Do you use Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube? Have you ever considered leveraging social media tools like these in your teaching? During this introductory online session led by Jason Rhode on 9/28/2012, we explored what social media are and the pedagogical potential for use of social media in educational settings. We set the stage for future sessions to further explore use of social media tools and the design of engaging and innovative learning activities.

1. Introduction to Social Media
in Education
Social Media Series

2. Presenter
Jason Rhode, Ph.D.
Assistant Director, Faculty
Development and Instructional
Design Center
Northern Illinois University
niu.edu/facdev
jrhode@niu.edu
twitter.com/jrhode

3. Today’s Workshop
• Explore what social media is and the
pedagogical potential for use of social media
in educational settings
• Set the stage for future sessions to further
explore use of social media tools and the
design of engaging and innovative learning
activities

4. What is Social Media?
“Web 2.0 applications that have the potential to
increase interactions among individuals through
creating and sharing” (Joosten, 2012)
Photo courtesy http://www.flickr.com/photos/yourdon/2973403186

5. Expanded Definition
…anyone can participate due to the democratic
nature and the expected equality of
participating. Individuals participating in social
media are
communicating, encoding, transmitting, and
decoding messages at a basic level. Usually, this
communication takes the form of user-
generated content (UGC) which is
created, shared, and gathered. Communication
is predominately efficient.

6. Expanded Definition (cont.)
…The social process is distanciated through time
and space; individuals can participate anytime
and anywhere. Social interactions can equally
assist individuals in completing a task or building
and maintaining relationships.
Or more simply put, social media are: Virtual
places where people share; everybody and
anybody can share anything anywhere anytime.
(Joosten, 2012)

7. Social Networking
“Web based services that allow individuals to:
1. Construct a public or semi-public profile
within a bounded system;
2. Articulate a list of other users with whom
they share a connection; and
3. View and traverse their list of connections
and those made by others within the system”
(Boyd & Ellison, 2007, para. 4)

8. Social Media vs. Social Networking
Web 2.0
Social Media
Social
Networking
Sites

9. The Networked Teacher
Photo courtesy http://www.flickr.com/photos/courosa/2922421696

10. Teacher’s Guide to Social Media
http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2012/07/26/a-teachers-guide-to-social-media/

11. Which of these do you use?
• YouTube
• Facebook
• Blogs
• LinkedIn
• Wikis
• Twitter
• Flickr
• SlideShare

12. Teacher’s Guide to Social Media
http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2012/07/26/a-teachers-guide-to-social-media/

13. Teacher’s Guide to Social Media
http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2012/07/26/a-teachers-guide-to-social-media/

14. Benefits for Educators
• Opportunity for professional development
without leaving the office
• Way to gather resources, including
publications and research
• Learn new strategies through videos and blog
posts
• Get updates and news influencing your field
• Crowdsource or gather input on questions and
problems you’re trying to solve

15. Core Interaction Components
Diagram courtesy http://flickr.com/photos/jrhode/2041352741

16. Formal & Informal Interaction

17. Interaction Matrix
Diagram courtesy http://flickr.com/photos/jrhode/2040911590

18. Pedagogical Framework
engaging presenting
students in material and
collaborations, concepts in a
connecting meaningful and
concepts with memorable
real-world Socially ways, guiding the
applications learning process
Engaged
Online
fostering social Instruction pulling together,
presence, reviewing, and
providing timely selecting
information, content,
guiding the resources, and
learning process conversations

19. Social Media Tools & Technologies
Blogs Wikis
Social Social
Podcasts
Bookmarks Networks
Video Photo
Sharing Sharing

20. Blog
• usually maintained by an
individual
• regular entries of
commentary, descriptions of
events, or other material
such as graphics or video
• entries are commonly
displayed in reverse- Recommended Free Blogging Tools:
chronological order
•
• combines, text, images, and •
Blogger.com
WordPress.com
links to other blogs • Posterous.com
•
• readers can leave comments Tumblr.com
Diagram courtesy http://flickr.com/photos/jrhode/1482486825

