Regular use of social networks hitting performance at school, study suggests

Teenagers who regularly play online video games tend to improve their school results, according to new research from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia.

But those who spend time chatting on Facebook and other social media every day are more likely to fall behind in maths, reading and science.

About 97 per cent of Australian teenagers have access to the internet, above the global average.

Children who play video games online perform better on science, math, and reading tests, according to data from out of Australia.

“Students who play online games nearly every day score 15 points above the average in math and 17 points above the average in science”.

Although it’s not clear exactly why gaming is associated with higher scores, Posso speculated online games require students to solve puzzles requiring a knowledge of math, reading and science.

The study suggests schools should incorporate video games into their teaching techniques. He concluded that users of sites such as Facebook and Twitter were more likely to score 4% lower on average, and the more frequent the social networking usage, the bigger the difference.

Based on data collected from over 12,000 high school students in Australia, a researcher from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) found that those who played online games nearly every day achieved up to 15 points above average scores in math and reading tests, and 17 points above average in science.

“The analysis reveals that children who regularly use online social networks, such as Facebook, tend to obtain lower scores in math, reading, and science than students who never or hardly ever use these sites”, it said.

Associate Professor Posso said this was perhaps because games such as Minecraft were an opportunity for students to apply and sharpen skills such as problem solving and analytical thinking.

In results that will surprise few, the study found that the same academic advantage was not enjoyed by those who spent a greater amount of time on social media.

However, not all researchers believe that the study is conclusive.

Posso said other factors, such as repeating an academic year or skipping classes also have a substantial, if not worse, impact on students’ skills and educational development.

It could just be that “kids who are sharp are looking for a challenge, and they don’t find it on social media, and maybe they do find it on board games and video games”, he said.