Edublogs Serendipity webinar overview – social media in classrooms

Introduction

This was a very lively session! Great fun with lots of whiteboard contributions and text chat – we had several people without microphones so there was a lot of discussion in text. As usual the session was recorded – please let me know if you access the recording.

The Session

We had an interesting selection of topics and combined two closely related ones “Social media in the classroom; strengths and weaknesses” and “how to talk your admin into using social media in the classroom”  for the poll. This combined topic was the outright winner!

We started with a quick whiteboard brainstorm to share our own understanding of the term social media in a classroom context. This confirmed that we all had similar perceptions.

Then, very much in the spirit of Serendipity sessions we diverted briefly to explore a question raised in text chat – namely when we use social media particularly text based “do we do the quiet ones a disservice by always allowing them an out from speaking up?” The consensus was that we need both with a strong awareness that the opportunitiy to text can build confidence. As a shy child myself I was incapable of “speaking out” in class or anywhere else and trying to force me just made it worse, so I identify very strongly with those who “lurk” and prefer to text. I very much regret that such opportunities for interaction were not available in my childhood as I think they might have helped me to manage my shyness much sooner!

The next part of the discussion moved back to the main topic and we took a look at the strengths and weaknesses of using socisl media in the classroom.

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This whiteboard filled very fast with both strengths and weaknesses, giving us much food for thought and leading nicely into a very quick look at which of us are using social media with students at the moment and what tools we are using.

We then moved on to consider one of the eternal questions for educators – how we get others whether they be educators, admin or policy makers on board with tools and strategies that can be fully justified in pedagogic terms but are threatening in some way because they are new and challenge long-held and conservative perceptions of what teaching is about. Again we filled a whiteboard rapidly with the overall opinion being that demonstrating the use in some waythat includes the doubters is probably the most effective strategy

Conclusion

This was a terrific session – so many thoughts, opinions and ideas shared. Though as always I felt I talked too much! I think this happens more when we have people without audio because so much of the discussion happens in text and on the whiteboard so I tend to try and provide a commentary to link whiteboard and text chat.

Our Next Session

FineFocusSmallOur next Webinar is an Edublogs “Fine Focus” session. This week in “Trouble with Timezones?” we will be discussing the issue of timezones,  sharing some of our own strategies for ensuring we don’t get event times wrong and that we can catch up with our global PLNs, and hearing from YOU about your issues and strategies around timezones. Join us on Thursday May 19th at 23:00 GMT/UTC the time for you will vary depending on your timezone (check yours here) Thursday afternoon/evening in the USA, late night Thursday in Europe, and Friday morning in Australia – in the usual Elluminate room

Edublogs Serendipity webinar overview – 14/15th April

Introduction

In compensation for the last Serendipity, where I was a bit late starting the recording, this time I started it early so you have some of the initial conversation!

As always here is the recording link for the session – please let me know if you access the recording. We had a dead heat for choice of topics so as we often do in those circumstances we elected to look briefly at both. The topics were:

  • “How to drag the bulk of trainers (kicking and screaming?) into teaching in a way that our students now need?”
  • Using Xtranormal to make animations for scenarios

We started with the first of these allocating 25 minutes to each.

The Session

We started with the discussion question posted on the whiteboard. then we spent a few minutes brainstorming ideas that we might use to help get colleagues onboard with e-strategies for teaching.

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We then moved on to discuss some of the individual suggestions with those responsible talking about their ideas and thus generating further discussion. The 25 minutes ran out all too soon!

Using Xtranormal was a complete change not only of topic but of exploration style! While several of us had “dabbled” in Xtranormal in the past, only one of the group had really used it. She was able to show us one of her first animations and also to tell us some of the pros and cons. We each visited and briefly explored the Xtranormal link. This of course generated more questions and discussion. Again we ran out of time far too quickly and it was time to draw the session to a close.

Conclusion

This was an excellent session with much sharing. The contrast between the two topics and the different ways in which we explored them highlights the truly serendipitous nature of these sessions. I have taken away an intention to explore Xtranormal further! I will try and do my “homework” this week and produce an animation – if I succeed I will tweet the link with #serendiped

Our Next Session

FineFocusSmallOur next Webinar is an Edublogs “Fine Focus” session. This week’s session is “Twitter 201” So you are on Twitter – you Tweet, @, DM and RT – you are past Twitter 101 so what comes next?  Join us on Thursday April 21st at 23:00 GMT/UTC the time for you will vary depending on your timezone (check yours here) Thursday afternoon/evening in the USA, late night Thursday in Europe, and Friday morning in Australia – in the usual Elluminate room

In the Future

If you are a regular visitor to our webinars you will know that we alternate “Fine Focus” sessions on specific topics with “Serendipity” the unconference sessions where we choose a topic by poll at the start of the session. Sometimes the very fact of being asked for “hot topics” or other ideas for discussion or learning tends to make our minds blank. This has prompted me to start a Serendipity Wallwisher for topic suggestions. Please visit the wall and add your ideas for Serendipity topics so that we have more choices to consider. Some of these ideas might also form the basis for future “Fine Focus” sessions.