The effects of social media on studentsMasuma Ahuja, journalist for the Washington Post, said: “Today's teenagers, also known as the Facebook generation or 'digital natives,' part of the first American generation to be so closely identified with technology (Ahuja 3).” Many people believe that social media tends to distract students. With increasing technological advancements, students are encouraged and even forced to take part in social media. Social media is a part of almost many aspects of a teenager's life. Social media applications such as Instagram, Twitter, Snap Chat, Facebook, Vine, and many others are changing the way teens interact, which can result in academic difficulties. Social media is having a negative effect on students by distracting them from work and preventing them from realizing their full potential in the classroom and at home. The problem with social media is that it is becoming so big and a huge distraction. Studies show that 56% of everyone in America has some sort of social media application. Considering that infants and the elderly likely don't have access to a phone, that's a huge number. For the number of individuals who own phones, the percentage who have social media is quite high (insert number of people). Not only has the number of people on social media increased, but it will continue to increase for a long time. One problem students face, resulting in lower grades, is the distraction that social media has the ability to cause in school. The desire to use social media in the classroom causes students not to pay attention and ultimately lower test scores. (Lederer 1) In some schools teachers are unaware that students are on Instagram, Twitter and many other applications for...... half of the paper ...... as well as creating more reasons for not wanting to go to school and confront the bully (Osborne 1). While not all students are connected or use social media, most are. This is a trend that is only going up and probably won't go down for a while. Others, on the opposite side, believe that students use social media in positive ways that benefit their lives. Which actually causes students' grades to drop and their work to be weaker because they don't live up to their full potential, they just go through the motions and get the work done. Additionally, social media raises issues such as cyberbullying causing academic difficulties for students. Social media is definitely good communication and has many benefits including expressing emotions, staying in touch with friends, coordinating plans and many other bonuses. Overall it is a distraction for the teenage generation.