12 ways teachers are using social media in the classroom
This resource from Vicki Davis – “A Guidebook for Social Media in the Classroom” on Edutopia is a good starting point for planning the inclusion of social media in learning spaces.
Vicki closes by saying something very similar to what I submitted to the Mobile Learning – “Improving Learning with Mobile Technology” eBook:
“Social media is here. It’s just another resource and doesn’t have to be a distraction from learning objectives. Social media is another tool that you can use to make your classroom more engaging, relevant and culturally diverse.”
The list consists of:
- Tweet or post status updates as a class.
- Write blog posts about what students are learning.
- Let your students write for the world.
- Connect to other classrooms through social media.
- Use Facebook to get feedback for your students’ online science fair projects.
- Use YouTube for your students to host a show or a podcast.
- Create Twitter accounts for a special interest projects.
- Ask questions to engage your students in authentic learning.
- Communicate with other classrooms.
- Create projects with other teachers.
- Share your learning with the world.
- Further a cause that you care about.
What would you add (or remove) from the list to help others utilise students and their devices?
Image source: Life on the wire (CC BY 2.0)
Hi David,
I used Twitter a lot with my students – found it a great way to help communication between myself and those using Twitter. Published the work in RLT – http://www.researchinlearningtechnology.net/index.php/rlt/article/view/19692
Hi Pete – It is a good way to continue and strengthen communication and relationships, but what about those who “don’t do Twitter”? How do you enable them to continue to interact with/without Twitter?
David
Hi David,
I embedded the timeline into the VLE – based on the use of a module hashtag. Evidence suggested more students accessed links from my tweets than the number of twitter users, therefore this must have been useful to at least some students.
In terms of the primary classroom I would add using Quadblogging and 100 word challenges to connect with a wider audience and most importantly provide a source of comments on class blogs. Audience and it’s authenticity are very important and having other children comment is very powerful but definitely needs organising and scaffolding by teachers.