Reflections on Using Social Media in Education

Upon completing readings from W. Richardson book (2010) on Blog, Wikis, Podcasts and other Powerful tool for classroom, I was able to reflect on question that which required the class to respond and think critically. By definition, technology is more than computers, devices, and networkers.  It has been part of the learning process from the beginning, whether it’s used for writing, printing books, or for audiovisual media. Through my learning process I found the Internet to be a powerful tool to have access in using in the learning environment.  As an educator, technology enhances the learning process and prepares individuals by helping them attain a better understanding and mastery of the skills being taught in the classroom. My experience with using technological tools in classroom has been a great success, especially for children whom I had concerns about meeting their needs. Children do not learn skills at the same pace, through a developmental evaluation by highly qualified trained professionals which can create a profile of the child’s strengths and weakness areas.  I have realized by using this forms of technology tools there has been an improvement in the student’s academic learning environment. The author Richardson ( 2010 )discusses the following technological tools  pros and cons that are a good access to the learning environment; Wiki, Web 2.0,  Weblog , Websites and delicious .com  when used for educational purpose.

Wiki is one of the tools I loved to use the most. I felted very relaxed and comfortable as I was designing and placing information on the site. I found this to be one of the most enjoyable moments in the class. I could easily work my way through the different section of the website, attain and place information for my peers to address. If there was any doubt about using the wiki my experience change every uncertainty I may have had concerning using the wiki. According to the authors, Witney and Smallbone (2011), Wiki technology has provided interesting opportunities and benefits for educators and students contributing information by working together on projects through a collaborative online editing, linking, track changes to the web pages.  Wiki is a collaboration web space where anyone can add content and anyone can edit content that has already been published.  In schools, teachers and students have begun using password-protected wiki to create their own textbooks and recourse sites.  However, there are pitfalls to using Wiki in the learning environment. Students must have accessibility, having access to the use of technology tools. Dissatisfaction with the quality of student group work, in terms of content and process, from both academics and students is a constant challenge to the development of appropriate teaching. The experience of working in a group and the instructor has no way of knowing what amount of time each member contributed to the project, except what was written in a word document by each member as to what role each individual played. I find this to be mind bottling because I do not feel this is fair for the students which worked very hard to make sure their project was at its best, while other done very little to help with the project, but received the same great letter as those who gave it their all. Finally, the convenience of not having to meet regularly, the instructor has no way of knowing how much time the individuals shared communicating and planning for the final project.

Next, the second choice of tool that I felt relaxed doing was the blog. I love working with this particular learning tool because I was able to add pictures to make it a customized design. I found this to be a tool used for collaboration with peers and instructor/teacher.  Richardson, 2010, defines a Blog as “easily created, easily updateable Websites that allow an author (or authors) to publish instantly to the Internet from any Internet connection.” (p. 9). Blogs can be interactive allowing students and teachers the chance to dialog through comments on posts. Today we are sharing our thoughts and lives online as a natural part of our daily lives. It’s not just blogs, multimedia publishing by masses have exploded, in 2009, over 20 hour’s worth of videos were being uploaded to YouTube.com and dozens of popular video-publishing sites on the web.

I am happy to discuss my strengths, but I do have areas of learning about technology where I am not so good in. Working with the PBWorks, Twitter, and Delicious Accounts were my weakness lies. The web sites where new to me, first time exposure.  I have very little knowledge of using the Internet for some of these sites. I was totally lost and my fear mode kicked in.  I want to just give up because I just knew there was no way, I would make it through these tools. I talked with some of my peers to find out that I was not alone and we collaborated back and forth and helped each other to get a better understanding of what we were to do on our assignment that was posted. I being to gain my confidence and continue to work on my assignments even though sometimes they were late.  I did not give in to my fears. I worked a little harder to achieve my goal of mastering this course.  Many of the tools I gain exposure to I would not incorporate in the learning process until I feel that I am ready to implement in the learning environment. I want to make sure I am qualified to use these tools.

