Thursday, July 13, 2017

EDTECH 543: Social Media Policies

My Classroom Social Media Policy


Although my school currently do not allow personal devices or social media use in the classroom, I am hoping that the policies I develop can be presented as a potential framework for the future.  There are great ways to safely integrate social media into lesson plans if there are policies that all parties involved understand.  I would ask for feedback from administration and the technology coordinator about how to go about framing this information, but its summer.  I have created an acronym for my policy - FOOTPRINTS.  I chose this word to connect to the students understanding of leaving a positive digital footprint.  I would like this to be evaluated by teachers and administration and it is open to editing if the school sees certain policies that need to be laid out more clearly.

I researched various articles and research about policies that are important and tried to sum it up with ten key rules.  I believe adding more than ten would be overwhelming for my middle school students and they would be less likely to remember the importance of the rules.  I prepared a Google Slides presentation to show to students and parents about the school technology policies.  It is important to be transparent so everyone understands the expectations and the potential consequences of their technology use.  During the presentation I plan on discussing in further detail about each of the key points to make sure the students and parents are clear on the school's polices.  After my presentation I plan on emailing the parents via SchoolSpeak to share the presentation to everyone who was unable to attend the meeting.  Also I provided time during at the end of the presentation to ask questions.  Students and parents are welcome to email me with any future questions or concerns.



Classroom Social Media Policy - FOOTPRINTS
Link to Social Media Use Form - SOCIAL MEDIA


References

 Anderson, S. (2012, May 07). How to Create Social Media Guidelines for Your School. Retrieved July 13, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/how-to-create-social-media-guidelines-school


Cofino, K. (n.d.). Connected Learning Community. Retrieved July 13, 2017, from http://kimcofino.com/blog/2012/08/26/orientation-2-0/ 


 How to Create Social Media Guidelines for Your School. (n.d.). Retrieved July 14, 2017, from https://www.edutopia.org/social-media-guidelines-resource-guide?utm_source=facebook

 TeachThoughtStaff. (2017, July 06). 11 Sample Education BYOT Policies To Help You Create Your Own. Retrieved July 13, 2017, from http://www.teachthought.com/the-future-of-learning/technology/11-sample-education-byot-policies-to-help-you-create-your-own/
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EDTECH 543: Research-Social Networking Case Studies

During this module I was able to research social media use in a social studies classroom.  This time for my curation I used a platform called Pearltress.  Although I like the searching style of Scoop.it, I prefer the look of Pearltrees and how it organizes my topics and articles.

After reading over the various projects and lesson ideas that I curated I found that social media can be used in an effective way to engage learners.  Currently at the school I teach at there is no social media use in the classroom and no "own" devices allowed.  There are iPads and Chromebooks available so there is an opportunity to incorporate social media platforms into the classroom if the school allows.
As educators we can use "real-world" applications to help prepare our students for their future.  Its important to teach them digital citizenship and responsibility for digital footprint.

Facebook
During this course Facebook has been a great platform for sharing projects, ideas, and comments with peers.  At the Ezra Academy they use Facebook to create profiles from Biblical figures that the students have been studying.  This could work in a social studies classroom as a way to create profiles for important historical figure with key information.  It would allow the teacher and students to comment and add to the conversation about that particular figure.

Snapchat
Teachers can use the story and loop feature to cover content and help with mastery.  The photo and video can allow teacher and students to post about what they learned that day or create a historical timeline.  Lastly, it can be used to create discussion to help students study for a test or understand a complex issue.  Students can also create videos about certain historical events or people.  Another way is to use it as a visual vocabulary project - take a term and add a picture.

Twitter
During this course Twitter has been used to share ideas and communicate with others to enhance our PLN.  Educators can use it in a variety of ways.  In a history classroom there can be a game created that you can guess a certain historical figure based on the teacher's clues.  Other ways include:

  • Announcements
  • Research
  • Book Study
  • Twitter Chat with Parents
  • Debate
  • Vocabulary
  • Backchannels
  • Promote Class Blog


Instagram
This is a fun and creative tool to use in the classroom.  Students can use the tool to take a picture to show that their learning goal is met.  They can add text or a caption about what they are working on in class and this is available to share with peers or parents.  This can also be a great way to discuss social media rules in the classroom and the effects in the outside world.

