Skip to main content

Twitter, Facebook and Teachers TV

Not long finished a lesson using social networking and pirates. What follows is a brief description and evaluation of the use of Twitter and Facebook during the lesson. The lesson was filmed for a Teachers TV feature.

To start:

The Year 8 class have been working on interdependence, crime, trade and piracy for 3 lessons. During that time they have dispelled the stereotypical myths surrounding piracy and bought their understanding up-to-date and into the 21st century. To start the lesson I asked the pupils to respond to three questions. They were able to use mini-whiteboards to do this and I encouraged them to use images if they wanted. Below is an example:


This worked very well and allowed the students to revisit past lessons. I also shared some of my own ideas.



Next, I introduced the task ( or mission in this case). The pupils were to use their new knowledge and understanding to let my Personal Learning Network (PLN) know all about modern day piracy.

To introduce the task I had sent a Tweet on Tuesday asking my network to state the first 5 words that they associate with the word 'pirate'. I also asked for their location, but in the end didn't use the information. To provide a contrast I also posted a similar request as my Facebook status. The idea of using social media here was to provide a real world context and data: this wasn't just something that I had made up but addressed a real need.

Before revealing the data - I asked the class how many people they thought had responded to my requests. I told them that approximately 500 people are connected to me via facebook and twitter. Overall 42 people responded, less that 10%. The class were very quick to realise the implications of such a small sample size: it was neither representative or enough evidence to base sound conclusions on. One pupil used the example of ageing cream to illustrate the point further. This was an excellent discussion that tackled the issues behind using data and opinions to form firm conclusions. In summary, we couldn't support the statement: the whole of the UK has a stereotypical and romantic view of pirates.



The Wordle above summarises the responses. We talked a little about the random responses and the possible causes for this. Again, another excellent way of understanding information and its limitations.

I then asked the class to respond to three questions using my blog. This produced a starting point. At the same time I sent the following tweet:




I have to admit that this was an ad-hoc idea. I was stunned by the response. Here are some examples:


This gave the pupils a real audience as the work they are producing will be shared via my Twitter account. They were also happy to see that the responses mirrored their own comments shared via my blog. I found that this was an excellent way to motivate and interest pupils. The class also realised that they would have to change the format of the work they had already done - mirroring real world work situations.

Before moving on we shared the importance of making substantiated statements. I asked the class why I could simply state the all Somalians are pirates because they were poor. I backed up the point by using my favorite video that proves that I am a death-defying stuntman:



The pupils quickly agreed that they would have to support any ideas that they had.

The lesson then allowed pupils to work collaboratively to produce some responses to the questions and ideas posed in my tweet. The tweets continued to come in, and I used them to remind pupils to respond to their audience.

To finish, I got a number of the class to respond to my network via my Twitter account. This produced some excellent engagement and discussion, especially as they received some responses. Again, this was rather ad-hoc but demonstrated the power of social networks in driving learning.

Overall, the lesson has convinced me that social media can be successfully used. Like any tool, it must be used where appropriate and not used too often.


Wordle image created using wordle.net and used under creative commons
Many thanks to Tony Cassidy for the original pirate inspiration and to all those on Twitter and Facebook that took the time to respond - I hope I can repay the kindness soon.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

What makes a learning experience profound? Personal reflections and possible implications for classroom practice.

I have recently begun a Leadership Pathways journey.  As part of the first core day, we were asked to reflect on a profound learning experience. This got me thinking about how many profound learning experiences I have both been involved in, and how many I have been able to give to others.  Our group came up with a huge long list, but these are my five. Emotional Connected Demanding Reflective Collaborative As always, these are personal thoughts and quite mixed up.  I put them here so that I can look back on them (plus they’d get lost inside my world-cup-free brain) 1. Emotional I can’t think of a time where deep learning hasn’t engaged my emotions.  From being awe inspired to that tingle feeling when a student gets a light bulb moment.  From this-is-the-happiest-day-ever, to I-think-I’m-about-to die.  How often do we engage the emotions of those we teach?  Here, I would argue that having a safe learning environment is not always conducive to profound

The danger of Teaching and Twitter conversations: poorly formed bipolar arguments.

Sometimes in life, there really are only two options.  Get the wrong one and you can look like a muppet.  Take this useful sign for the toilets in Morocco.  I successfully navigated it, choosing the right option.  The result? No egg on my face.  As a mountain leader, there are many right or wrong decisions that I’ve faced, as there are all over life.  It’s not a good idea to let inexperienced young people walk themselves down Snowdon.  They may die or be seriously injured.  If someone is showing the signs and symptoms of hyperthermia, you need to treat it fast in a specified way.  There is no real arguing with this sign: Other options are less obvious.  Take this sign recently spotted near to where I live: Now, I wouldn’t consider sleeping in a bin.  However, faced with a sub-zero night, I could see the appeal.  The danger? Being tipped into one of those huge lorries with a compactor. (by the way, I only really considered all of this thanks to questions from my four year old boy).

Banned Word Board

Today I want to share some simple ideas that I have found to be very effective in the classroom. I can't say that they are my own original ideas, although I have played around with them. The first is the Banned word Board. This is a simple display in the classroom that lists a number of words that are not allowed to be used by pupils in their written or oral answers. The effect has been an increase in the quality of written work, and I have almost made comments such as 'Sir it's simple, the stuff just affects the thing and causes people problems'. Pupils are now more able to use specific language, something that is vital especially at GCSE. I have had to make a few modifications, such as the introduction of 'Heavenly Words' This is an additional display placed on the ceiling. I found this necessary as pupils needed some stimulus in finding replacement words. After advice received after posting the idea on the SLN forum , I have also introduced semi-banned words