- In your Blogger blog, outline the pros and cons associated with allowing social networking in schools.
Social networking is an ever growing element in the digital world. People from all walks of life are “tapped” into some form of technology and most likely communicating as well. It really is not a question of whether our students of today could handle an assignment utilizing social networking or whether they understand the concept but rather how much better could they learn and collaborate utilizing what they already know - the digital realm? Questions that may need to be considered in addition are how do we make the broadened community safe and free of conflict and what is the best way to implement such measures? These are questions that are always being pondered and steps are continually being taken to improve educational conditions for our students. Solomon and Schrum state that “the point of communicating with others is to learn, develop, and expand all that we know; to share ideas and information; or just to enjoy social interactions” (2010) and that my friends it precisely what we should do - allow our students to share, develop and communicate their ideas on a global level.
Unfortunately there are cons to every great opportunity. There are digital creepers that prey on our youth and we must be very aware of all that can penetrate the sites that they use. There is also a trend of utilizing social media for bullying and taunting. However, good teaching and instruction and the proper use of social media will allow it to be greatly beneficial to student learning.
Resources:
Solomon, G. and Schrum, L. (2010). Web 2.0 how-to for educators: the indispensable companion to web 2.0: new tools, new schools. Washington, D.C.: ISTE
I really like how you worded your response and I agree that student can handle the technology tools, but are they able to grasp the material better and work with others better online. Students really need to be able to do this on a global scale so that they can compete in today's society. Unfortunately, there are people out there who will abuse this technology, but if we monitor usage and use technology appropriately, it can benefit everyone greatly. Great post!
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely right Julie! It is important that we educate our students on the correct usage of technology as well as teaching our educators the appropriate way to incorporate technology that is beneficial.
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