Social media is everywhere. Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Vine, Instagram, and others are changing the way we communicate and share our lives with others. Sometimes I can hardly remember what I did with all my free time before I jumped on the social media bandwagon! And while there is a part of me that doesn't like that it has taken away from the more personal forms of communication, I honestly don't want to imagine my life without it. Facebook, in particular, gives me the opportunity to stay connected to a lot of people that I would lose touch with without it.
So how do I feel about it being in the classroom? It's clearly already there, so why not use it to our advantage! I don't care how diligent you are about monitoring your students, they will find a way to check their newsfeed if they want to. They will tweet during class, or post a picture to Instagram and you will never even know. This is how they live. It is part of who they are. And I am a believer in making connections by meeting them where they are. Because the more "at home" they feel in the classroom, the more learning they are going to do.
However, I will not turn a blind eye to the potential risks that are involved. Anytime that teachers "open" their classrooms to the outside world they are letting go of a bit of control. And also when teaches connect with students through social media there may need to be very rigid guidelines to the types of communications that take place. There may be problems that arise along the way, but I believe if it is done correctly and with some common sense guidelines, it can be a very powerful tool.
No comments:
Post a Comment