The number one reason is to develop career survival skills. A colleague of mine wrote a fascinating article about the history of famous female scientists and how they used martial networking to advance their careers.
Very valuable skill!
Phil Lewis
Students should be careful because in this day and age, they are so used to just sharing anything and everything and tend to overshare. Even in an online learning environment, they tend to forget who the audience is and continue to share things that don't necessarily need to be shared. This would also spill over into other computing habits and would benefit other areas.
Jane,
You are right and we have seen this time and time again. There are consequences to what we say and do. Employers are looking at social media as a way to measure pattern of behavior. Students need to realize that.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Stephanie,
You make a great point! We have had several examples of social media and its role in free speech. This is such a great discussion point. Policy is put in place for a purpose and students are shocked when they are held to them!
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Students should consider that the media is watching social networking. We often see on the news reports of outrageous tweets, facebook comments or inappropriate pictures.
Having good habits can avoid an embarrassing, or worse a libelous, posting in other areas of their lives.
As others have posted here, everyone needs to consider that when they make a post to a social networking site, it is out there for anyone to read. No matter how tight the privacy of a site; images and comments can be copied and re-posted.
LE,
I agree with your points. Employers do look at social networking sites and websites for information on a prospective employee. Some colleges will do this also when considering a prospective student. Even once employed, the comments an employee makes about their employer or their personal viewpoints can effect their employment. For example, it is being posted on the Internet today that a PR executive was let go from their company because of a personal viewpoint they made on Twitter. Here's a link to the article: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/12/21/21998413-company-has-parted-ways-with-pr-exec-after-tweet-on-aids-africa-and-race?lite
It is very important to be careful what you post. That is great that you are explaining that to your students.
I am also a volunteer Computer Merit Badge counselor for the Boy Scouts of America. I try to make sure the Scouts understand the importance of not posting too many personal details on the Internet, and to be careful with their security settings in places like Facebook. Unfortunately, predators are out there, and they need to be careful. I also tell them to not directly post a picture from their phone to Facebook, because the picture has properties with your location (longitude and latitude).
Jeffrey,
Great point. I agree with them. You really could use these tools toward collaborative work.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Today students use much more than books and must learn to adapt to the new forms of communication. Online engagement has become increasingly important in businesses so learning how to use social media with good social media networking habits is important to graduates as they find jobs in the workplace. Using social media, students learn to interact with other individuals simply through a web presence. Often they do not have to meet in person to interact and there are no geographical boundaries. In a classroom setting, students can share views and opinions. I believe that social interaction online between students allow them to develop skills in analyzing and sharing information.
stacey,
Great strategy! This social media "thing" isn't going to go away so we must address the role of professionalism within the medium. It will hurt the student in the long run if we don't.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I find that students are comfortable communicating using social media, so it's a great tool to use in getting them resources for their coursework. Also, I use it as an opportunity to demonstrate responsible and professional use of social networking by reminding the class that what they write reflects on them. I ask students to always ask themselves this question before posting: Does this post represent the professional person that I am?
Phyllis,
Great post!!! There has to be instruction regarding the power and the responsibility of social media. In my college, we started working with freshmen in the consequences of choices in social media posts. We also start them thinking about the professional aspect of social media and its role in their career. As I teach in the business field, we encourage our students to work within LinkedIn as many of our employers and alumni are there. It does surprise me that in other disciplines, they discourage this type of communication.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Ellie,
Thank you for saying that!!!! Yes, we are teaching students professional skills in courses. You need to change their writing styles to reflect the workforce.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Ellie,
Thank you for saying that!!!! Yes, we are teaching students professional skills in courses. You need to change their writing styles to reflect the workforce.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Jaclyn,
You are right. We now start with freshmen in my college discussing cleaning up personal social media and to begin to think about professional social media. LinkedIn is really an important tool for my students and we need to train them in that area.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
The use of social media requires proper use to present content and discussion in the same manner as a student or faculty member would in the physical world of social engagement, business networking, or educational interactions. Students and faculty should understand that it is a misconception that the internet gives people the right to say what they want in any manner or tone with out effect. This misconception has caused serious consequences socially and financially. There are story after story of business professionals and entertainers losing positions for a tweet or a blog post that was considered inappropriate. Faculty that are considering using social media and the networks as an extension of learning beyond the classroom should also have preliminary sessions on network etiquette and present case studies of incidents that has caused serious consequences for students, professionals, politicians, and celebrities. Student should approach the use of social media as an added dimension of the learning opportunity and therefore, display the same level of respect and courtesy in presenting information or contributing to intellectual discourse. A question for those who have been using social media as an enhancement of the classroom would be: What type of preparatory instructions or guidelines do you use for orientation?
Habit that are formed in the online classroom resonate into the job force. I often have to remind students of this principle when submitting work whether it is an assignment or a discussion post. The problems that tend to arise is that I see them writing in slang so to speak. I do not want to see them get into this habit and then continue on with their correspondence in the office.
This generation of students are growing up in a world that social networking is as common as watching TV. They network through Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, giving reviews on Amazon, Goodreads, etc. They are creating a public digital footprint. As researcher, danah boyd, states, Public is the new default - see http://dmlcentral.net/blog/danah-boyd/public-default-private-when-necessary . As such, it is very important for students to develop good social networking habits - their habits will follow them for their entire lives.
Tanya,
You are right. We now make all of our freshmen in the College of Business to take a seminar called Professionalizing your Social Media. We want them using it responsibly. We also want them to understand the power of the tool in the business world. Professionals use it and monitor it all the time.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Students can benefit from developing good social networking habits while still in school as they can carry these habits into their professional lives. Social networking is here to stay and is more often being used in business environments. With the expanded business use, this means that students must understand how to use social media properly both for personal and professional use.
LE,
Great information you are providing yours students. Yes, employers look and there are services similar to credit checks that employers use that check for social media activities. It is a serious consideration in a student's professional life.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
