Adult Ed Talk Connecting to adult learners one day at a time."

Social media plays a significant role in individual and collaborative learning. It allows for connections to be made in various settings and bridges the gap of learning. In individual learning, social media platforms like YouTube and TikTok provide easy access to endless content. For adult learner collaboration, platforms like Pinterest and WordPress offer inspiration and communication control. These platforms provide safe learning environments and opportunities for learners to collaborate on projects. Overall, social media platforms are beneficial to all learners and will continue to evolve and expand. Hi, my name is Santricia Davis, and you're listening to Adult Ed Talk, connected to adult learning one day at a time. On today's episode, which is episode 12, we'll be talking about learning styles in social media and adult education. This episode is sponsored by TED Talk. This episode is about the importance of social media in individual and collaborative learning. Social media plays a significant role in learning. Over the years, it has evolved and allows individuals to collaborate and communicate in various ways. Connections are made in classrooms, in boardrooms, and in the virtual world. Social media continues to bridge the gap of learning. In today's podcast, I will highlight the ways that social media and social media tools can be used in individual learning and adult learner collaboration. Individual learning allows learners to work at their own pace. This is quite common in adult education. In fact, this concept is largely discussed in education. Self-directed learning is clearly a multi-faceted concept that should not be approached from one perspective. Many students enjoy independence and freedom in learning. Social media services in the form of web 2.0 applications, like Facebook, LinkedIn, Last.FM, and YouTube, so there are increased possibilities of generating and sharing educational content and facilitating a collaborative environment. This attracts the attention of the academic environment. Social media platforms that are appropriate for individual learning are YouTube and TikTok. These platforms are appropriate for individual learning because they are easy to use and they give users access to endless content. Adult learners can benefit from both because they are free and they have 24-hour access. Adult learner collaboration helps adults work together on tasks and assignments, even if they are at various locations. Technological advances in the field of IT and improvements in the availability and cost of the internet connection continuously create a huge wealth of opportunities for learners to access education in an ever more immediate and meaningful way. Two social media platforms that are appropriate for adult learner collaboration are Pinterest and WordPress. These platforms are appropriate for adult learner collaboration because Pinterest provides examples and visuals that can provide inspiration for a theme or topic. In addition to this, one side of this is the communication control. Some individuals may not want to share their personal numbers, but this helps adult learners with communication. Learners need safe learning environments to thrive personally and professionally. Moreover, digital technology can also provide a platform for students to collaborate. This, again, can be done by learners collaborating on projects which they research independently in their own time and collate on a shared platform such as WordPress or thinking using social media such as Twitter or Facebook or online video conferencing tools such as Skype. Whether working individually or collaboratively, social media platforms are beneficial to all. Information on these platforms can inspire trainers and trainees. As technology continues to evolve, social media platforms will continue to expand and to provide guidance to learners. And that concludes our adult ed talk today. Let's hope we all continue to connect to adult learners one day at a time and I'll talk to you guys next time.