Getting ready for the mini conference
I have had a great break and now I am trying to decide what would be a good topic for a mini conference and whether to use asynchronous or elluminate.
I have a few ideas one being the pros and cons of using facebook in a learning environment. Personally I would like to have facebook locked here on the Otago Polytechnic campus simply because I teach computing and I spend a large portion of my time encouraging the students to get off it and onto their actual course work. Some actually appear to be addicted they can’ t help themselves. There must be something about the dangers of too much online social networking. Honestly some have being facebooking each other in class 2 or 3 computers away. All in all a good topic what do you think?
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October 12, 2010 at 3:08 am
I think this is a great topic…and one questions I would like us to talk about is how we use FB for online facilitation…not just for education.
My thought as I read this is…if you cannot beat them, join them…how could you integrate FB into your teaching to engage these students?
October 13, 2010 at 10:59 pm
Thanks Sarah for putting a positive spin on the use of facebook for students. I can use the mini conference to look for practical ways of using it.
October 12, 2010 at 3:28 am
Hey Lyn, you’ve really highlighted the appeal of the social networking to your learners – why not harness that power for the delivery of your computing lessons. Give your ‘facebookers’ a purpose for using their favourite tool, yes, even in class. Invite your learners to attend a mini-conference on:
“polytechnic facebook : learning models”
October 13, 2010 at 10:57 pm
Thanks good idea I am coming round to this idea albeit slowly but it would save a lot of stress because I wouldn’t have to spend a lot of time telling students to get on with the assigned tasks. We use the learning platform moodle maybe I could use facebook fro course announcements and forums instead. I would have to look closely at facebook for this or just ask the students how it is done.
October 12, 2010 at 4:24 am
I think it is really good topic. I learnt how to us Facebook better when I learnt about Twitter. They might be some ideas we take from stuff developed about how to use Twitter in education. Facebook is where most people and potential learners are but I find it lacks the great and simple dynamics of Twitter that I’m growing to love.
October 13, 2010 at 10:53 pm
Thanks I did think of twitter also because I have seen twitter used in a business setting as a way to contact clients and potential clients. So perhaps it does have more application than just a social network.
October 12, 2010 at 10:10 am
Lyn I think this is a good topic. I personally used to use FB to connect with friends, now I have made my FB front page into the FO2010 group page and there is never any new additions or comments which I often find disappointing simply because I would like to see us use FB more because I am familiar with it. I go on and off FB and agree with you about the overuse of FB, particularly with the convenience of mobile devices.
October 13, 2010 at 10:51 pm
Thanks Kim I have resisted using facebook till this course simply because it is so public but I hear students and some colleagues using for more professional reasons, selling, marketing and contacting students, notices things like this. So I am more than happy to continue exploring the how to.
October 12, 2010 at 2:53 pm
I hear your frustration with FB. It is where our students are though. So as Sarah suggests, instead of dragging them away from where they are, let’s give them a reason to learn there too. I haven’t ventured into FB for my teaching, but as effective communication with my online high school students is one of my key goals I’ve been thinking that I need to at least explore this topic.
So yes, I think this would make a great topic for the mini-conference!
October 13, 2010 at 10:49 pm
Thanks its good to hear its not just my students. It affects a lot of courses whether they are computing or not. It is often a subject between my colleagues and I of how to stop them or minimise the time they spend on it. Exploring the topic is a good idea too.
October 12, 2010 at 10:47 pm
I am taken with the notion of a professional facebook page. As our students are there anyway [fb] introducing them to a more profession-appropriate manner of networking may provide them with opportunities to examine their own social practice
October 13, 2010 at 10:45 pm
Thanks Jane for the positive spin on this issue. I do agree in principle that if you can’t beat them join them I have resisted having anything to do with facebook to date . Giving them opportunities to look at their social practice has to be a great gain for them. Convincing students that it is relevant and necessary would be the largest obstacle I think.
October 16, 2010 at 6:03 am
great ideas here Lynn.
how to turn this into a mini-conference? maybe someone who has used facebook succesfully to engage students could be your guest?
October 27, 2010 at 8:47 pm
Hey Lynn, good idea for a topic and it wud b good to address “teachers who are addicted to FB”, too. FB can be another addiction. . . I have a friend who is an educator and she gets so wound up and upset by what people post on FB that I ordered her to have a 2 day FB FAST, just to calm herself down.
I think it’s important to point out that FB and Twitter are like clouds in the sky. . . here today and can’t be remembered tomorrow. Not worth losing your power to it. The real world is offline.
October 28, 2010 at 12:51 am
I so agreed with you about life being offline. I find it mildly alarming that student will speak to each other in the same room on facebook. I asked a student recently who had been talking to a friend earlier what couldn’t wait till a break time and she a lot can happen in 10 min. I wish my life was so interesting!
October 28, 2010 at 12:46 am
Thanks Willie I am trying to get this event organised for the mini conference I would love to have some students response even a survey but timeis running out.
October 28, 2010 at 1:26 am
Just a quick reminder, Lyn…this assignment is about your facilitation skills, not how people use FB. So don’t stress about surveying students at this time (although its a great project)….keep things as simple & keep your life as easy (yet meaningful) as possible
October 28, 2010 at 1:23 am
Hi Lyn,
I don’t know whether you will be interested in this; for my mini I have invited Vasi Doncheva, Flexible Learning Manager for NorthTec, she is going to talk about her favourite tools one being Twitter, and of equal interest how she has created a Twitter paper. This is on the 9th
October 29, 2010 at 6:39 pm
Hi Lyn, I also think this is a great topic/ question to explore. I, like you mentioned in your posting, also have concerns about Facebook and other online technology being addictive. But I do think that if people are so into it, then why don’t we tap into that? My students studying Occupational Therapy have, I believe, used Facebook really positively to help their learning. In a blended delivery course, they recognised that they would be spending less time with each other face to face than they would perhaps like, and thought using Facebook would be a great way to connect with and support each other on the days that they’re studying off-campus. Students often mention it and it seems to me that they’ve found it really valuable. It has got me wondering whether it could be used more ‘officially’ in some way within the programme to deliver some of their learning. They certainly seem more into Facebook than Moodle!!
November 1, 2010 at 1:56 am
Hi Karen
Its great to hear similiar comments about facebook and the use of it by students and others. I am going to be running an event about this but probably in mid November. I am trying very hard to get organised, work is a bit busy at the moment but it will be interesting to hear some discussion about how to use it for our advantage.
November 4, 2010 at 2:49 am
Hopefully in the elluminate discussion we can all come up with a variety of ideas because it does seem to be a wide issue. I will get the date and time to you asap I have nearly finished all the demanding projects and this is the last to organise.