Skype
This is a great social networking tool to connect students around the United States and the world.  Teachers can setup a "mystery person" so students will have to ask "yes" or "no" questions to determine their location.  There are so many opportunities using Skype to connect students to a global community.  In a history classroom it can be used to connect to specialist in the field, for example a chat with someone from the Smithsonian about a particular exhibit that connects to their learning in Michigan.


Social Media in the Social Studies Classroom, by lhoyt
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Saturday, July 8, 2017

EDTECH 543: My PLE




Because of my Michigan roots I decided to design my PLE around the Great Lakes.  Anyone who is from the Mitten State understands our great pride for the lakes that surround our state.  Like any good PLE you should have connections and communities outside your comfort zone.  I put the Home Button in the lower peninsula and my school's logo where I teach.  The lakes connect Michigan to Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin.  The lakes also connect Michigan to Canada (actually Windsor, Canada is only about a half hour from my house).

Like the Great Lakes, my PLE connects me to other educators around the United States and internationally.  I named my five great lakes - Create, Communicate, Connect, Reflect, and Curate.  All the lakes are connected and flow together.  The water is the same in one as the others.  Each of these tools work together to gather information, communicate, and allow a teacher to grow personally and professionally.

Reflection

I have learned that before this class I did not realize how connected I am.  PLN and PLE were new concepts before this summer, but after creating my PLE most of the images I put on my diagram are communities I have used frequently.  Where I find my strengths are in my communication and creating.  During my EdTech classes is where I use the connect, reflect, and now curate.  What stood out most was how these all work together and need each other to be used effectively.  I understand there are ways I should grow professionally and hope to incorporate more connecting and reflecting in my future as a teacher.

Comparing my PLE to my classmates was fun, especially since we all had a unique way of sharing our ideas.

Joanna and I both had the curate and connect, which now that I look at the images we provided in those sections I believe we curated long before we understood the details of it.  Connecting is a strong point for both of us as we have discussed our faith and connection through the photos she had posted.  Sharing has been a great tool because as a members of our PLN we have used Google Drive in creating and sharing projects.  She used the term share, where I chose to use the term create for our Google Drive.

Michelle and I both used the terms connect, curate, and create.  We shared a lot of the same applications in our PLE, but she added additional descriptive words to get her ideas across.  I like how she personalized it with an cartoon connecting all the processes to herself - thus being empowered.  The differences is how we identified our communities - she had collaborate to create.  She made good connections in her communities we just created different pairings.

Ariana and I used the terms communicate and create, yet she used collect instead of curate and collaborate instead of create.  Using collaborate was a good choice because it makes a broader connection to both creating and sharing.  We used a lot of the same communities to fill our PLE.  I really liked the Teenage Mutant Ninja "Sea" Turtles as her visual. As a history teacher I love connecting that to the Renaissance artist because my students are able to remember them more easily.  I will remember Ariana's PLE.

Josh's PLE was similar to Ariana's when it came to communities, but I like his image of the Earth and how our PLE communities connect.  I tried to do something similar with my image of Canada and how we can connect internationally. I represented it on a smaller scale and Josh represented it on a large scale.

Kim had a great PLE with her baseball reference.  She added a lot of communities to connect her groups.  Like my PLE she used the terms connecting and creating.  We had similar communities like YouTube and Diigo, but she used Google as a whole where divided into Google+ and Drive.  A unique aspect of Kim's PLE is she put the same community at different bases showing the connection.  I made reference in mine that the lakes flow into each other.

Kristin had a clear and clean looking diagram with an easy flow of communities.  Like my PLE all the communities flow into each other, she just used arrows to make the connection.  I liked the diversity of communities.  We shared the same communities - Pinterest, Scoopit!, Twitter, Edmodo, and Facebook, just to name a few.  Different communities she incorporated were edWeb.net, Messenger, and she added other Google suite tools.

Kayden had a fun PLE showing how we connect to our communities.  I like the use of the smart phone, tablet, computer and television to frame her communities and connect them to each other and herself.  She had a lot of communities in the curate and communicate with Blogger, Drive, Twitter and Facebook.  The create/share she used YouTube, where I added Google Drive, VoiceThread, and Weebly.


