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| Stripes OKINAWA |
As teachers, we are very aware how accessible social media is to our students and at how well many are at creating it. I do not think that teachers are very savvy at evaluating/analyzing media and I don't think that most of our students have a clue. We are so bombarded by media everyday that I think we have all become numb to it. Our students are great consumers of social media. It's how they connect with their friends and are exposed to the world today.
Howard Rheingold wrote an article in 2010 called, Attention, and Other 21st Century Literacies which I think is still applicable today. He says that there are 5 different social media literacies. They are: attention, participation, collaboration, network analysis, and critical consumption. Here is a quick rundown of all five according to Rheingold......
Attention - is how individuals think, how create tools, teach each other to use them, how groups socialize, and how people transform civilizations
Participation - it basically applies to the growing extent of individuals use of all the forms of social media on the multiple forms of technology available
Collaboration - attention and participation allows people to work together in ways that were too difficult before the use of social media and it gives us more power than doing things alone
Network Analysis - it is having an understanding and awareness of the use of social media and how they function in regard to online networks
Critical Consumption - it is trying to figure out who and what is and isn't trustworthy online
I believe that in todays classrooms we have the attention and participation literacies covered. Most teachers in the upper grades see their students attend to and participate in social media constantly . In fact, I bet most teachers would agree that their students are distracted by their use of social media. In education, we are just now venturing into using social media as a collaboration tool. I find it exciting in how these mediums are now being used in a constructive ways in education. I do not believe that network analysis is a necessary literacy for functioning as a student. Critical consumption is where we are lacking as teachers and if we are lacking in this area how can we educate our students on this literacy. I believe that some are venturing into bringing this awareness to others in education but as our students continue to engage in the use of social media, we as teachers, need to be educated in this to help bring this awareness to our students.
I believe that if we start incorporating social media resources into our courses then students will be able to see that social media has more uses then just connecting with their friends. Social media is a valuable tool, however, I do not beleive that it has been embraced by many in the education field. I know some teachers may be hestitant to use social media in their classes, so it is imperative that school and districts create policies and procedures so all partipants feel safe using it.
ReplyDeleteBonnie,
ReplyDeleteYou're definitely correct: educators are behind the curve. I could go on listing reasons why I think this has occurred, but every moment wasted is another moment some tech company releases a new app. By the time I'm done typing this comment, how many snaps will have been sent and/or received by the middle schoolers I teach? There is no doubt that this is a distraction, especially for adolescents with brains that are still in crucial developmental phases.
The aspects of Rheingold's social media approach are two-sided. Attention and participation are just as full of potential as they are full of danger and distraction. This is why so many people emphasize CRITICAL CONSUMPTION. It requires the highest levels of mental activity and ability, but it can't really happen consistently until attention, participation, and collaboration have occurred.
Providing a safe means of social media exploration in school can be key to saving the current generation of students from overexposure, over-stimulation, and the risk of being misinformed or manipulated.
Thanks Bonnie
ReplyDelete