Abstract:

Introduction:
The widespread use of social media as a source of information has intensified students’ exposure to unverified, simplified, or misleading content, posing a significant challenge for higher education. In scientific and professional fields, the ability to critically evaluate digital information using reliable evidence is essential. Nowadays, few educational strategies explicitly train students to verify social media information using scientific evidence. This teaching innovation project aimed to enhance critical thinking and information literacy skills by engaging students in the systematic contrast of social media content with scientific literature and official institutional sources.

Materials and methods:
The project was implemented in the fifth year of a Veterinary Medicine degree within a supervised practical training course. A total of 141 students participated, working in collaborative groups of four to five members. The activity followed a structured and replicable methodology. First, students received theoretical and practical training on how to identify and access reliable academic and institutional sources related to animal production and public health. A real social media post was then jointly analyzed to identify its main claims and to contrast them using scientific and official documentation. Subsequently, each group selected a social media post of their choice and critically evaluated its arguments within a limited time frame by searching for and analyzing relevant sources. To assess the impact of the activity, an anonymous voluntary questionnaire was administered to all participants, including dichotomous items addressing previous experience with the use of social media in educational contexts and prior verification of social media content, as well as Likert-type items (1–5) evaluating perceived usefulness, interest, difficulty, satisfaction, and challenges related to information searching and content comparison.

Results:
Results revealed a heterogeneous level of prior experience, as 63.8% of students had previously used social media in educational contexts, while 36.2% had not. Despite this diversity, learning outcomes were consistently positive. Overall satisfaction was high, with 94.3% of students rating the activity with scores of 4 or 5. Regarding skill development, 83.7% reported a notable perceived improvement in their ability to search for scientific information, and 90.1% described the activity as highly interesting and motivating. In terms of perceived difficulty, most students rated the activity as low or moderately complex, indicating that the methodology was accessible and well aligned with their academic level. Importantly, 95.6% of participants expressed interest in applying this approach in other courses, supporting its perceived relevance and transferability.

Conclusion:
Overall, the findings indicate that integrating the critical analysis of social media with evidence-based academic practices appears to be an effective, motivating, and transferable strategy to promote critical thinking, collaborative learning, and responsible digital engagement in higher education.

Keywords:

Social Media, Evidence, Judgement, Verification, Innovation, Misinformation, Digital Literacy.