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Friday, July 7, 2017

EDTECH 543: Online Professional Development

Twitter Chats
1) Twitter Chat #sschat
Monday, June 20, 2017
7:00 PM
Summary: This was the first time I have ever followed a Twitter Chat, so it took me a little time to get used to the format.  I found that everyone was very friendly and by the end a bunch of people started to follow me on Twitter.  The topic of the social studies chat was geography.  There were five questions that were posted, each at about 10 minutes apart.  That gave time for people to add in suggestions, links, and resources.  Being my first time I learned about replying to comments and re-tweets.  The concern of the people involved in the chat is the lack of geography skills that are being taught in schools today.
Resources:
Resources I tweeted:
Suggested creating a travel magazine to connect ELA and Geography
2) Twitter Chat -  #ditchbook
Thursday, June 29, 2017
10:00 PM

Summary: This was an interesting Twitter Chat that allowed educators to discuss  ways to use digital tools and other resource, not just teaching to the book.  It seemed to focus around the book “101 Ways to Ditch That Textbook.”  Even though I was not familiar with the book I was able to learn and contribute to the conversation on ways to use resources beyond the book.  The questions included how to maximize your time to how to integrate social media into the classroom.  The question on social media was difficult for me to respond, aside from the comment that the school I teach at has very strict technology rules.  The students are not allowed to bring their own devices and they are not even allowed to have cell phones (before, during, or after school).  This chat allowed me to hear different ways teachers maximize their time, what resources they use other than the textbook, and other technology to promote student-centered learning.


3) Twitter Chat #games4ed
8:00 PM
Thursday, July 6, 2017
Summary:  This Twitter chat focused on ways to use apps and other programs to engage students, especially gaming.  I am new to gaming in the classroom so it was interesting to see all the options there are to use with your students.  The questions focused on use of social media, Google slides, use of video apps, Google Draw, and favorite apps with potential gaming.  The people involved in the chat were well-versed in technology and the apps that could be used in a variety of content areas.
Resources:
Booksnaps with Flipgrid
4) Twitter Chat #engagechat
8:00 PM
Friday, July 7, 2017
Summary: This Twitter chat was the busiest chat I participated in and it was fast paced with lots of comments. So being newer to the chat scene, it was a little difficult to keep up with all the comments. Luckily with Twitter you can scroll down and view previous comments. The topic was perseverance, which as a teacher I thought this was a great topic. This is a good chat for anyone, not just teachers. The comments were universal and positive, so its a good uplifting chat. There was lots of time to respond, reply, and react to other tweets.




Webinars
1) Game-Based Learning Research - Michelle Zimmerman, Jason Osborne
Minecraft: Education Edition
Monday, June 26, 2017
12:00 PM

Summary: This webinar presented current research on the benefits to gaming in the classroom. Children are able to learn complex concepts at a younger age with the use of technologies.  Also, real life connects help students find purpose in their learning.  Connecting to the universities and hospitals to figure out what research is needed and allowing students to start problem solving.  The presented gave good starting points for game-based learning:
2) Minecraft Around the Globe - Anthony Salcito
Minecraft: Education Edition
Monday, June 26, 2017
1:00 PM

Summary: Anthony Salcito discusses how to implement Minecraft and create a foundation.  The characters and ideas of Minecraft are familiar to students, so use that to your advantage at all grade levels and content areas.  The creation mode is a way for students to create and learn in the classroom.  One thing that stood out is when Anthony Salcito said that educators can go into using this in the classroom without being experts.  Learning as you go with the support system the Minecraft: Education Edition community helps provide resources.  Schools share projects around the globe via Skype.  This webinar was shorter than I expected, but gave good ideas and made me feel more comfortable about looking into using it in my classroom.
3) Computational Thinking for All with Lisa Anne Floyd
Microsoft Hack the Classroom
June 27, 2017
6:30-8:30 PM

Summary: This introductory session explained that someone with disabilities can still complete the tasks of their career with new technology.  By use coding you can help make technology more accessible for all users.  I liked the point they made that the first time you probably won’t be successful, but through debugging, you can replace the parts to make it a success.  Researchers can use coding as a new form of literacy to teach technology - Poetical Scientists.  The second part dealt with teacher collaboration.  Teachers are able to contribute via video conferences so no matter where they are or when they can add there is still a line of communication



4) Code Builder for Minecraft: Education Edition with Cathy Cheo-Issacs
Microsoft Hack the Classroom
June 27, 2017
6:30-8:30 PM

