Presently, there is no evidence to support or deny the
effectiveness of social media on education. There are two views on any given
topic, and social media or digital education is no different. For example, many
researchers are on opposition in terms of their views on social media (for or against). Additionally, these
researchers (Prensky, 2008; An & Reigeluth, 2011) emphasized the rationale
for the slow movement towards incorporating digital learning in their
classroom. Prensky (2008) explained some teachers’ inability to imagine an era
without rote repetition of basic math skills, whereas Asimov’s (1964)
demonstrated digital education at his extreme point, classroom with robot
teachers.
In my program, some days I wished I were a robot to help maintain a safe environment. It is becoming difficult to introduce
social media to our students
for a myriad of reasons. I understand that I may come across as if I am not
innovative into the digital world or I am still teaching
with the past in mind (Presnky, 2008), but that is the reality of teaching my
population. With that being said, when things work out it is a thrill to be in
that environment.
Kalin (2012) that the students are “already technical
communicators” (p. 1), integrating social networking should be a requirement
that facilitate learning. However, many of the students
in the alternative program do not know how to use Microsoft office program
efficiently, let alone understand what program to choose to complete a project.
Lack of computer literacy is one of the biggest challenge in the program. Most
importantly, there are only two computers in each classroom in the program, one
for the teacher and one for students. The lack of computers makes it difficult
to plan for group collaboration, especially when using wiki and google doc
(Bonk, 2009). Social network is a challenge in the classroom due to a lack of available and
functional computers.
In terms of social media, I like Google hangout for collaboration. My
students used it often to look up information for pleasure or academic.
Sometimes, the students and I would share the screen on Google hangout in order
to explore different game sites that support their learning of a math concept
(Regulation, 2012). I shared with my students that I used Google hangout to
talk with one of my professors that lived in Germany in order to get help with
one of my project. It was one of the most helpful experience I have ever had
using technology. I shared with them this is some of the ways we could use
social media to support their learning of math concepts (Conole & Culver,
2010).
References
An, Y., & Reigeluth, C.
(2011). Creating technology-enhanced, learner-centered classrooms: K-12
teachers' beliefs, perceptions, barriers, and support needs. Journal of
Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 28(2), 54–62.
Asimov, I. (1964, February). The fun they had. Fantasy
and Science Fiction, 418–420.
Bonk, C. J. (2009). The world is
open: How web technology is revolutionizing education. San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Conole, G., & Culver, J. (2010). The
design of Cloudworks: Applying social networking practice to foster the
exchange of learning and teaching ideas and designs. Computers
& Education, 54(3), 679–692.
Kalin, J. (2012). Doing what
comes naturally? Student perceptions and use of collaborative technologies. International
Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning, 6(1), 1.
Prensky, M. (2008). Backup education? Too many
teachers see education as preparing kids for the past, not the future.
Educational Technology, 48(1), 1–3. Retrieved from
http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky-Backup_Education-EdTech-1-08.pdf
Reagle Jr., J. M. (2011). Good
faith collaboration: The culture of Wikipedia. Retrieved fromhttp://reagle.org/joseph/2010/gfc/chapter-3.html.
Regulation: User responsibilities
for computer systems, electronic Information, and network security (2012).
Retrieved July 14 from http://www.montgomeryschoolsmd.org/departments/policy/pdf/igtra.pdf
