SOCIAL M EDIA STATEMENT

Social media is an incredibly powerful tool that can be used in the classroom.
Specifically, when technology is incorporated into the classroom in a meaningful manner, it can
show promising results. This is because the use of technology
allows for more differentiated, individualized, and
personalized learning for students of all academic levels
(Fingal et al., 2018, pp. 39). Even so, it is important to set
clear expectations and guidelines for students to follow.
I will incorporate social media into my classroom in a
variety of ways. Virtual reality will be brought into the
classroom through educational sites such as Nearpod. This
will provide students with the opportunity to go on digital
field trips and explore more advanced, exotic topics. I will also allow my students to use Twitter
through a class page. Here, they will be able to follow academic profiles, keep up to date with
current events, and get reminders of upcoming assignments. I will additionally have a class
Facebook page. This will be a private page that parents can follow. On this page, students will be
able to post pictures of their work and upload weekly class podcasts. This will be a great way for
students to share their work on a private page.
Notedly, for each site used within the classroom, I will be sure to review important rules
and emphasize the importance of privacy. On sites
such as Twitter, while students will be able to look
at tweets, they will not be able to post on the site.
With this, students will be able to retweet and like
information to share with the class. However, I will
be the one who posts reminders to our Twitter page
about upcoming events (Teachers Guide to
Teaching Using Social Media, 2014). On Facebook,
students will be able to post, but I will show them how to appropriately message each other and
share their work. I will walk students through how to post on this media, specifically showing
how to post it privately to those following our page and not publicly. Additionally, virtual reality
field trips and the websites they are on, will be proofed by me to ensure that the content is
appropriate. We will also review rules for going off of the sites during class time.
It is important to expose students to safe social media while in the classroom. As many
will likely experiment with these sites outside of school, it is imperative
that we show students how to be safe online (Storts-Brinks, 2015, pp
31). To do this, I will teach my students how to be digital citizens. In
addition to teaching privacy tools and collaboration, I will also discuss
cyberbullying. I have a zero-tolerance policy for cyberbullying and will
make that clear with my students. Not only will I stress the importance
of monitoring words and being kind online, I will also provide students
cyberbullying prevention strategies (Fingal et al., 2018, pp. 69).
Through discussion of these important topics, students will become more empowered digital
learners.
 References
Burnt Hills Ballston Lake Central School District. (2021). Computer and Network Use Policy.
BHBL CSD. https://www.bhbl.org/orourke-middle-school/student-handbook/computer-
and-network-use-policy/
Fingal, D., Basye, D., Reneau, C. (2018). EdTech for the K-12 classroom: ISTE readings on
how, when and why to use technology (pp. 36-69). International Society for Technology
in Education.
Storts-Brinks, K. (2015). Unblocking Opportunity: Social Media Access in Schools. School
Library Monthly, 31(7), 30–31.
http://search.ebscohost.com.sagecolleges.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=tfh&A
N=102890750&scope=site.
Teachers Guide to Teaching Using Social Media. (2014). Educational Technology and Mobile
Learning. https://www.educatorstechnology.com/2014/03/teachers-guide-to-teaching-
using-social.html.