Summary: This session laid out the various ways that Minecraft can be used in the classroom.  I watched the webinar about Minecraft earlier in the week because I think this is a great connection for the students to bring into the classroom.  I thought Microsoft did a great job explaining how to incorporate it at various levels and contents.  One of the best stories included was how the first graders were able to teach the teacher.  This empowers the students and allows everyone to take a turn at teaching and learning.
Highlights:
  • Hour of Code
  • Authentic learning experiences
  • Choice time
  • Other code builders connect to Minecraft

5) Windows Apps - Paint 3D
Microsoft Hack the Classroom
June 27, 2017
6:30-8:30 PM

Summary: Paint 3D is a great tool that allows students to create with the new Windows 10 Creators Update.  The panel suggests that you allow students to start with a blank canvas to start creating their project.  This allows for students to build upon their skills and design something that works in any content area.  There are pre-made models and objects to work with.  There is also 3D Remix which allows the user to share their 3D creations in social networking communities.



6) Window Apps - Edmodo & eMathMaster
Microsoft Hack the Classroom
June 27, 2017
6:30-8:30 PM (EDT)

Summary: This session described the various ways to use online communities to connect with students.  Edmodo is a platform that allows teachers to connect with students, parents and peers.  It can assign homework, schedule quizzes and create groups.  It works directly with Microsoft and Google apps. This is a great tool to connect with other professionals and within your school. This session also covered the eMathMaster tool. Although I am not a math teacher, this app had a lot of helpful tools to help students who need to strengthen their skills in math.

Resource: Edmodo - https://www.edmodo.com/
7) Session 5: Story Remix
Microsoft Hack the Classroom
June 27, 2017
6:30-8:30 PM (EDT)

Summary: This session introduced the updated Story Remix that will be updated this fall. This update from Windows allows the user to use photos and videos to create a story. This app would be great in any classroom at various grade levels. I questioned the cost and the ease of use to understand if younger students could manage the app or if it was geared for secondary education. This was a brief session, but I am looking forward to learning more about this in the fall.

Video: Story ReMix

Resources for Sessions 1-5
Hack the Classroom Resource Center - available with the link given with registration
  • Lesson Plans
  • Minecraft Lesson
  • STEM
  • Skype
  • Virtual Field Trips

8) Tips, Tricks, and Best Practices for Integrating Chromebooks and Other Devices
SimpleK12
July 7, 2017
11:00-11:30 AM
Summary: This was an interesting session because it was presented to teachers who have iPads or Chromebooks in their classroom. Although it would be ideal to have 1:1 the presenter did address ways to use a few in a collaborative groups or stations. It is important to observe students and keep them accountable by walking around the classroom. Depending on the class, there was talk about the way you arrange your seating to be more successful in keeping students focused.
Classroom layout to have students engaged Another new idea was to not simple take away all technology, but to keep the students accountable. One suggestion that was provided was a Google template called Stop it! It is a technology violation program that allows the student to reflect or develop digital citizenship project. Another suggestion was a "tech timeout" - use paper or work with a partner instead of the student's own device. Overall this was a helpful session.
9) Around The World in Eighty Days: Virtual Field Trips on Your Chromebook
SimpleK12
July 7, 2017
1:00-1:30 PM

Summary: This was my favorite webinar by far. I am familiar with virtual tours and enjoy finding resources that allow my students to be engaged in history. This session gave a lot of resources that I listed below. I've used Google Maps before, but I didn't realize all that you could do with the site. Although not all areas are covered by Google Maps (especially Street View) because of physical access or governments restrictions, those are few and the location are updated about every year. I have used the museum sites before, but good advice was given that teachers should always review materials before allowing student access. My favorite aspect of the virtual tours was being able to set my our tour up. GE Teach Tour and Google Expeditions are great tools I want to try this year. Another focus of this session was that these tools can be used by teachers and students.

Resources:
Google maps - use pegman to take virtual field trip - see inside
Google Street View - historical sites, oceans
Google Earth - web-based
GE Teach Tour - teacher and student tool
Google Sky, Moon, and Mars
Google Arts & Culture - museums, historical places, zoom in on art work
Check art ahead of time for content
Google Tour Builder - more interactive and slides
Global Trek - younger students
Colonial Williamsburg - documentaries, documents, resources


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