Yeah baby bring it to the classroom

As I was reading Davis's (2014) blog entry I made a mind shift concerning technology in the classroom. Before, I did not really  thought about using any form of social media in my classroom. But then I came to a very surprising conclusion and that is: Social media is another resource in the classroom and that one cannot simply ignore the fact that we are technological world.

I have a brother (17) who loves computers and technology and I know (because he told me this himself) that he spends most of his time on his phone or Ipad during classes. Not for working but for social media (and gaming). And before I read this article I thought I would not allow technology into my classroom unless I am able to control it and as long it does not interfere with me giving class. And before I read this article I thought technology is a problem, but then it made me wonder: what will happen if I do allow technology into the classroom and seeing it as a resource and not as a problem? How will I use it? I would like to elaborate on Davis’s idea of Social media as another tool that you can use to make your classroom more engaging, relevant and culturally diverse.

I would love to teach history and since I have created a twitter handle I start following all of these History pages. And they are so interesting so I will definitely bring twitter into the classroom and allow students to follow these History pages and use them as sources for group discussions or to bring some interesting facts to school. If a whole class follows the same pages they can engage with one another about what they think is important or interesting. 

Blogging, I will definitely incorporate into my subject. If I weren’t so limited by the CAPS curriculum I would allow my learners to choose an interesting topic they came across on a twitter pages and write an essay regarding the topic on twitter, incorporated with their own research and ideas. But realistically I will still use blogging as a platform where they can write essays (informal ones) and comment one each other’s work. Blogging is also a great place for a teacher to comment on the progress of students writing, before handing it in.

I would like to use social media to hear the learners’ opinions regarding historical events. How they feel about certain events and if we are still able to see the effects of the these historical events in South Africa for example Apartheid or the Cold war. This will help them to create their own voice and it will allow me to understand how my learners think and if they understood the work discussed in class. It will also help them to engage with different ideas and opinions.

Davis  refers to global classroom projects where learners from other schools or seperate classrooms (in the same school) can connect and share ideas. I would love to use this in my subject. Not only will it allow learners and teachers to see if they are on the same level, but it will allow them to engage with a diverse group and not only with their fellow peers in class or in school, but to come in contact with different peoples.

All I would like to say is that technology is not a problem but a resource. Use it wise and learners will have a successful learning experience, inside and outside the classroom.