If help is needed with homework but there is no one around to heed the call, what can someone possibly do to get the help that is required? No need to worry because social media is here to the rescue to lend its helping hand. What social media is now offering many students and people alike is the chance to get that help on homework in a timely manner. The premise of this innovative social networking method is based on the ability of information being sent in a moment’s instance. People in the industry can all agree that social media bridges the time gap, in a sense that there is no longer that wait time that is often associated with communication. In order for social media to harness its true power, there has to be engagement between people; in other words, it has to be an interactive experience. The people that can most benefit of this use of social media are students, teachers and educators. One service that is the innovator of this social networking twist is called Piazza.

“Piazza’s platform is specifically designed to speed response times. The site is supported by a system of notification alerts, and the average question on Piazza will receive an answer in 14 minutes…Students post questions to their course page, which peers and educators can then respond to. Instructors moderate the discussion, endorse the best responses and track the popularity of questions in real time. Responses are also color-coded, so students can easily identify the instructor’s comments (Excerpt from “Homework Help Site Has a Social Networking Twist” by Evelyn M. Rusli).”

Piazza is using social media to better facilitate the students experience with the educational system. As many people can attest to, there will be times in the day when no one is either available or awake to offer assistance; however, with Piazza’s platform that will no longer be the case. “Piazza give the students a community, especially in the middle of the night, when the instructors were sleeping….The students were more interactive in general, and it was a time saver all-around.” Knowing that questions can be answered throughout the whole day, the education system that incorporates Piazza will give their students a better experience, and an outlet for the student community to be interactive and help each other out in their courses. If a student has a good experience with the social network, they most likely will be more productive in their overall education. This will then cause a ripple effect, in the sense that these students will use word-of-mouth marketing (without knowing) to tell their peers about their experience, which will then create brand exposure and more communities.

This is a prime example of the benefits of social media and it will not take long for many institutions to implement this new platform. Social Media if used effectively can be an important factor to an experience and can be a valuable ally in lending a helping hand. For some, the education system is a pre-cursor to how well someone is prepared to take on the workforce, and in most cases, to conduct business. If this is the case, imagine if businesses had an outlet such as Piazza to help them out with their questions (non-probing into confidential business information) or even information that can be deciding factors? Social Media, although does not wear a red cape and has an S in its chest, will definitely be there to lend a helping hand, in a time of need.