The document discusses how social media and online learning can help students reach their educational and career goals, noting that today's learners and work environments require strong collaborative skills, and that schools need to adapt by incorporating more collaborative assignments, interactive activities, and real-world projects to help students develop these important competencies for future success.

1. Charting a
Course
How Social Media Can Help
Today‟s eLearners Reach
Their Goals
Presented By:
Jill McNair
ELN 104

2. Can You Help Me?
SUSIE STUDENT
Online Learner
Anytown, planet earth
 Past Education
GED, High-school graduate, some college, BA, or
Masters Degree
 Learning Goals
Get trained for a career in the new
economy or advance current position
 How I like to Learn
From my computer, working around all the
other responsibilities in my life. I like to have
as much control/choices as possible. I like to
connect with other students and instructors
 What I Expect from My Instructors
Teach me what I need to know to get a
great job, be understanding if I am late with
my assignments, be available to me if I have
questions . . . Online office hours would be nice

3. You‟ve got to learn to
collaborate!
We can help, but there is
something very different about
school now.

4. Working together . . .
The new normal
The Collaborative Imperative
The world of work is increasingly
collaborative, giving rise to
reflection about the way student
projects are structured.
The 2011 Horizon
Reporthttp://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/HR2011.pdf)notes

5. If you want to succeed in this
new economy . . .
The Collaborative Imperative
“What it means to be skillful is going to change. No
job has „be individual and isolated‟ as a
requirement. For almost everyone, a crucial mark of
success is their ability to work effectively with others .
. . The ability to work collaboratively is actually the
„coin of the realm.‟ And in a world where
developing individual excellence is less and less
important, school is going to increasingly need to be
about developing the capacity to collaborate . . .
developing the capacity to build distinctive strength
and to use that strength in conjunction with others.”
Larry Summers, Keynote address about the future impact of technology in education. New York Times School for Tomorrow Conference.
http://www.livestream.com/schoolsfortomorrowa/video?clipId=pla_035f90fb-ff23-4cd5-8706-2101d918e828

6. How do we do this?
Are Students and Schools ready
to take on this challenge?

7. How do we do this?
Studies show that students are
like this . . .
But what are their other learning characteristics?

8. The Digital Native
Learner Characteristics:
Strengths
Multicultural
Ability to Multitask
Appreciation for Structure
Techno Savvy – Uses Technology and Social Media
Wants Instructors to Use Technology
Teamwork-Oriented
Preference for Interactive or Networked Activities

9. The Digital Native
Learner Characteristics
Weaknesses
Shorter Attention Span
Slower Reading Speed
Lower Reading Accuracy
More Susceptible to Distraction
Lack of Reflection
Cavalier Attitude Toward Quality of Sources

10. The Digital Native
Learner Characteristics
Strength or Weakness
Advanced scanning skills
Biased toward Experimental Acts
Appreciation for Structure
Non-Linear Learning
Adept at Processing and Interrupted Information Flow
Preference to Learn Via Pictures and Social Media

11. Schools have their strengths
and weaknesses too
Schools are often like this . . .
So what can schools do?

12. The Digital School
How Schools can Help
Retireme
nt
Have high ?
Expectations
Create and
Expect students
Support an
to collaborate –
Active Learning
and teach them
Add Community
how to. Expect
Collaborative Require students to
Elements to participation, but utilize credible
Courses make it sources – teach
Balance Discussions, interesting and them what
Structure and Debates, group fun with credible sources
Freedom projects, wikis, opportunities to are.
Structure to blogs, Peer get to know
keep them on Assessments. others, practice
Design skills, and learn
track . . . Keep a focus on
Student- new information
Freedom to real-world
Centered
work creatively assignments and
Courses
hands-on
Keep learners‟ practice.
needs at the
Today top of the list
…

13. A happy ending!
If schools can do this, graduates
will look like this . . .
And have skills like this . . .

14. The Prepared Digital Native
Nurtures and
maintains
connections
in Learning
Communities
Sees
him/herself as
Creates an e-
active
Portfolio
contributors
of knowledge
Successful
Graduate
Has
Values
experience
diversity of
using Web 2.0
opinions
tools
Knows how
evaluate the
worthiness of
learning
materials

15. The End
Students are ready. Schools are
ready. Let‟s make this happen
together!