Social media: risk or vital opportunity?

37% of American school-aged children report having been cyberbullied (Google Survey, 2017)


Safe guards often fail, like age restrictions for accounts on social media platforms. This is amongst the many often cited reasons for keeping social media out of the classroom (see the link above as an example). In fact, most have a visceral response to the very idea. 


Exposing learners to cyberbullying is certainly a risk any instructor should consider. But is blocking the use of social media in our classrooms really the best way of keeping our learners out of danger?


Life is occurring more and more in digital spaces. As the generations shift, it will only become more important that learners of all ages are equipped to navigate digital spaces with safety in mind, for themselves and for everyone else. 

Opportunity for Digital Literacy 


Using social media in the classroom is a risk but also an opportunity, a vital one. Instructors and classroom experiences can play an important role in helping learners become digital citizens. This is a core part of digital literacy which equips learners to "think critically, behave safely, participate responsibly, and maintain their health and wellness in the digital world."

Educators face some critical questions. Should we make sure cyberbullying doesn't happen in our classrooms or should we make sure our learners become well-informed and well-equipped digital citizens, in hopes there would be less cyberbully everywhere? 

We are well past the point of being able to "shield" our pupils, young or old, from the dangers of social media. Blocking the use of it in education not protect them but instead leave them exposed and ill-prepared to manage. So, are we really helping our pupils by not modeling good digital citizenship in our classrooms? 

Some other benefits of social media in education are:
  • allows learners to maintain their own learning activities
  • enhances collaborative study and social interaction in college students
  • increases motivation to participate in the learning process by using tools that are familiar from everyday life
  • connect to real people on subjects that matter to them
  • increase a sense of community in the learning environment
  • connect to a vast array of tools and resources fitting different learning modalities (images, videos, audio, interactive websites, apps or games)


Social media and the adult learner


At the same time, we can't put the cart before the horse. When the vastness of the internet is an integral part of an course, it is often more of a burden to adult learners than a benefit. A gap needs to be bridged and again, it is digital literacy. 

Most adult learners are past the age of the formal education system, meaning they have not been the target of digital literacy training that is prevalent in school systems these days. This generation may be very computer literate, but digital literacy requires a broader set of knowledge, skill and attitudes. 

Online education designers and instructors would do well to consider how they'll help their adult learners bridge this gap at the beginning of their courses. 


For more information on tool on digital literacy and digital citizenship, see The Learning Portal   

 

References
 

Deye, S. (February, 2017). Promoting digital literacy and citizenship in school. NCSL Legis Brief. Retrieved March 17, 2021, from https://www.ncsl.org/research/education/promoting-digital-literacy-and-citizenship-in-school.aspx#:~:text=What%20is%20Digital%20Literacy%20and,digital%20tools%20and%20searchable%20networks.&text=Digital%20citizenship%20is%20defined%20as,responsible%20behavior%20when%20using%20technology


 Digital citizenship and ethics. (2021, October 5). Let’s Talk Science. Retrieved March 18 , 2201 from https://letstalkscience.ca/educational-resources/backgrounders/digital-citizenship-ethics


Jimoyiannis, A. (2015). Digital literacy and adult learners. The SAGE encyclopedia of educational technology, 213-216.


JPMorganCCCC. (2018, January 08). Cyberbullying on social media (what it is and how to avoid it). TurboFuture. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://turbofuture.com/internet/Cyberbullying-and-Social-Media

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Building Self-Efficacy in Learners

Image
 As someone who struggled in their academic studies in the past, I find self-efficacy from the theory of social learning particularly interesting. Self-efficacy describes a link between learning and motivation. Someone with a stronger sense of self-efficacy is more motivated and puts more effort since they believe there will be positive outcomes from all that work. For example, that their goals will be attained or that the difficult task will be accomplished. This same person is likely to challenge difficult tasks and stick to it. They will experience setbacks just like anyone else, but will likely see them something that can be worked on to be fixed or overcome- instead of setbacks being out of their control and thereby things that will never change. Hence, the link back to motivation and effort. It is not because this higher self-efficate group is less lazy, more hardworking, or smarter. It is because they believe their efforts will amount to what they intended and hoped for, eve...
Read more

What is Digital Pedagogy?

Image
  Source:  http://www.teachernology.com/digital-pedagogies.html "Digital Pedagogy is precisely not about using digital technologies for teaching and, rather, about approaching those tools from a critical pedagogical perspective. So, it is as much about using digital tools thoughtfully as it is about deciding when not to use digital tools, and about paying attention to the impact of digital tools on learning." "Digital pedagogy" began appearing in peer-reviewed journals starting in 2011. It is not just about the act of using technology to teach, the "how". At its core, it is about reflecting on the use of technology to enhance or to change the experience of education. The focus is not on the digital tools themselves but how the most basic architecture of our interactions with and through machines can inspire pedagogies . It is looking at how ways of learning, teaching and instruction can be fundamentally different now because of what digital technologies ha...
Read more

Breaking down miconceptions using analogies

The misconceptions Pain is sometimes left under-controlled just because a team is not gathering all the information they need to find the right interventions. There is a huge misunderstanding that symptom screening is the same as symptom assessment. In best practice, these are two different processes that are meant to fit together in a specific way: a patient that screens positive for a symptom then has that symptom assessed. The screening and assessment might be done by different people but information from both are needed to find ways to control the pain, sometimes with medications. Choosing the right medication including at what dose and how many times a day, depends a lot on extra information an assessment gives you. This is where the breakdown happens: when screening, which provides less information, is mistaken for assessment, the team lacks the important information that is needed to figure out how to relieve the pain.  Analogy- it is like going to a mammogram. It can tell u...
Read more