CHALLENGES OF EDUCATION IN THE AGE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Abstract

Throughout history, education has faced constant challenges, such as access to educational opportunities, social inequalities, and maintaining a balance between freedom and discipline. However, over the past 20 years, entirely new challenges have emerged in our society, including within the educational environment. Rapid and, at times, unrestricted access to the internet, smartphones, and social media has had a profound impact on the environment in which children grow up, interact, and engage in dialogue within educational contexts. Consequently, schools must recognize these emerging dynamics and adapt to the challenges of the present day. This article, grounded in the specialized literature, is based on a theoretical analysis that focuses on three elements. The first element examines how digital platforms have been designed to capture and sustain attention. The second area brings together research on the intensive use of social media and students' mental well-being. The final aspect analyzes the pedagogical approaches needed to develop competencies in the digitalized world in which we live. In conclusion, this paper does not condemn modern technology, viewing it in most cases as a tool that can be beneficial but also harmful when misused. Its positive effects can be quantified based on how it is used and integrated into the educational process in a balanced and responsible manner. Thus, schools are not meant to ban technology per se, nor should they accommodate it indiscriminately. Aware of the effects of technological abuse, the educational process is called upon to develop skills such as attention management, critical use of information, and the development of social-emotional competencies. This article is not the result of extensive, experimentally validated empirical research, but is conceptual in nature, based on contemporary studies in the context of the challenges posed by the virtual world.