Social Responsibility Online

Nothing I am going to say in this post is ground braking or new information but simply some reflection on things that have be going in on social media for sometime.  This is one of those moments of thought that comes to all of us in our own time even when other people have been talking about it for months.

This morning I was listing to NPR on the way to work.  Of the top of my head I can not remember exactly what the story was about but they started talking about a gentlemen posing on Twitter about his experience in his country as they where under attack and they interviewed the gentlemen via Skype.  This is when I started thinking about the social and political impact that social media has had on the world.  I started think about the occupy movement, the events in Egypt, and the other events that have been fueled by social media. The more I think about it the more questions I seem to come up with that have no good answers.

Who teaches the youth how to be responsible with social media?
I think we have seen this falling on the schools for the most part but is that where it needs to be taught?  In this era of No Child Left Behind do we have time to be teaching it? When it comes right down to it schools are expected to teach the students to be safe online and how to be responsible developers/protectors of their digital footprint. If we don't let students use social media in schools how can we assess what we have taught them? Is taking a test over the responsible use of social media really an effective assessment? We all know that kids say one thing and do another. I feel that this is kind of like teaching a kid to run a mile and then having them take a test over how run the mile instead of having them run. (OK that may not be the best comparison but you know what I am getting at).  Then we run into the question is having social media in the schools a good idea?  I still don't know how to answer that question.

What if Doogie Houser had Face Book?
I know that may people my age have had this thought.  There are even several funny things online about it. I am sure that if Dr. Houser had posted his journal on Face Book or a blog, not just a word doc, that he would have inspired many people.  Here is the thought that crossed my mind today. What if Hittler had a Twitter account? I know you just cringed when you read that. Think about the influence that Hittler had on the world and think what could have happened if he was able to reach us all with Twitter and Face Book? Maybe we would have been able to intercept the ideas that Hittler was putting out there and change the direction things where going....but maybe not.

So there is my non-answer to the question I posed.  Just some general, maybe not so thought out, observations.  I think we are all still struggling with the best practices with social media education and implementation in education. There are so many things to take into consideration with these topics it is hard to know where to start....but it will be interesting to see where we end up.

History on Twitter

I am trying to find a image of Etienne de Bourgmont for one of our 4th grade teachers.  As of now I am empty handed. My next thought was how will I find someone to help me? I decided Twitter was a good place to turn for help.  I can not Tweet at school so I decided to do some recon on hash tags to use and Twitter users that might be able to help me out.  Well I found a wonderful blog post on the History Tech blog.  The blog post Tip of the Week - 65 History Twitter Feeds gives you lots of places to get new information, or sometimes just a needed reminder, about teaching history. You can also check out or post questions to the hash tags #history or #historyteacher.  Some time tonight I will post my Tweet and I will let you know what I find!  Remember you can follow me on Twitter @musictech02

bin Laden attack on Twitter

This story from CNN show that the attack on bin Laden was captured on Twitter as it happed.

Twitter user unknowingly reported bin Laden attack

Twitter 4 Teachers

I read this blog post by Shannon Smith on her blog the other day.  There are good videos about teachers using Twitter.  Check out her blog post Twitter For Teachers. You can follow Shannon on Twitter @shannoninottawa 

More Hashtags 4 Ed

Here are some more hashtags:

#kinderchat
#ipad
#k12
#education
#langchat
#mathchat
#scichat
#edsocialmedia
#medialiteracy
#elearning
#edapp
# artsed
#smartboard
#IWB (interactive white board)

Looking for some good teachers to follow try these:

@cindidannerkuhn
@kylepace
@kevinhoneycutt
@rmbyrne
@thetechspec

Not so Flipped Out

So I got home last night and started thinking about the Flip.  Put out a tweet about how a lot of schools use them.  I got a reply from @thetechspec about the Kodak Zi8 HD.  It is something to look into.  Check out his blog post about it. 

I was also thinking that the iPad 2 may be a good tool to use as well.  There is nothing to download when you record on the iPad 2.

Flipped out

I was sad to read this story about the end of the flip camera. I have used one several times and enjoyed it. Will this mean that more schools will let students use smartphones for school?  Will school use the iPad 2 to help fill this void?  I guess only time will tell.  What to see what people are saying check the #flip on Twitter

The Flip Flops: Smartphones Helped To Kill The Little Video Camera

Twitter Hashtags

Here is a list hashtags (#) that you might like to follow on Twitter.


