The article, titled "Telling Your School's Story," resonated highly as I think about incorporating the #observeme movement at school. The #observeme idea came from the article shared in Module 3 by Robert Kaplinsky. The idea stemmed from how collaboration in schools makes teachers better at what they do and how infrequently, despite team plan time, teachers are actually reflecting on their practice. The artifact I am sharing is the blog post below regarding social media.
I mention that I do not use social media personally or professionally although I did create a Twitter account for this program. I still have not been convinced that there really is much benefit to using social media until I read this article about #observeme and how this collaborative element can, through social media, tell a school's story and create a positive culture. Despite my disdain for the negative aspects of social media's presence in our lives, the truth is that it matters. Social media has turned into the main outlet that people check for their news and it does impact how people view their community. I'm really glad that this article was included in the coursework. As I mention in the artifact 2 post below, I am going to try out the #observeme idea with my team and try to carry it throughout the building with all of our teachers.
0 Comments
It isn't difficult to understand why teaching can sometimes feel like an island. Block scheduling, increasing demands, subbing for other teachers, and the constant changes can make teachers feel isolated from each other. It is no surprise that observing what our colleagues do is low on the list of priorities. For module 3, we created a learning walk feedback form. Available for anyone who enters a teacher's classroom, the learning walk feedback form would be integrated with the #observeme theme that I want to share with my academy team as team leader this year. The feedback form asks the observer to focus on technology and the level of integration present according to the SAMR model that is detailed on the form. Teachers can choose to tailor the feedback form to address any area they want the observer to focus. Some suggestions are listed below from Robert Kaplinsky's website:
How can and should schools use social media?
Social media in schools plays a larger role in the way students interact with one another. It provides students a platform to interact with each other positively or negatively. Alternately, schools can use social media to develop their district "brand," to market their programs, and build culture. In module 5, we examined how district leaders can use social media to tell their district's story and focus social media posts to develop a particular intention. Simply sharing anything positive may not yield positive results. As a classroom teacher, I do not use social media professionally or personally, however. With our classroom page, there are characteristics of social media in that students can post and share with their classmates, but it is highly managed by me and I have control over the content. I believe our school district has a Twitter and Facebook page. Our public relations administrator shares anything positive but there is not a real mission behind the posts. Our district technology policy states that violating any policies within the policy may include: " (1) suspension or revocation of system privileges, (2) other discipline including suspension or expulsion from school, and (3) referral to law enforcement authorities or other legal action in appropriate cases." and "The District may discipline a student whose personal website or other off-site activity involving electronic technology causes, or can reasonably be expected to cause, a substantial disruption of the school environment, without regard to whether that activity or disruption involved use of the District Technology System." Of course, the above wording really lends itself for districts to deal with technology violations on a case by case basis. It is challenging to anticipate all types of cyber bullying that might occur, however. It definitely would benefit a security administrator to review other school district's challenges and successes in handling cyber bullying. Our district provides links for parents to visit to learn about all types of social media, evaluating other forms of media, and an anonymous place for parents and students to report bullying (cyber or otherwise). What I think is the most helpful way for students to act responsibly is to teach them how to be digital citizens. There is a big push right now with all of our 6th grade students going 1:1 to become responsible technology users. We will be adopting the Second Step curriculum to promote positive social-emotional learning, bullying prevention, and child protection. Students reveal to us in a variety of ways that their behavioral health is just as important as their physical health. Schools, whether we agree it is the responsibility of the school, realize they must do something more than what has been done in order to support our learners emotionally. |