With this generation of students becoming
more and more reliant on technology and social media, communicating to them in
the same way that teachers used to address students is no longer as effective
as it once was. Contemporary students are simply not used to the same
face-to-face, human interaction anymore, nor are they used to the skill of audio-processing,
due to their comfortability with the visual field. What can be read, viewed, or
seen on a screen has a much higher chance of being processed by a student than
that which is spoken at them.
Melissa Dillard realised this barrier in
teaching modern students through out-dated techniques and decided to employ
social media as a means by which to transform her classroom. Teachers who have
introduced social media to their classrooms have been widely criticised by
traditionalists however, as if to combat such criticism, Wadham, Pudsey and
Boyd remind us that, ”simply put, culture shapes education and education shapes
culture.” The relevance of this is clear immediately; there is no traditional
way to teach a class and in order to keep students’ education ‘up-to-date,’
teachers must ensure that their educating techniques are relevant to their
students. Zach Galvin, vice principal of Natick High School in the USA details
his teaching staffs’ usage of blogs and twitter to keep connected with their class.
He says, “we’re trying to help prepare students for the world and we have to
show them how to use technology positively.”
This idea of instructing appropriate
internet and social media usage has received wide-spread support from teaching
staff, parents and even students. With so much inappropriate content, so easily
accessible to students, it is a great reflection on the education system that
it is so ‘in-touch-with-the-times’ and so ready to combat any negative learning
that could arise from internet usage, with positivity.
Phillips reminds us that "culture is
not just transmitted, but debated and amended in ways that express the
creativity of the human mind...culture is both ubiquitous and in a continual
process of change." This sentiment lends itself perfectly to the
introduction of social media into classrooms as educators are reminded of the
importance of ensuring modernity and cultural relevance to their students'
education. Furthermore, if we are to continue stressing the importance of the
role of the educator in teaching appropriate internet usage and social
media etiquette, it is evident that through such lessons (whereby teachers
may question their students on what they believe to be appropriate, what
language they feel is relevant to the media device, etc) we are breading a new
generation of communication. By this I imply that if we are to encourage
students to "debate" what is to be considered acceptable in the cyber
world of social media, we are not dictating or "transmitting"
culture, but rather aiding students in achieving their own definition of that
which is to be considered decent and fitting for social media. One should never
try and force culture, rather through education, one should teach with the aim
of assisting students in acquiring the knowledge and freedom to create their
own, respectable culture. This is one of the greatest challenges to the modern
teacher.
However, whilst some teachers are finding
social media as a method of positively transforming their classrooms, others are
noting that they have experienced mixed results to this newer method of
teaching. Today’s reporter, Jacoba Urist, comments in her August 22nd, 2013 article, ‘social media helps
teachers transform classroom culture,’
“But some teachers say they’ve “dabbled in
using social media to very mixed results.”
For the past two years, Samantha Hines…created
Facebook pages for both her AP English and English 11 classes. She posted
assignments, links to academic articles, and occasional film clips of the novel
they were reading…”To like a Facebook page you have to share your profile
picture,” she explains. While some students seemed to really enjoy the
interaction, other’s not so much. “You can sense it as a teacher” says Hines.”
So if social media can improve the culture
of modern classrooms, perhaps criticism needs to cease to allow progress to be
achieved.
To read more on this article:
By: Carly Fisher
References:
Urist, J. 'Social Media Helps Teachers
Transform Classroom Culture' - Today - 2013 (link as above)
Wadham, B, Pudsey, J & Boyd, R. 'Culture
and Education' - Pearson, Education Australia
Phillips, A. 'What is Culture' - Routledge -
2006
- Original Citation:
Originally Published in Arneil, Barbara and
Deveaux, Monique and Shamoon, Rita and Eisenberg, Avigail, (eds.) Sexual Justice/Cultural Justice.
London, UK: Routledge, 2006, pp.15-29
No comments:
Post a Comment