Activity 7: Social media in learning and teaching and professional development.

Activity 7: Social media in learning and teaching and professional development.

Benefits of social media

Social media provides a range of benefits for teaching and learning.

Connected audience

The first is that social media allows people to be connected on a wider scale. Through this, like minded individuals and people that have similar interests are connected. This connectivity can serve to increase the relevancy of learning for students. The different learning experiences that students engage in are shared with an authentic audience. This audience could be local, from within the school community, or shared with the global community.

Timely feedback

Producing and sharing ideas with audience also facilitates effective and meaningful feedback.  Students and teachers can provide each other with feedback to support teaching and learning. This feedback can come from different areas and could validate the learning and sharing of students. One example of this is blogging. From my perspective, students that are blogging can share their learning journey. This is also powerful for the reflection upon the progress that students have made throughout their learning.  Current trends suggest that social media is relevant. It is a way that students engage with material and have the opportunity to engage collaboratively. As a teacher, getting students motivated and engaged emotionally, behaviourally and cognitively are important for their learning.

Challenges of social media

While apparently beneficial, there also appear to be challenges associated with the use of social networking in teaching activities.

Justification

The first is the justification or reasoning behind using this platform. As teachers we need to question, is the use of this social media platform enhancing the teaching, or am I using it just as a flash tool. It is important that there is sound reasoning that underpins the pedagogical approach. I suspect that the perceptions from whanau and the school community could also potentially interrupt the use of social media in the class. It is likely that parents have had personal experience with social networking, which is more than likely going to have been during personal use, outside the context of use in the class. This being the case it will be important to articulate the purpose of using social media so that communities are on board with this pedagogy.  

Cyber safety awareness

The safety of all learners is paramount and this extends to the digital community that a teacher is facilitating as part of social networking. It is then crucial to model and maintain cybersmart behaviours and expectations for learners in this community. Ensuring that real life and online life are the same thing.

Equitable access

It is also important that access to the social media is equitable for all. In my school context there are some families with limited access to devices or limited connectivity. To ensure a robust teaching and learning programme I believe that it will be important for all students to have equitable access and the school could look to provide this in different ways.

Social media that enhances my professional development

I have used various social media platforms. Initially for personal use.  I am progressing towards more use in the professional context. In most cases I have found that scanning through resources I have been able to utilise and modify ideas from like minded teachers. The second thing that I find useful is that people are sharing blogs/articles that have challenged my thinking. Social media and networks have facilitated my access to these documents, it is unlikely that I would have found and accessed these anywhere.

I have used the VLN access for ideas relative to the implementation of iPads in our school. I have been, reading discussions online. These have helped me to solve problems using posts that others have shared in NZ context. I have joined the NZ primary school teachers facebook page which I have mixed feelings about, but use to get relevant learning articles.

Pinterest - SOLO taxonomy boards after PD with Pam Hook, directed me to where to go

I have used twitter more professionally, to follow education providers and some educators. Finally, I am beginning my journey in Pond and I have started to facilitate the ‘make a splash’ programme in our school.