Using Social Media in the Classroom-Facebook and Pinterest

I have a lot of experience using Facebook. I remember when Facebook first came out. It's interesting to consider that it came out maybe not so much as an educational tool, but it was targeted to college students to help them make connections. It was how I got in contact with my first college roommate, and how I contacted my classmates to make study plans. So I guess it should come as no surprise to me now that Facebook could play an integral role in Education.

I have reviewed many resources this week for using Facebook for educational purposes. I really had no idea that you could use Facebook to essentially create a feed for pages all focused around one topic. You can do that by searching interests, following pages, and then adding them to favorites. To me this just sounds like a more focused Twitter feed. Instead of all 44 people I follow, I'm looking at 4 pages over one topic (like Educational Technology). I like the idea of a less clunky Twitter feed, and I like that it's on a network I already use so often.  For more information on searching Interests, see the video above (thanks Dr. Dell). I've learned this week that social networks are an excellent resource for finding resources for teaching diverse learners. For example, I can search interests for "gifted learners" and many pages are brought up that have teaching strategies for educating gifted students. Using a specific search helps you focus in on what type of diverse learner you want to reach. I searched a few different keywords including: ADHD, English language learners, and autism and found pages for each.
I searched for resources of my own and found two articles that were particularly interesting. The first one focuses on the pedagogical benefits of using social networking. I liked this article because I want to know that if I incorporate Facebook into class time, that it is serving a purpose. The article cited evidence that social networks benefit student learning. I'm a science teacher, so I can appreciate some data to back up claims. The second article is a list of ways to use Facebook for education. I really like their idea of using Facebook for research. The rationale is that students are not just relying on wikipedia but are searching for groups or professionals who are experts on the topic of research. I like this idea, but I'm also curious how students would carry out that process. They could begin by finding pages, but finding a specific expert may prove tricky.
My main concern with the use of Facebook is the stigma behind it. My Facebook is a personal page. I did not set it up with education in mind. It's still frowned upon to friend students even if they have graduated because it can be deemed inappropriate. Right now, I do not friend any current students. When asked why, I tell them because it's illegal, and to be honest, I'm pretty sure I was told that once. I looked it up. In Missouri, that law was overturned. But even if it is legal, I am not sure I would have the administrative support I would need to justify using Facebook in class. In "Web 2.0: How-To For Educators", the authors mentioned Ning. Ning as I understand it, is a way to create your own social network. I wonder if a network firmly established for education would allow me to get the support I need? There has been a shift to create learning management systems that model social network sites, and I don't think that is a coincidence. Take Schoology, for example. It has an uncanny resemblance to Facebook. If I can't use Facebook, then I should make myself aware of the applications of Schoology that mimic Facebook so that my students still benefit.

I am also very familiar with Pinterest, and I have definitely used Pinterest for educational purposes before. I really like the organizational application of Pinterest. I have boards for science lesson plans, working out, cooking, etc. and it's a very easy way to keep track of new resources. I like the idea of starting an education Pinterest, and creating a board for each unit. I also like the idea of students doing that themselves. This article talks about several different ideas for using Pinterest in education. It definitely would be a great way to collaborate with other teachers if we needed to create a new unit. I also like the idea of sharing my educational Pinterest with students to give them access to more resources. I actually have a real-life Pinterest board in my classroom where I pin up bad science puns, cool articles, and other random Biology things. It's designed to look like the website. It's a lot more filled up now.


Pinterest is also a good way to find resources for teaching. I have found many activities and labs on Pinterest. The ability to search Pinterest also lets you find specific content. If you search for teaching ESL students or teaching students with reading disabilities, you are instantly able to access different lesson plans and strategies for working with those students.

I gotta admit, I really didn't think there were many educational applications for social networks sites like Facebook and Pinterest that seem so very personal, but I realize now that we can create accounts that are focused solely education and have access to a ton of resources.

I really liked this quote from an educator in the reading this week, "'Technology allows us to access knowledge like never before-the library doors are wide open and so many can enter'" (Solomon & Schrum, 2014, p.125). Students are already familiar with social networking, but what they may fail to see is that they have their education at their fingertips.

References 

 Solomon, G., & Schrum, L. (2014). Web 2.0 how-to for educators (2nd ed.). ISTE.