#molib - Missouri Librarians
#edcaht - They chat every Tuesday at 7pm
#Edubk - Find/Suggest books about education
#MusEdChat - Music Ed Chat
#MOedtech - Missouri Teachers
#elemchat - Elementary Teachers
#TT, #tt, #Teachertuesday - on Tuesdays this hashtag is used to post the          teachers you think people should follow on Twitter
#FF,#ff,#Followfriday - on Fridays this hashtag is use to post great Tweeters (may not be about education)

There are also lists that people create on Twitter that you can read to find teachers to follow.

edpros

Here are some good webpages to find teaches to follow on Twitter.

http://twitter4teachers.pbworks.com/w/page/22554534/FrontPage
http://wefollow.com/twitter/teachers
http://wefollow.com/twitter/education

If you have others that you like to follow please add them in the comments!

TweetDeck

When I first started using Twitter the normal Twitter page was just fine.  As I started wanting to follow hashtags (#)  there is just not a good way to do that on Twitter.  Hashtags are not supported by Twitter. Twitter users started using the Hashtags as a way to keep track of things.  If I wanted to talk about something and wanted people to be able to follow the conversation I can start a hashtag .  Lets say I wanted to help connect all the educational iPad users in Missouri I could start a #ediPadmo hashtag.  This would let anyone that wanted to follow all the post that had that hashtag in it. TweetDeck lets you keep track of you normal Twitter Timeline and follow hashtags!  I feel I get much more from Twitter using TweetDeck because I can connect with more educators and get more ideas.  Give it a try!

Another look at Twitter

Twitter had it's 5th Birthday not to log ago.  I just got a chance to watch the Youtube video that Twitter posted for that. Take a look at how people all over the world use Twitter.  Some use it for fun and other use it to expand their understanding of the world.

Twitter Search

So have you started your PLN yet?  Have you started a Twitter Account to connect with other teachers?  Do you have any hashtags (#) that you are following?

Here is another Common Craft video to help you use Twitter better. Watch Twitter Search In Plane English I will also be posting a list of some hashtags that you my want to follow.  I like #edchat and #edtech.  There are lost more out there!  Be on the look out for a blog post about TweetDeck too.

So SMART

If you have a SMART Board you have been to the SMART Technologies webpage.  My question is how much do you use the SMART webpage?  There is a lot more there then just SMART Notebook lesson plans. Some of the things are just for SMART Board users but there are things that would be helpful to any interactive white board user.

Want to know more about your SMART Board and how to use it?  Would you like more information on how to use SMART Notebook?  You can do that and more online when you want with the SMART Learning Space.  After making a free account you have access to free and fee based classes.  There is more to this program then what is listed here.  Check it out and see what you can learn.

There are four SMART Publications that you can get by email based on your needs. There are publications for teachers, IT, and administrators.

SMART Exchange is the part of the webpage that most educators know well.  You can post lessons you have made and download lessons that other teachers have made.  This is a HUGE time saver!  If you are new to SMART it is a good place to start.  If you have not been to the SMART Exchange in the last month you may get a bit of a shock.  You now have to make an account to use SMART Exchange.

The Webinars page is one I have used a lot and feel that I have learned the most from.  There are several recorded webinars posted that cover several topics.

Don't forget to make SMART part of your PLN. SMART is on your favorite Social Media.  You can see what SMART has to say on Face Book and Twitter.  You should also check out their YouTube Chanel.

Tips for Twitter

I got this link in a Tweet this weekend.

Top 100 Tools for the Twittering Teacher by Donna Scott
http://www.bestcollegesonline.com/blog/2009/04/02/top-100-tools-for-the-twittering-teacher/

What is a PLN?

How would you like to learn new things everyday, or just when you want to, that will help you in your classroom?  YOU CAN!  All you need to do is build a Professional Learning Network (PLN).  A PLN can be whatever you need it to be....blogs, Twitter, podcasts, and more!  

I was a hold out on Twitter until a couple of week ago.  I was getting ready to go to the Midwest Educational Technology Conference (METC) and everyone was talking about following the conference on Twitter.  I broke down and got a Twitter account and now I am hooked!  I can talk, in 140 characters or less, with teachers around the nation (or world) about what I need to know!  I have learned a lot from the people I follow on Twitter.  Please don't think that the only people on Twitter are the "tech" people.  There are people talking about all parts of education.  Check out the video from commoncraft.com that tells you about Twitter.