Social Media Usage in Schools: Its Influence on Students’ Academic Performance in Akoko North East, Ondo State, Nigeria

This research investigates the influence of social media usage on the academic performance of students in Akoko Northeast Local Government Area of Ondo state, Nigeria. With the pervasive growth of social media platforms, understanding how these digital interactions affect students' educational outcomes becomes imperative. The study employs descriptive survey research design, utilizing survey data collected from a representative sample of 560 senior secondary school students using a simple random sampling technique. The research instrument used was a structured questionnaire tagged Questionnaire on Influence of Social Media and Students' Academic Performance (QISMSAP) comprising three sections. Data analysis involves the application of frequency count, percentage, mean score, and standard deviation in answering the research questions. The findings of the study indicate pervasive influences of social media on senior secondary school students in Akoko North East LGA, it was revealed that social media creates collaborative learning (X=2.91), academic distraction (X=3.01), procrastination (X=2.97), time wastage (X=2.99), Cyberbullying (X=3.02), sexual pervasion, lack of concentration among others. There was also a diverse landscape of social media engagement among students with variations in usage patterns across different platforms, such as Facebook (57.7%, X=3.52), WhatsApp (50.4%, X=3.31), TikTok (40.6%, 3.00) frequently used respectively. Based on the findings, the study recommended among others that there should be implementation of educational sensitization to leverage these platforms for educational purposes, turning them into tools for learning rather than distractions.