I believe allowing students and instructors to interact on a personal level may be a dangerous.
It depends on the type of the social network. if the social network is a school-based, then the idea of students connecting with their instructor is great.
For the most part, I have my students for only 6 weeks and have not been asked by many of them to be their "friend" on Facebook. I have a personal policy of not friending students. However, I do keep my google+ account very basic and will allow them on google+.
However, if I were to teach a class for a longer period of time, I would set up a private group page for my class. This would allow me to interact with the students by not necessarily have them as friends.
As a student, I have utilized this in class that I have taken and it really helps with community building and information sharing.
I believe that it is ok for student and instructors to be connected on social media if the instructor sets up a professional account for the purpose of interacting with students in an educational capacity. Additionally, I allow students to "friend" me on my personal account only after they have graduates/transferred so as not to create any conflicts of interest/unprofessionalism. I do this, as I like to maintain contact with my students when they move on to see how they are making out in the real world.
Jeff
When used appropriately, social media networking can be a useful tool. It is prohibited in my current teaching facility due to the nature and culture of many of our students. I believe this is due to the management that would be necessary to ensure that no inappropriate behavior is occurring.
I believe so. Everyone is following their friends on Twitter or Facebook, as well as Instagram. Not being part of one of these social medias is like not existing at alll.
It can be a distraction but at the same time , will the student stop? No, so why not incorporate class discussions in it? This is a huge outlet in reaching our students
Yes,only if instructor is using a professionsl page
I think it could work out but only on platforms where privacy is guaranteed. It could be abused if the students get out of control and get kind of testy with each other. It would need to be monitored and that could be a real time-sucker. That's a factor when you're not on salary and you have to do not just grading but monitoring the social media for the class on your unpaid off-hours.
At our school friending through Facebook is prohibited (though we communicate through an email portal through the school, that way the staff can monitor exchanges). However using LinkedIn is encouraged, maybe it's because the exchanges are meant to foster more professional-types of associations and communications.
I think it's great for students and teachers to be connected on social media, but I also have some of the same concerns as others. I would feel like my students are constantly watching what I'm doing in my personal life. With that in mind, I do not request friendships, but if a student requests me, I'll wait a few days (hopefully they forgot they requested me) and I'll accept it.
Some of the classes I teach are Fundamental and College Math. The courses are focused on the working fundamentals for Medical and Network Technology students.
Although the author of the text created a video of how to work out every problem in the book, I can see the value of creating a Class twitter account to encourage students to ask about specific math problems where I can post a solution back the entire class. Woohoo!
I personally do not believe that social media is the correct way for instructors and students to interact. It violates the privacy of both parties, and opens the door for problems to occur.
However, student interest in social networking sites can still be a benefit in the classroom. Using a site like Schoology, which is structured like facebook, but private to the class and monitored by the teacher, can permit social media-like interactions, which interest students, without violating the lines between student-instructor and student-friend.
Absolutely, with the obsession of having the latest, most advanced cell phones and laptops, students have the tools needed for class and the enthusiasm to complete the tasks at hand. Incorporate the obsession of networking and sharing ideas, imagine the results that can be obtained.
I BELIEVE THIS IS A WONDERFUL METHOD TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH MY STUDENTS.STUDENTS ARE QUICK TO ALLOW YOU IN THEIR WORLD AND TEND TO OPEN UP MORE THAN IN A STRUCTURED CLASSROOM SETTING...PAUL T. ROUGEMONT
Having students connected is a powerful means to get them involved at their own pace and when they are ready to learn. Great tool to utilize!!
Students and instructors should connect on social media. The main caveat is that both need to maintain a professional demeanor when communicating on such sites. Since students are mostly already on social media, if teachers are not, they are missing a huge portion of their students' lives. Education is about connecting with students. Teachers must go where they are.
Connecting with students via a personal Facebook or Twitter might not be the best idea but setting up a professional account can be helpful. Another great social networking site where connection between student and teacher is necessary is LinkedIn. It is a purely professional site that allows for professional skill building.
I personally believe that instructors should not engage students via the social networking outlets until the student has graduated or is no longer attending the college. I think it presents too many opportunities for events to unfold in a negative manner that could eventually result in the teachers termination. I have seen it happen. So any time someone invites me as a friend on Facebook or connect via Linkdin, I do not respond until the student is no longer attending the college and will not be returning.
I feel that any opportunity to connect with the students on a professional level and engage with them in a way that they will benefit is great. However - instructors need to check to see what the policies of their institution are. At mine - we have been told that we are NOT aloud to connect with student via facebook. There hasn't been much discussion about twitter or linkdin.
Many students, including those over 40, are already using social media. Applying it to the classroom brings a familiar activity to their learning efforts.
