Usage of Social Networks - Essay Example

Effective use of internet social networks for learning Social networking sites have lately gained considerable amount of popularity among large and diverse groups of population. Social networking sites are those sites that allow humans to meet and interact with one another, share knowledge, views and emotions among the members in internet communities. Lately, attempts have been made to take advantage of the people’s involvement in this virtual world for the pedagogical benefits. Throughout this essay I shall try to justify the positive impacts of the social networks on learning and also suggest ways in which this technological advancement can be effectively used in pedagogy and learning. I shall discuss how the trend of teacher and student interactions in the networks allows learning to take place in an informal platform or a comfort zone of the students. I shall discuss various ways by which social networks like Facebook can effectively be made use of for discussions about lessons learnt and for sharing opinions and knowledge. I shall argue how quizzes and IQ tests performed in the social networks can enhance the knowledge of students. Before concluding, I shall also converse about the way in which this technology makes learning, a fun by making students engage in interesting virtual world which would save them their time, energy and sometimes money. Some of the social networking sites popular among diverse range of people are Facebook, Myspace, Tweeter, Hi 5 and Orkut. Other then using these sites for social interactions and sharing, trends of teacher- student interactions in the networks are gaining importance. Important lessons pertaining to syllabus or any other knowledge-oriented lessons are discussed in these informal platforms. As Oliveira, Aberta and Teixeira point out, “It is known that one of the most fundamental facets of learning is the social interaction in which learning is an outcome of individuals sharing experiences. Learners perform learning tasks in formal contexts, (e.g. classes), semi-formal contexts (e.g. lectures or seminars) and informal contexts or non- academic settings”. An interesting instance of this non-formal usage of social networks is that of a Ms. Schoening, a teacher of 1st graders who was reported in The New York Times’ “Friending Students on Facebook” story (The Innovative Educator). There are various methods according to Ms. Schoening, to engage students in learning through social networks like Facebook. The basic advantage is that students will be able to gain the maximum exposure, meet maximum numbers of people, and involve themselves in learning in maximum numbers of ways, within the comfort zone of the four walls of their home. Also, “learning takes on a more active role rather than the traditional passive mode. Producers and consumers converge and interact in new ways”. (Curriculum 21, p.83) Moreover it has been argued for decades that “Social production is a ‘back to the future’ phenomenon applied to learning. It is learning by doing”. (Curriculum 21, p.85) This is true because social networking sites invite the involvements of not just the classroom students, but the parents and families and a larger interested community as well. Students would update their page (e.g. Facebook page) a couple of times in a day in which they would mention interesting or educative things that occurred in the classroom, against which the teacher would comment. The parents would themselves be able to comment directly on the page “providing advice, inspiration, and expertise to the students” (The Innovative Educator). They indeed become a part of the larger classroom community. Taking learning into another level of “celebrating student work” (The Innovative Educator), the teacher can take the pictures of the works or assignments done by the students and comment on their good works and allow the family members of the students too, to comment on their works. Additionally, parents and families will be informed about celebrations, interesting events to come and other activities that will happen in the class. Field trips could be organized in the ‘events section’ in the networking site and hence allow the parents to give their consent, suggestions and ideas. A section could also be created whereby parents and the students will be informed about important notifications in the classroom. The teacher would be able to announce important issues such as the sudden closing of the school due to bad whether or information about the new school rules that have been formulated. A unique section can also be created whereby the students can access the information about the day’s homework, the current numbers of assignments they have, their responsibilities for the same and other important activities. Another ‘notes section’ can be created where the students are allowed to share their pieces of writings. All the classmates would be ‘tagged’ on one’s writings and all the parents would also be allowed to comment or give important feedback or at least share their ‘likings’ on the written pieces. The teacher could choose to have private communication with the parents in the most effective way. The parents on the other hand don’t have to go through any other formalities to understand what is happening in