Sites like MySpace and Xanga that served as sort of pioneers for the social networking phenomena raised concerns and questions among users pertaining to safety, privacy, and freedom of speech. Issues such as cyber bullying, and whether or not public content from a website can be used as evidence against someone in court even if the information was technically blocked by privacy settings, began to surface quickly and have not gone away. Murders have occurred that have sparked national debate on the issue of web cams and the accessibility of the "twittersphere." So why would teachers and parents want anything of the sort with such risks involved in their children's and student's education? Some argue, why not?
As journalism major at UGA, I was required to take various classes on media law, public relations, and media management. It was drilled into my head that social media is the new norm and the instant way to provide the world with whatever image you want to portray about yourself or your business. "Its free P.R!" they say, "Its instant networking with potential employers and colleagues" the others urged, but I always found myself a little begrudging to the whole idea of abandoning a simple phone call or press release. It seemed too simple, too easy, and border line cheap. Why would I try to contact someone behind a computer when I should show them respect, find their business, and go talk to them personally? The answer- because that is not how the world operates anymore.
It took me a good while to come to terms with the fact that social networking has become the way of gathering contacts, posting and disseminating information, and that it is not necessarily a bad thing. When I realized this, I also came to the conclusion that one of the duties as an educator is to try our best to prepare students for what they will face outside of the walls of the school, and to show them how to use the many resources they have in positive ways. Technology is becoming more relevant in student's lives even if they do not have a computer at home. Kids still know how to get on to Google, or play an online game, and everyone is well aware of what is implied when someone says that they have “liked” something or that their “status was so overdramatic!”
Though I do not believe this approach should be used in all instances, I do believe that if students are coming into schools with such an addiction, and huge base knowledge of these networks and sites, that educators should capitalize on their obsessions and use them to help them learn. The February “Tech and Learning” lists 12 ways that educators can use social media in the classroom ranging from actual classroom social networks, like edmodo, to basic collaboration tools like Google apps. If social media and cell phones are the large flashy lights that they are attracted to, let’s direct those lights. Teachers at Locust Grove high school use texting websites to send out reminders and homework assignments to their students about due dates and responsibilities; educators who participate in the #gaed twitter chat on Thursdays mention how edmodo has transformed their otherwise silent, unresponsive student into thriving participants, and kids who do not have a word processor at home are using Google drive to save their work and share it with their teachers.
I am very much for the implementation of these sites in the classroom because I think it teaches responsibility among the students. It shows them alternative solutions, and gives them opportunities to use the internet for their benefit instead of for a time suck or for garbage, and it actually allows teachers an excuse to teach the responsibilities of mindful internet etiquette and safety without lecturing and preaching. If these important lessons can be taught through social media, and actually engage students in what they are learning, I think the benefits can be extraordinary.
Side note: I wrote an article in our library's monthly newsletter on social media at the beginning of this month. See it here
sources:
sources:
Courtney, N. (Ed.). (2007). Library 2.0 and beyond: Innovative technologies and
tomorrow’s user. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited.
Swan, C. (2013, February). Being social: How social media can transform your school classrooms.
Tech and learning, 33(7), 31- 34.
Casie you offered some different perspectives in your post. People don’t like change; we need to be creatures of habit. When facebook first came out, I didn’t get an account in high school like all my friends. I saw these people everyday…why would I want to be connected to them when I was at home too? However, how was this any different than calling and talking to my friends on the phone every night? I could just chat with them on facebook or see what their status said. I did end up breaking down and getting a facebook account in college because our hallway resident leader contacted us that way---I then felt alienated. Why had I resisted against this social networking tool to begin with?
ReplyDeleteOnce I started my education classes, I started to see how great social networking could be in an educational setting. One of my English professors explained how some schools and classrooms were setting up their own twitter accounts to talk about books or have students posts their reactions to certain parts of books. I thought, “Man, that’s a great idea!” Students are forced to summarize their answers and keep it to a certain number of characters, and they have to demonstrate an understanding in such a small amount of space. While there are downfalls to social networking, such as bullying, but that enforces our job as educators to explain how to use social networking appropriately and follow a set of socially acceptable guidelines when chatting it up on-the-line ☺.
Social networking sites also good for students and for education. They can also post school events and program through social networking sites.
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What stood out to me was your coverage of both the business and the educational perks of using social media. As a business owner the social networking arena has been a great free PR tool. Most entrepreneurs now a days have a advantage because of all the free ways to promote their business, skills, and link with like minded individuals. On the educational side you are correct students come into our schools with an addiction. We can fight daily or join them by infusing the use of social networking sites into our lessons. I post daily media literacy questions on a virtual classroom website called Schoology it is similar to Edmodo. Its very easy to get students used to the navigation of this site because of their past knowledge and skills from other social sites.
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