Week 4 read & react

What is your personal perspective on utilizing social networking sites for education? Do the benefits outweigh the risks?

If posed these questions prior to the start of this class, there’s a good chance that I might have sided with so many of my colleagues in a belief that no, social networks should be strictly social.  However, in the past four weeks, my feelings on the matter have changed.  The more I have learned about the iKid and how his multi-tasking brain works, the more I see a need for the educational use of social networking sites.  Yes, there are risks, but I do believe that the benefits are far greater.

There is no doubt that the internet is where our students are.  Whether facebooking, surfing the web, or creating content on a desktop computer, laptop, or smartphone, online IS where they live.  It is no wonder that education is boring to them; it simply has not kept the pace of our rapidly changing world. For education to be successful in the twenty-first century we must be willing to make a radical change.  The web-site http://www.21stcenturyschools.com/What_is_21st_Century_Education.htm gives us this definition - ‘Teacher - From primary role as a dispenser of information to orchestrator of learning and helping students turn information into knowledge, and knowledge into wisdom.’ I feel, with the proper parameters in place, social networking provides a great opportunity to foster precisely this 21^st Century type of learning experience.  The social network Facebook offers bulletin boards, instant messaging, email, the ability to link web-sites, to post pictures, and video.  It would be the perfect platform for a classroom away from school.  I am not advocating that a social network classroom replace the actual classroom, but more as a means of augmenting the regular classroom. Assignments could be posted, techniques demonstrated, lectures recorded, questions asked / answered and feedback given. It would provide the opportunity for our globally connected iKid to reach beyond the walls of the concrete classroom. It’s available 24/7, and a social network classroom has the potential to evolve as it progresses, meeting the needs of the individuals comprising the class. 

Yes, there are would be risks associated with using social networking sites: students posting too much personal information about themselves, cyber-bullying, and cyber-stalking. However, we teach our students many life skills that are outside the realm of standard curriculum such as:  organization, the importance of teamwork, face-to-face communication skills, and self-esteem. We teach them ways to say no to drugs and alcohol, and what to do if a stranger approaches them.  They learn the rules for riding in a school bus and how to ‘Stop, drop, and roll’ if their clothing catches on fire. Why then, can’t we teach them netiquette, boundaries and rules in regard to personal privacy?  Could we not admonish them to stay away from websites that might be inappropriate for them? Guide them through determining the credibility of a website? It seems to me that education is failing to meet the needs of our students in not providing them the skills to navigate safely through their (online) life.

In my opinion, educators should, recognize the risks involved, turn them into learning experiences, and utilize social networking sites to provide iKids the 21^st Century type of education they deserve.