Social media plays a huge role in the everyday lives of our students, and thus has become something that needs to be addressed in their education. Social media has the ability to be a very effective tool, if used wrong can do a lot of damage. So we ask ourselves as teachers; how can we teach safe and appropriate use of the sites? Although I have many strategical ideas for how to teach appropriate use of social media in the classroom, I note that [in certain teachables like math] there are some platforms such as “facebook” that I have little desire to use in my classroom. This is because I feel they are less effective than other online tools like google classroom, a class website/forum or twitter, which a) lend themselves to more educational purposes, and b) have less need for “rules” as appropriate use is implied. What I am trying to say is, I interpret each site to have a certain behavioural code associated with it; facebook has a reputation as a more open and social source where possibility of issues regarding bullying, socializing and other off task posts are more likely. On the other hand, educational sites suggest a higher level of professionality and “authority” that in itself suggests that personal or social posts are unwelcome and reminds students that the site has a purpose that is solely educational and meant to be used as a learning tool. So, I believe that in some cases it is more beneficial to choose some social media platforms over others, however, I see benefits in having a class discussion about these different “styles” of online tools, and the certain behavioural code associated with each. These more “education based” platforms may be a good starting point for warming students up to the idea of technology and social media as productive tools, and once responsible and appropriate use of these platforms has been demonstrated, other platforms that present opportunity for misuse or distraction may then be introduced.
Another strategy I thought may be useful is introducing social media use as a privilege, around which students create the rules of appropriate use [guided by the teacher of course], creating student ownership, and shared responsibility of monitoring of appropriate use. If one student abuses the privilege according to the community rules than the entire community suffers as a result, thus encouraging students to come together and not only own their work practices but encourage their classmates to do the same. Lastly, I think the two most essential strategies for promoting appropriate use include: only using social media and technology when it enhances student learning [rather than at every available opportunity] and modelling appropriate behaviour. If we as teachers do not practice what we preach, how can we expect students to place any trust in and not discredit what we are teaching. Above are all ideas that I pulled off the top of my head, however, these only scratch the surface and give no specific examples, so here are some links that provide further ideas and strategies related to teaching appropriate use of social media in the classroom: Katrina Stevens: Dipping into Social Media on Edsurge
Matt Davis’s Social Media for Teachers: Guides, Resources, and Ideas on Edutopia
OCT’s Professional Advisory: Use of Electronic Communication and Social Media
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Candace BlackA story of my transition into teaching, and the educational tools and life lessons collected along the way. Archives
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