According to Richardson, Weblogs are a new form of Writing Genre. Weblogs-blogs as they are known are easily created updated web sites that allow an author (or Authors) to publish instantly to the Internet from any Internet Connection. They can also be interactive, allowing teachers and students to begin conservations or add to the information published there. Blogs can be used for reflective writing, publication of creative writing, posting links, multimedia productions, photographs and much more. The opportunity for feedback is built into the blog also. Blogs allow students to make a connection and construct knowledge.  Weblogs are the most widely adopted tool of the Read/Write Web so far.

The web 2.0 application brings new and powerful opportunities to the learning environment. We can use this growing collection of free web-base tools, accessible through a browser and Internet connection. It allows students to read, write, and edit information on the web in user-friendly spaces. The latest evolution of the Internet, the so called web 2.0 has blurred the line between producers and consumers of content and has shifted attention from access to information toward access to other people according to Brown & Adler, 2008.  New kinds of online resources, such as social networking sites, blogs, wikis, and virtual communities which have allowed people with common interests to meet, share ideas, and collaborate in innovative ways (p. 18).  The web 2.0 is creating a new kind of participatory medium that is ideal for supporting multiple modes of learning.

  We are living in an era where children are tech savvy at an early age and are challenged more through the use of technology, whereas, some get easily bored with regular classroom lectures, no differentiated instructional taking place. Educators must be prepared to keep up with the changes in technology which helps to improve students’ learning environment.   According to Davis, (2011) “educational technology includes any tool, piece of equipment or device-electronic or mechanical-that can be used to help students accomplish specified learning goals” (p. 46). For many, technology is synonymous with computer equipment, software, and other electronic devices, and technology integration means using this equipment in classroom (p. 46). The  knowledge gained in this course and others has  made me appreciate the use of technological tools. I will use many of these tools in my everyday instructional planning. I want the students to be on task and to be able to think critically. I have changed my views on social media as to how it can be use in the learning environment.  Web 2.0 has a variety of web related communication technologies such as blogs, wikis, online social networking, virtual worlds and other social media. According to Friedman & Friedman (2008), the characteristics of social media can be summarized by the 5 C’s; communication, collaboration, community, creativity, and convergence. The knowledge in which I have gained will be a great access to my teaching career. I will keep in mind the lessons learned in this course of study. Finally, I look forward to going in classroom with an new attitude with using the many tools I have gained knowledge about in this course of study. Most important to be a great educator as my instructor has been to me, always their lending a helping hand when things appear to be going terrible.
The uses of social media to connect, interact, and collaborate with consumers has dramatically increased in recent years. According to Naylor, Lamberton, and West, by 2011 approximately 83% of Fortune 500 companies were using some form of social media to connect with consumers. Advances in internet, collaboration tools, and web 2.0 technologies have been the key driver of this transition, allowing firms to collaborate more easily and at low cost with large numbers of consumers.  In particular, social media platform such as Facebook and Twitter are increasingly being used as tools for external stakeholder engagement. These are tools in which I found to be where my weaknesses lie. It was a great experience, but not a choice I would continue to use in my learning environment.

REFERENCE PAGE

Brown, J. S. & Adler, R. P. (2008, January/February). 

Minds on Fire: Open Education, the Long Tail, and Learning 2.0.  EDUCAUSE Review. Retrieved from http://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ERM0811.pdf

Mount, M.. & Martinez, M.  (2014). Social Media: A Tool for open innovation. California                    Management Review, 56(4), 124-143.

Richardson, W. (2010). Blog, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classroom (3^rd

            ed.). Thousand Oaks , CA: Corwin Press.

Witney, D., & Smallbone, T. (2011). Wiki work: can using wikis enhance student

collaboration for group assignment tasks? Innovations In Education & Teaching International, 48(1), 101-110.