1st Journal for PIDP 3240

August 4, 2013

PIDP 3240, Journal #1

The unlimited use of social media

The objective of this journal is to reflect on ways social media, E-Communications and the internet have benefited the education system by enabling instructors to create remote learners’ communities anywhere in the word, to “… connect with students, integrate ideas, apply knowledge, influence student culture, and improve student learning.” ( Bowen, p. 30). The importance of e-communications for on-line teaching is emphasized by Bowen in his Teaching Naked book, and as a reader, I am convinced to use multiple social media channels offered to expand my engagements with students.  

I agree with the author that social media has increased teaching options and removed the need for learners to physically be present in the classroom. For example, the near-global accessibility of computers and the internet has allowed teachers/instructors to be borderless and to teach remotely without putting a foot in the classroom or even in the country. Teachers who are engaged in online teaching need to be familiar and up to date with the broad selection of communications technology available for teaching and learning. My immediate reaction to the implementation of the E-Communication Strategy on page 32 for expanding E-Communication beyond email and Skype was that I need to start using Twitter and Facebook to more effectively communicate with students.   

Despite the many advantages and opportunities to learn, teach and to create change while increasing interaction between students and faculty from anywhere in the world through an on-line course, there are challenges and limitations teachers and instructors need to take into account to avoid misunderstanding and miscommunication. For example, we need to avoid mixing our personal and professional lives on Facebook by using course accounts instead of personal accounts, limit our forms of communication and be consistent with what we use. For example, if I use Facebook, Skype, and email for my communications with students, I should avoid using blogs, twitter and LinkedIn to avoid confusion and work more efficiently.

To date I have avoided Facebook and Twitter mostly because I did not want to spend most of my time in front of the computer. However, after reading the first three chapters of Bowen’s book, I learned how important it is to be available to students beyond email and Skype, and also how important it is for me to be connected to the world while using the most appropriate technology available to us in this twenty first century. My goal this weekend is to create Facebook and Twitter accounts and start learning how to use them as part of teaching an e-learning course and being engaged with people worldwide.

References

Bowen, J. A. (2012). Teaching Naked: How Moving Technology Out of Your College Classroom Will Improve Student Learning. San Francisco: A Wiley Imprint.