UNESCO Publishing.
UNESCO. (2024). Policy guidelines for social media in education. Paris: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
UNESCO & International Task Force on Teachers for Education 2030. (2024). Global report on teachers: Addressing teacher shortages and transforming the profession. UNESCO /Teacher Task Force. https://teachertaskforce.org/sites/default/files/2024-02/2024_TTF
UNESCO-Global-Report-on-Teachers_EN.pdf. Teacher Task Force
UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2024). Teacher education. UNESCO. https://uis.unesco.org/node/3079669
United Nations. (2023). Cyberbullying and online safety for children and educators. https://www.un.org
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Andrew Ojiemhenkele, Blessing Iwuagwu, Unity Ofangbonmu, Osamede Ogbebor, Emmanuel Ogbeide, Joseph Emosoga, Oyaziwo Aluede
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
All articles published by CJESS are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. This license permits third parties to copy, redistribute, remix, transform and build upon the original work provided that the original work and source is appropriately cited.
