Should Schools Teach Social Media Skills?

Should it be the job of schools to teach the do’s and don’t of social media? Many educators think the answer to that is “yes.” One counselor, using a curriculum created by the non-profit Common Sense Media, talks with his students about “Disinhibition, reputation, anonymity.” He says that teens get right away that disinhibition means acting impulsively, without showing due restraint, in a way that’s aggressive or plays up another personality trait. He also talks about the number of fights that start at school that have their root in things that started online.

Others, though, including Dennis Kelly, president of the United Educators of San Francisco, a local teachers union, says teachers are already drowning in work — especially now with Common Core. While social media is important, Kelly says, so are other things. “It would be very difficult for schools trying to keep up with Instagram, Facebook, all of the apps that exist out there that are essentially market driven.”

The truth is that, while apps come and go, and the contingent issues and yet to emerge problems that come with them are yet to raise their ugly heads, social media is here to stay. The social media world boils over into schools every minute of every school day. Without schools keeping a finger on the pulse of what’s going on in the digital world, teaching online etiquette to students, and discussing the implications of what is going on in the social media world, it is like saying that current events shouldn’t be part of ongoing lessons. School, parents, and teachers have to get serious about talking about what is going on in this parallel universe or risk being seen as irrelevant.

Handy Social Media Commandments

You'll want to take a look at these social media commandmentsfrom Leaderswest: Fresh Perspectives on Social Media & Technology. Included are many suggestions I'm sure you already know, but reviewing the ideas with your students is wise. As always, it’s important to keep up a conversation with your students about their use of online networking and to stress use of common sense.

Graphic Novels in the Classroom?

What do you think of using graphic novels in the classroom? Could they be put to work for literature, like classic comic books, might they be used to motivate students who have difficulty with reading, and how about use for history or civics? In South Carolina there are middle and high school teachers working with students on “Justice Case Files” a series of graphic novels featuring civics. The content for the novels was created by the National Center for State Courts, and the lesson plans that go along with them were developed by social studies teachers. Topics include Internet piracy, identity theft and jury duty. You can order copies at the National Center for State Court site.

Getting Tech Skills to Balance with Life Skills

There is a new study out from the Internet Security Group AVG that is getting some wildly different interpretations. AVG, interested in promoting the importance of online safety, released a study in 2010 called Digital Birth that shows statistically that most babies and toddlers have an online footprint by the time they are six months old. Now, as a result of this study, they suggest that parents and teachers need to start educating kids about navigating the online world safely at an earlier age than they might otherwise have thought and AVG has provided a general list of suggestions for doing just that.

Real-Time Security form M86

All of us worry about the security of our digital systems through malware attacks by cybercriminals. According to M86 Security, our use of Web 2.0 technology in schools means that we need “multilayered protection” for our networks and students. M86 says that “84% of malware attacks are from legitimate Web 2.0 sites”, sites that educators consider safe. With the number of malware attacks on the rise, school districts have experienced significant problems with suspected viruses that allow criminals to access bank account information and to instigate network disabling cyber attacks on school systems. M86, along with Sophos, the Google Security Team, Kaspersky Bulletin, and Websense Security Labs all show huge growth in malware. Details are available on the M86 site about the problems schools and districts are encountering. To learn about the dangers of malware and how to avoid these attacks in your school system, go to the M86 site, where you can find information on threats such as Trojans, spyware, scareware, botnets, blended threats, and others.

Free Technology for Teachers

The site Free Technology for Teachers is a great place to head when you are looking for resources to help you and your students.  On the site you’ll find downloads, Google Tools Tutorials, Video Creation Resources, and loads of other goodies for education. You can subscribe to the site through email for RSS feed or follow Free Technology for Teachers on Twitter. Some of the offerings for early June 2010 were: a technology curriculum for teaching digital citizenship, a micro-messaging network service, widgets and activity tools for Web pages, a guide to technology integration, a 33-page Google for Teachers PDF, a program for creating digital portfolios, a service that turns pictures into audio stories, and a system for creating and mixing sound tracks. All that is just what’s available from the current site page. There’s lots more in the archives.

