“And so it seems that schools around the world are starting to understand what this social media thing is all about. They are starting to see that the Internet and the online tools that have been created over the past few years are and very well could become some of the greatest education tools ever created. Now it’s simply a matter of implementing those tools into our education system and giving our youth the skills necessary to succeed in the future” (Alff 2009).
We definitely have our work cut out for us. This is going to be an uphill battle - convincing the powers that be that social media is an important skill that should be taught in our schools. However, instead of burying our heads in the sand and saying that schools should not be teaching this, we have to realize that valuable lessons come out of teaching children about social media. If we teach children that the Internet and social media is not as private as they think it is, we could save them from future battles. For example, a high school senior who applies to the school of her dreams only to find out that the admissions team viewed her Facebook account and was less than happy with photos a friend posted showing her taking shots of tequila at a Christmas party. Another example: a college graduate is offered a job, but the offer is retracted because of questionable behavior on MySpace. These unfortunate experiences could be avoided if schools began teaching about social media and how students should use social media responsibly.
I read a fantastic post on ChrisBrogan.com that showcases a teacher who uses all types of social media in his classroom. He checks his RSS feeder to see how his students are updating their social network. On his way to work, he listens to students’ book reports on his iPod. He has his class use their cell phones to take pictures on their nature walk so that they can use them for their nature walk. All of this takes place on a normal school day in a third grade classroom! This is not a dream; it is a reality. And it could be a reality in all classrooms across the country. If we don’t keep up with technology and the growth of our students’ base knowledge, then we will surely fall behind.
In the three first courses at Full Sail, I mentioned the following book. As I am exposed to the new technology, I just keep thinking about the book and the author’s message. The Saber-tooth Curriculum written by A. Pediwell is a satirical view of education. Pediwell says that basically we have continued to teach things that are no longer necessary, or we teach the way we ourselves learned because that’s what we have always done. Some would argue that there’s not much value in teaching handwriting because so much is being done on computers nowadays. Should we move away from handwriting and maybe teach more keyboarding skills? Or maybe use the time that was once allocated to penmanship for social networking or social media. The change is coming!
Alff, D. (March 30, 2009). UK students now being taught social media in elementary. http://socialmediaschools.com/uk-students-now-being-taught-social-media-in-elementary-school/2009/03/
Borgan, C. (August 29, 2008). Workflow - Social Media School Teacher. http://www.chrisbrogan.com/workflow-social-media-school-teacher/
Pediwell, J. (2004) The saber-tooth curriculum. New York: McGraw Hill.
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