Abstract:
This study examined the influence of social media towards improvement of academic
performance in secondary schools in Arusha City. Specific objectives of the study were; to find out
the purpose of students to use social media sites, to establish the time spent by students on social
media sites per day and to explore the academic benefits obtained as the result of using the social
media sites. The theories adopted were; uses and gratification theory, educational productivity
theory and media equation theory. The study employed descriptive research design with
qualitative and quantitative approaches. This study used; purposive and simple random sampling
techniques. Questionnaire, interview and observation was the methods for data collection. The
total population of the study was four hundred twenty-four (424). The sample size of the study was
fifty (50) respondents, which involved four (4) head teachers, four (4) academic teachers and
forty-two (42) student-responders. The data from interviews were analyzed by using content
analysis and data from questionnaire were analyzed by using descriptive statistics which involved
frequencies and percentages generated through SPSS computer software. This study established
that, most of secondary students use social media sites for academic purpose and non-academic
purposes. Students spend between five hours and above on social media sites. Students benefit
academically by rise their understanding on the topic learned in class. This study concludes that;
students spend a lot of time on social media sites per day for academic and non- academic
purposes. The time that students spend on social media seems to help them improve
academically, especially to those who are using social media sites more for academic matters
rather than non-academic issues. The study recommends that; school managements and parents
should join their effort to educate secondary students regarding the benefits of social media sites
on academic performance when used properly. Policies of using social media for academic
excellence in secondary schools should be implemented.
