Activity 5 - Professional Online Social Networks

Descriptive:

My first foray into the world of social media on a professional level, was with Twitter. Since I felt I was an empty vessel, I was a ‘lurker’ or ‘stalker’ and read as much as I could. It was invaluable as I was able to pull information from several source and start to see trends and ideas that were more enduring in nature, in the world of e-learning. Have found Tweetdeck as a great way to keep your hashtag groups organised and a tool to sift through the mountain of information available on your feed.
Next I moved onto Zites (since gone), which as an app that gave you access to articles based on your interests. This along with the Twitter feed gave me a grounding in what were useful resources and pedagogical practices associated with integrating ICT into the classroom.
Facebook and the VLN came along and by then as participants were asking questions I found that by now I felt I could start to join in the discussions.

Critical Reflection:

Facebook is like a very big staffroom. There are some professional conversations and ideas for the classroom, others seeking advise on pedagogical or employment matters, people seeking affirmation or validation of their current practice and others offering anecdotes of “life as a teacher”.

Linkedin has morphed into almost a Facebook platform. “Connections” can share ideas and link their posts with information of interest. At this point in time, it is still a very professional platform and I have seen examples of unprofessional behavior not being tolerated.

Twitter can be multifaceted. By it’s very nature of limited characters in a message, it is used as a bulletin board, offering links to further readings, updates to software and blogs or an alert to the release of new digital resources. You can filter a lot of information in a relatively short amount of time, only venturing into areas of interest to you. There are the #Chats that are scheduled and gives participants a chance to enter professional discussions and gain a variety of perspectives on the subject to hand. It is the chance to build a network of like minded and expert people to seek advise and opinions from if you have any issues or queries. It has also been very handy when attending professional development to be able to enter into discussions about the content as it is being delivered, later to be Storifed as notes so you can refer back to the content.

The VLN has been a good technical platform and again an opportunity for teachers to join groups of interest and become involved in professional discussions. Google+ also gives the participant the option to join groups and share their ideas, join in on discussions as a community of learners.

If someone prefers to get their information visually and orally, there is Youtube and Ted Talks that can be very informative and inspiring. Since the participant is searching for the information, it will more than likely be relevant.

Often software such as Edmodo, ShowMe and Seesaw are supportive by developing a community around the use of their software and encourage teachers to share their practice. This is great, especially when you are starting out and building up your own practice.

Critical Reflection:

As with all social media, there is always the need to critique the validity of the information gained such as pulling information from a variety of sources. Since the participants are free to join in and leave at any time, it is valuable as ‘just in time’ professional development or self directed learning. In many cases, participants also have the choice of who they are connected to and can join groups which can refine the subject matter so it is relevant to their area of interest. You are able to indulge in professional development ubiquitously and with so much choice of platforms, you are more likely to find a platform that delivers the type of professional development that suits you.  As long as discussions remain respectful and professional, entering into discourse as a means to grow our perspective and pedagogical practice can be valuable.

Resources:

Melhuish, K.(2013). Online social networking and its impact on New Zealand educators’ professional learning. Master Thesis. The University of Waikato. Retrieved on 05 May, 2015 from https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/handle/10289/8482

Sharples, M., de Roock , R., Ferguson, R., Gaved, M., Herodotou, C., Koh, E., Kukulska-Hulme, A., Looi,C-K, McAndrew, P., Rienties, B., Weller, M., Wong, L. H. (2016). Innovating pedagogy 2016: Open University Innovation Report 5. Milton Keynes: The Open University. Retrieved from http://proxima.iet.open.ac.uk/public/innovating_pedagogy_2016.pdf

Activity 4 - Influence of Law & Ethics in Practice

What?

A constant ethical dilemma we face when interacting through our Facebook or any social media account, is what we post and are seen to support or ‘like’.
It came to my attention that even though I have not ‘friended’ any of the parents in our school community, a parent of one of my students commented in passing that she had seen a post that I had ‘liked’. The post itself was of no concern, but I was a little uneasy that my personal activity was reaching the parent community without my having any direct links.
I am perfectly aware that FaceBook is not private and I am  careful about what I post and reasonably careful what I react to or comment on. Since I had that conversation with that parent, my awareness about my activity has been heightened and I always consider, my digital footprint and how this affects my professional profile, especially in my school community.
Although a personal FaceBook account can be considered the teacher’s private life, on social media it is very easy to cross over into your work life and there is the danger that at some point in the future a member of the parent body may object to something a teacher supports or has said on FaceBook, even if they have not directly connection to them.
This was highlighted when Ehrich et al., 2011, quoted (De Ruyter & Kole, 2010, pg 207) The perception is that “teaching is a ‘social good’ and teachers are expected to instruct students to think and act in ways that their societies believe are worthwhile and responsible.” Also, Fenstermacher (1990 in Christenbury, 2008, p.32 cited in Ehrich et al., 2011) states, “the teacher’s conduct at all times and in all ways is a moral matter and teaching is a profoundly moral activity.” Teachers are being held to account for their choices in their private lives. This was highlighted in a news report in 2015, focusing on disciplinary action taken against teachers that was reported by the public. The misdemeanours included violence, fraud, convictions involving drugs and alcohol, just to name a few (Ratley, 2015, para 27)

So What?

A teacher’s digital footprint, especially their online presence in social media potentially blurs their private lives in with their professional lives. On social media not every post is wholly in their control such as the practise of tagging people to media or even the taking of the photos or videos in the first instance.
This presents a moral dilemma for teachers and the competing forces is that acceptance is measured by each individual person’s values and beliefs. This is evident across the entire social media network. You only need to spend a few minutes reading any newsfeed to come across the opinionated, the social watchdog or the outraged.
The conflict arises between the private persona and the professional persona. If the two are seen to be diametrically opposed, for whatever reason, there may be a perception that the person is deemed unfit to work with children. In extreme cases of breaking the law or endangering the safety of others this could be justified, but what about just opposing opinions of what is ‘moral’ behaviour?

Now What?

This leaves the teachers with the following choices:

A. Do not have a social media profile at all
B. Use a pseudonym ("Facebook for Teachers: 11 Tips for Protecting your Privacy," 2017) with the privacy settings locked down and updated (Facebook & Underwood, 2015) together with being extremely discerning about who they have on their “Friends” list.
C. Minimise the conflict by deciding if the Facebook or other social media accounts are personal or professional. Have one or the other, or maybe even have 2 running to keep things separate. Talk to their friends about what is acceptable to be posted or tagged in for the sake of their career.

Because teachers are woking with some of the most vulnerable members of our community, essentially, they need to be aware that if they wish to participate on social media in a private capacity, to treat it the same as if they’re walking around the local shopping mall.  The school community could very well see and hear their every move.



References
Ehrich, L. C., Kimber, M., Millwater, J., & Cranston, N. (2011). Ethical dilemmas: a model to understand teacher practice. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 17(2), 173-185. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2011.539794
Facebook for Teachers: 11 Tips for Protecting your Privacy. (2017, January 12). Retrieved from https://www.webwise.ie/teachers/facebook-for-teachers/
Facebook, & Underwood, P. (2015). Facebook's Privacy Checkup [Video file]. Retrieved from https://vimeo.com/105198517
Ratley, N. (2015, April 6). Reports of teachers' misconduct increase. The Press. Retrieved from https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/education/67617060/reports-of-teachers-misconduct-increase