their children’s school. To make learning more interesting, videos can be taken of the lessons being taught, and that could be uploaded and shared so that learning can be extended beyond the classroom. The student will be able to relearn the lessons and get back to the videos for clarification on certain confusions. Even the videos of other interesting activities such as a stage-performance or a field trip can be taken and shared so that they preserve a good memory and those who had not attended the actual event can still see it through the video. This process could be carried on not just among the members of the class or their parents but among the students of the entire school and other schools to make the social networking sites a source of intra-school platform to share knowledge and learn. The good news is that the trend has already picked up world wide. According to a survey commissioned by the National School Boards Association (NSBA), “50% of teens say they talk to their peers about schoolwork online (IM, blog or social networking sites) or via text message. A larger proportion (60%) indicates that they discuss education-related topics such as college and career planning” (Arieanna). Another effective use of the internet social networking sites could be made by incorporating more opportunities for students to undergo quiz and question/answer gaming directed towards either their syllabus or general knowledge or both. Facebook, among others, has quizzes to test one’s IQ. These kinds of quizzes not just make us understand out potentials and abilities or our levels of intelligence, they would suggest ways and means by which we could better our involvement in knowledge-based learning. Separate pages dedicated for quiz either related to the syllabus or general knowledge could be made which would help the students learn in an engaging and interesting manner. More importantly, since social networks have heavy followers because of its entertaining and interactive nature, if education is incorporated within the systems of those sites, it will make learning, a fun. The students will be able to engage in a virtual world of their interest away from the reality of schools and lectures which they often term as burdensome and boring. Yet, they will be able to learn the same portions of their syllabus and much more in a platform where they can enjoy too. An example of learning through fun is learning by games. There are various educative games available both in the market and the internet. They are quite abundantly made use of in social networking sites such as Facebook and Orkut in the form of quizzes and other IQ games. This means that such social networks ensure the gain of knowledge in an interesting and engaging manner. Also, such sites gives learning opportunities for poor or bright pupils, extravert and introvert students alike. Even those students, who wouldn’t feel comfortable enough to open up their views and ideas in the class due to various factors such as inferiority complex or discomfort, will be able to share their feelings. Since the sites can be accessed easily anywhere, much of time, energy and sometimes money will be saved. Having said so, I do not however completely rule out the fact that not all the users of the social networking sites are genuinely interested in using the same for educational purposes. Social networks are powerful tools and its benefits for education can be reaped if students are encouraged to engage in social networking for the purpose of learning. Indeed, “Children are learning to use powerful tools outside the range of adult supervision, and there are no widespread safety regulations for Internet…Therell be abuse &distractions when children are not taught the social responsibility of using powerful tools."(Curriculum 21, p.187). Conclusive, this essay has been my attempt to see the positive impacts of internet social networking sites in teaching and learning and my basic contention has been to the affirmative side. Although social networks have reached its matured stage in terms of popularity and usage, their full advantages for educational growth are yet to be taken. My argument is that it needs to be used for that end. This particular technology ensures effective learning through knowledge-sharing in a systematic, yet interesting manner. Knowledge is acquired or gained within one’s comfort zone and convenience and the sharing transcends the boundaries of space and time. Having realized the possible demerits and the apparent indifference of today’s students in using the social networks for educational purposes, however, does not negate the positive influence this powerful tool can have on learning and sharing of knowledge. At the end of the day, the students land up having gained more interest in learning through social networks than classroom. Works Cited Arieanna. Educational Benefits of Social Networking. 21 August 2007. 21 July 2010 . Oliveira, Rita Vasconcelos, Universidade Aberta and António Teixeira. "THE USE OF INTERNET SOCIAL NETWORKS IN A PEDAGOGICAL CONTEXT:A CASE STUDY IN A BASIC PORTUGUESE SCHOOL." eden-online.org. 21 July 2010 . Jacobs, Heidi Hayeds, ed. Curriculum 21 Essential Education for a Changing World. Heidi Hayes Jacabs Inc., 2010.  The Innovative Educator. 15 July 2010. 20 July 2010 . Read More