I noticed Google started a student community on Google+. I joined because as a teacher of students I want to know what students think and do with regard to using tech to maximize learning. I also noticed that some of the families I serve +1'd my link to that community. That led me to think about the ways that students young and old can maximize their Internet use related to learning.
For young students, it's the parents' responsibility to navigate students' use with family accounts or nonuse--every family will make their own decisions here and I respect that. What's important for children under 13 is for families to be well aware of the rules (most social media (and other) sites don't allow children's participation if they're under 13). It's also important that families with children under 13 include social media use in their family discussions because even if your child is not using social media and following the under 13 laws, it's likely that their peers may be using those sites. I advocate for families to start family accounts on these threads so that they can use them together, and model the use so when students reach 13, they'll understand well how to use these sites.
The ideas below for apt Internet use are meant for learners over 13 and families with children under 13.
Find Your Passion
Social media threads like Twitter and Google+ are terrific for finding out about the world around you, and discovering what you love. Geography, music, and travel threads introduce learners to the world. The "Amazing Places" community has served to enrich my sense of world geography in an engaging, efficient way. Start with a couple of threads to engage with, and then build your portfolio of threads to help you find your passions.
Answer your Questions
We all jump to social media and the search engines like Google as soon as we have a question. The answers we receive lead us to greater exploration and discovery. I typically use the rule of three to start--when I research a question, if I find the same answer three times I trust it for casual use. Of course if the question has greater impact, I do a more thorough research/analysis.
For young learners, I recommend that parents bookmark great sites for student questions--sites like Wonderopolis, National Geographic, Scholastic, and other student-centered sites. Guide your child's research and discovery. Learn together using the Internet.
Like Minded Peers
We often don't have colleagues, classmates, or friends who share our questions in our midst. In these cases it's great to find an online community to share and communicate with. For example, a child in my class is passionate about the study of escape artists. He's the first child to show this passion in 28 years which shows there are not that many grade school students with this passion. With his family's collaboration and assistance, he may be able to learn and share with an online community.
Problem Solving
Similar to like minded peers, the web offers multiple problem solving sites and threads. I have found this to particularly helpful to families whose children have a physical or learning disability that is rare. They are able to reach out to learn more. I learned so much about gifted and talented study and teaching this way, and it has made a terrific difference in my ability to serve students who demonstrate extraordinary learning interests and early intense skill, concept, and knowledge.
Challenge
The fact that the Internet offers endless audiences means that it also offers endless challenge. I encourage all 13 plus students to publish their work, research, and efforts for an audience. Only then will they be able to take their work more seriously, and improve with audience critique, response, and ideas in mind. Further the research online serves students so that they can be on the lookout for unanswered questions, and areas which require greater research and effort. MOOCs and other online learning platforms also present wonderful challenges for individual, small group, or even family learning.
Creativity
There's no reason to be bored today. You can easily find multiple projects and how-to's on the Internet. A friend complained that little money and winter weather created a situation where she was bored. I encouraged her to start a project, and gave a few examples. The Internet offers multiple resources for creativity and share.
Strengthen Skill
On a recent assessment, a child remarked that he wanted to be a better speller. He and his family could simply use the Internet to identify practice sites, and then he could get started. I plan to model this approach for him and like peers in school too. The next step is identifying the site that is most engaging to him--one that really helps him learn matching his interests and style. We can all strengthen any skill with the help of Internet research, practice, and share.
The Internet is today's teacher, and the more we learn to understand, use, and navigate this tool to strengthen, deepen, and broaden our learning, the more facile, flexible, and capable we'll be.
How do you use the Internet to boost your skills and abilities, vision and goals, learning community and audience? Every family of students and students today should engage in this discussion. Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions to add to this blog.
Learning today is in the hands of learners and their families; what will you do with that potential?
