Description

Social media refers to interaction among people in which they create, share, and/or exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks. In a learning environment, social media places learners in a broader context in which to understand the course material and their discipline as a whole.

Purpose

• Understand how to use social media platforms for academic and professional purposes (beyond casual/personal use).
• Foster collaborative learning experiences in and outside the classroom.
• Build ongoing community and network with peers and mentors.
• Provide a guided opportunity for learners to create and manage their digital identity.

Procedure

1. Decide the purpose for incorporporating social media into the curriculum (ie- as a backchannel, collaboration tool, resource collector/organizer, as part of a project assignment, and/or as a communication tool).
2. Select a platform based on the desired features. If uncertain, get advice from campus academic technologies support group.
3. Different platforms will have different set-up requirements. Follow whatever process makes sense for selected platform (for example – a class group in Facebook, or a class-specific hashtag for Twitter, etc.)
4. Stay connected. Social media is most effective with ongoing interaction/communication.

Considerations

• Requires active participation to be effective – not a passive one-and-done implementation.
• Choosing an appropriate platform can be confusing for social media novices.
• Experience does not equate to expertise—learners often require guidance in developing good digital citizenship.

Resources

• “5 Ways To Make Students Better At Sharing Online.” Passnownow. <https://passnownow.com/5-ways-to-make-students-better-at-sharing-online/>.
• Ahlqvist, Toni, et al. “Social Media Roadmaps: Exploring the Futures Triggered by Social Media.” Espoo: VTT, 2008. <http://www.vtt.fi/inf/pdf/tiedotteet/2008/T2454.pdf>.
• “The Conversation Prism V4.0 by Brian Solis and JESS3 (2013).” <https://conversationprism.com/>.