Chapter 1: Going from Obsolete to Innovative: Empowering Problem-Based Learning with Online Social Media

Becoming obsolete. This is not a phrase most people desire to be used in reference to themselves or their jobs. Yet we live in a world where keeping up with the latest technological advances is at the minimum time consuming and can be most intimidating. What is facilitating this change and driving the demand for technology to continue to develop into new and confounding configurations? The answer centers on student education where it is one of the most powerful driving forces behind this movement. Learners influence the preferred learning venues of today, and now it is in the format of online experiences. What vehicles are the preferred modes of delivery of information in order to keep the attention of today’s students? How can we create engagement in an ever-changing world of technology and efficiency? In this chapter, we will follow a case that weaves throughout the upcoming pages that will not only help resolve the mystery surrounding the various social media entities that can facilitate learning in ways that are both practical and captivating but also demonstrate direct application in a student distance, problem-based learning (PBL) project.