Cyber Communication: Progress or Problem—What Kids Say

This year’s Optimist International Oratorical Competition for students focuses on the topic: Cyber Communication: Progress or Problem. After listening to many student speeches, these thoughts went through my mind. (1) Students, at least the ones participating in this competition, know the dangers of the Internet. (2) They know social networking sites have a minimum age, but they ignore it—it’s like it’s not there and doesn’t matter. (3) They realize cyber communication is here to stay and say people should get used to it and learn how to use it correctly. (4) They have no idea what to do about the problem of cyberbullies, but they know that it happens and feel for those who have been victims. (5) Although they text and video chat mostly, and still use email and instant messaging, many love to get written letters—one speaker even wrote an obituary of a love letter and then recited from one of Abigail Adam’s letters to John.  (6) They can’t imagine carrying a dictionary around or having to look words up in a dictionary. (7) It’s foreign to them not to be able to type their essays into the computer. “I couldn’t just sit down and write my stories on paper,” one commented. (8) They see cell phones as a necessary part of their lives, but they do not think parents should give cell phones to young children. (9) They are not sure about the option of technology to locate where they are. “That’s scary,” according to some. Others thought it could be useful for parents but noted that parents might purchase a cell phone for young children for this reason and not realize the other dangers present in cell phone options. (10) They see that cyber communication can be a powerful force for good in our world even though they realize that everyone doesn’t use it as they should—one speaker said, “You’ve got to remember that everyone isn’t nice.” Another said, “Alexander Graham Bell didn’t invent the telephone so that people could make crank calls or threatening calls. We must step forward with the technologies we have today thinking how we can help our world.”

 

Frontline: Growing Up Online

The Frontline report, Growing Up Online, features information and discussions on the questions, “Just how radically is the Internet transforming the experience of childhood?” It tackles questions related to students and their beliefs about privacy, private worlds of teens online, teens sharing personal information, teachers and tech, and traditional teaching methods.  The section, Keeping Kids Safe, focuses upon what parents need to know about their children and the Internet, fear of predators, cyberbullying, and state and federal efforts to keep kids safe. You can watch the full program online, view the follow-up report, and read what people who saw the program had to say about it. If you want, you can add your comments about the Internet’s impact on your students. Don’t forget to check out the readings and links, teacher’s guide, and information on what we’ve learned abut kids and the Internet and how our digital generation is doing.

eSchool News’ Top 10 2009 Ed-Tech Stories

Digital textbooks top the list of eSchool News’ Top 10 Ed-Tech Stories of 2009 and are called an “emerging trend in education”.  Others, in the order listed, include technology as part of the Obama administration’s reform for education, national strategy for expanding broadband use to everyone, providing Federal stimulus funding to help ed-tech budgets, preventing educational disruptions during the swine-flu scare, online learning as a “disruptive innovation”, Google’s book scanning and antitrust concerns, Microsoft vs. Google in schools, Sexting as a problem for educators and parents, and Internet safety as part of the K-12 curriculum. Do you agree with this top ten list? What might also be included?

Everything You Need to Know About Wireless

A new Case Study has been added to our Power to Learn Internet Smarts Library. Everything You Need to Know About Wireless is an interactive slide show that will help your students better understand how wireless technologies work. Emphasis is placed not only on the technical aspects but on avoidance of pitfalls that may arise when using wireless technologies such as laptops, smart phones, and PDAs. —And don’t forget to put the other case studies—Social Networking: Don’t Give Yourself Away; Digital Permanence: Forever is a Long Time; Cyberbullying: Not Just Name Calling; Misinformation: Truth or Spoof; Fair Use: Beg, Borrow or Steal?; Keeping Personal Information Private; and Music Downloading:Paying the Piper—to work in your classroom.