21. Sample Blog
facdevblog.niu.edu

22. Wiki
• “quick” website
• anyone who accesses it can
contribute or modify content
(excluding blocked users)
• uses a simplified markup
language in conjunction
with, or instead of HTML
• often used to create Recommended Free Wiki Tools:
collaborative websites and to
• Wikispaces
power community websites • Pbworks
• Wikipedia is one of the best- • Google Sites
• Google Drive
known wikis
Diagram courtesy http://flickr.com/photos/jrhode/4665680423

23. Sample Wiki
blackboardtips.wikispaces.com

24. Podcast
• combination of audio and/or video
made available for download via
syndication
• files are usually retrieved with
software applications (generically
known as podcatchers) such as
iTunes
• subscribers can listen at their
convenience on devices that have Recommended Podcasting Tools:
intermittent, slow, or are otherwise
lacking Internet access • iTunes
• Downcast (mobile podcatcher)
• podcatcher reads an [RSS] feed • Audioboo (mobile app for creation)
(whose entries point to specific • Podbean.com
podcasts, usually sorted by date) to • Podomatic.com
identify and retrieve the podcast
Diagram courtesy http://flickr.com/photos/jrhode/1482486833

25. Sample Podcast
niu.edu/blackboard/podcast

26. Social Bookmarks
• store, organize, search,
& manage bookmarks of
Web pages in the
“cloud”
• use keywords, called
“tags” to easily sort and
Recommended Free Social
share Bookmarking Tools:
• keep some bookmarks • Diigo.com
• Delicious.com
private, share others • CiteULike.org
• Pinterest
Diagram courtesy http://diigo.com

27. Sample Social Bookmarks
citeulike.org/user/jrhode

28. Social Networks
• connections among users
with shared interests,
relationships, or contexts
• “following” or “friending”
to add a connection in
your network
• either public or private
Recommended Free Social
• used for different Networking Tools:
purposes (personal, • Twitter.com
professional, academic) • Facebook.com
• LinkedIn.com
• many networks intertwine • Google+
Diagram courtesy http://flickr.com/photos/joepemberton/3305147093

29. Sample Social Network
twitter.com/facdev

30. Video Sharing
• media recorded either
with a webcam or external
video camera, then posted
online to a video sharing
service for distribution
• video is optimized for easy
viewing online and usually
also able to be embedded Recommended Free Video Sharing
Tools:
in another website or LMS
like Blackboard • YouTube.com
• Vimeo.com
• KhanAcademy.com
• Screenr.com

31. Sample Shared Videos
vimeo.com/facdev

32. Photo Sharing
• photos taken using
either camera, or mobile
device with
camera, then uploaded
to cloud-based service
to share with others
Recommended Free Photo Sharing
• photos easily shared Tools:
using other connected • Flickr.com
social networks •
•
Shutterfly.com
Photobucket.com
• Instagram.com

33. Sample Shared Photos
flickr.com/photos/jrhode

34. Tips for Getting Started
• Attend upcoming “Social Media Series”
workshops offered by Faculty Development
• Baby Steps…pick one tool at a time
• Setup a free account on tool you select
• Look for mobile app for the tool selected to
use on your mobile device
• Try personally and professionally before
incorporating into your teaching

35. Tips for Getting Started (cont.)
• Commit to be a social media participant
• Build your own network
• Consider including options for students to
utilize social media in their course-related
activities

36. Suggested Books

37. References
Boyd, D. M. and Ellison, N. B. (2007). Social
network sites: Definition, history, and
scholarship. Journal of Computer-Mediated
Communication, 13(1).
Joosten, T. (2012). Social media for educators:
Strategies and best practices. San Francisco:
Jossey-Bass.

38. Archives Available Online
www.niu.edu/facdev/programs/archives

39. Archives Available in iTunes
Search “NIU Faculty Development”

40. Follow Faculty Development
facebook.com/facdev twitter.com/facdev

41. Contact the Presenter
Jason Rhode, Ph.D.
Faculty Development and
Instructional Design Center
Northern Illinois University
jrhode@niu.edu
niu.edu/facdev
twitter.com/jrhode
815.753.2475