Like many others in Generation Y, online social networking has become a significant part of our lives. I think the challenge for me as a professional is to move beyond the social use of social networking and take advantage of the educational and professional opportunities that it has to offer.
I'll comment on each of the tools explored in Module 9 individually in terms of their educational use and how they can be used to enhance learning inside and outside of the classroom.
Scootle
I think it is a fantastic tool for teachers because it allows resources to be easily shared amongst teachers but also with students through the one site.
Exploring the History section of the site allowed me to access many resources that would otherwise not be accessible either online or in hard copy formats.
I like the fact that I can create Learning Paths containing resources from the database that are most relevant to student learning and make that accessible to students. I also provide learning activities through Scootle.
I was also impressed that students can upload and host their own content provided it is their own work of course.
In my Master of Education (Teacher Librarianship) Degree, I did an elective on ICT use in the classroom. As part of our studies, we were required to engage in discussion via a Facebook group created specifically for the subject.
Our lecturer Lyn Hay made a very good point about its educational use which I did not pick up. I was interacting with other Facebook users yet I was not their friend.
You don't need to be a persons friend to interact with them on Facebook.
There was alot of discussion going on in the group on our learning experiences as well. I thought it was nice that were learning and using a social networking site as a means to learn.
Lyn was also the administrator for the group and only let those study the subject access the group and contribute to discussions.
So lets shift towards the classroom.
I think Facebook does have educational use in the classroom given my experience of using the site provided that the teacher can control the activity that goes on within the group. Obviously I would have not "friend" any of them for professional reasons. I didn't "friend" my lecturer in my studies nor did she with me.
My concern is that restricting access to sites such as Facebook can actually do little in terms of encouraging responsible use of the internet and develop appropriate digital citizenship within our students. If a site is blocked they are more likely to use the alternate sites to break the firewalls of the servers especially with Facebook. I think it also prevents students from exploring alternative uses for Social Networking, which can help them in their tertiary studies or careers.
I think within the next few years, restrictions on Facebook etc will have to be lifted. Social Networking has become a crucial part of life in our society and it is inevitable that this will have to happen.
In the meantime, I have to accept restrictions placed by educational authorities and explore alternative sites that cater to school students.
I signed up with LinkedIn earlier this year and in a professional sense I think its a great way to promote myself as a professional. If you are to look at my account, I've been able to virtually make my CV available in electronic form. If professionals want to know about my work history etc, they can access it. There is also scope to engage in professional discussions by joining various groups that exist online.
I have noticed too that people have actually viewed my profile that are curious to find more about who I am professionally. These people are usually listed on my page. Its good overall.
I find that Twitter is quite limited in how one can express themselves. 140 characters is quite limited to express yourself. The curriculum requires students to engage in critical thinking and Twitter sadly does not allow this. I would not use it in this format.
However I do like Twitter as a form of communication to remind students of upcoming assessment tasks, posting useful links etc. It can also be used for lesson reviews e.g "List one thing that you learn't today". For learning it can be good for keeping records of events happening at a moment in time e.g. "What is the temperature at home?" or to report on findings.
In professional contexts as a teacher, I am trying to explore it as a tool of communication with members of the profession whether it may be sharing items with other professionals or contributing to professional discussions. This was after being encouraged by this article published in The Sydney Morning Herald on Monday (click below to read):
http://www.smh.com.au/national/education/teachers-unlock-tweet-smell-of-success-20121109-292zz.html
I would love to get in touch with other teachers not just in my area of expertise, but also other areas.
You can follow me on Twitter at @FabianAmuso1.
Second Life
I've always been curious about Second Life and what it offers. I have never considered its educational use at all. I like the fact that you can provide a virtual experience of the world and how it works whether it may be viewing artworks, experiencing life in Ancient Rome or visiting a village marketplace to understand how business transactions may take place.
The question I have to ask is - How can I use Second Life in the classroom?
Here are several methods in which I could apply Second Life.
- Role Playing exercises. Kids love to role play in the physical world, but the big challenge is that they have to do it with no props. You can do that in the virtual world with props. In fact you enter a virtual society and you can immerse yourself, whether it is the world of the 21st century or ancient Rome.
- You can experience the world as another person sees it through custom built environments and gain insights into how they experience life or even enter an object and explore its functions.
- Its impossible to take people back in time. Second Life can allow the students to explore the world at a certain point in time.
- Scavenger Hunts - locating information relating to a concept or topic. This might be locating definitions, key people or creating a timeline. In a subject like Ancient History, Second Life allows students to locate objects from the historical period that they are engaged in study at that point in time e.g. Ancient Rome.
- Creating 3D objects relating to their unit of work.
The big challenge in applying Second Life is that this is the time needed to engage in such a experience. As teachers we already have to spend alot of time to cater for set up and pack up. Periods can be short as 40 minutes at some schools - not really much time to get much done.
