Blog 3

I have to start off by answering the second question first. I have not personally seen any social networking technologies used for educational purposes. However, I have seen applications like Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp used to pass along information to students or for students to share things amongst themselves. Vicki Davis has some neat ideas for using social media in the classroom. In her article A Guidebook for Social Media in the Classroom, Davis describes how to link writing skills using social media apps to include email with lessons on culture and diversity. Her idea is to have students find pen pals around the globe with whom they will communicate over social media. Other ideas include having students run their own blog site, make YouTube videos of group project work that takes place inside and outside of the classroom, and to use video teleconferencing to read the same book written in different languages with students in other countries. These same ideas can be used by teachers to collaborate with other educators locally, across the country, or in different countries.   

My concerns with using social media in the classroom are the same that I have for my own children using these applications. I do not want to see children exploited by adults posing as other school aged children, sending pictures to questionable sites, or getting involved in some sort of predatory money scam. With the use of technology in the classroom comes the responsibility to educate children on their proper and safe use.

The Church uses social media much like they use other applications to connect with members. At Temple Baptist Church we receive text messages, especially from the Family and Student Pastor. Temple’s Senior Pastor maintains a blog with a guide for daily bible readings and separate commentaries on the Old and New Testaments. Additionally, Temple maintains both a Facebook page and uses Instagram to share pictures and inspirational messages.     

References

Davis, V. (2015). A guidebook for social media in the classroom. Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/guidebook-social-media-in-classroom-vicki-davis

Temple Church. (2018). Retrieved from http://temple.church/