Social Networks and Gamification

Protecting Student Privacy on Social Media

• The average teen spends over an hour a day using social media, and only 3% of the time tweens and teens spend online is focused on creation vs. consumption.
• Only one in 10 teachers are using social media professionally.
• 81% of teachers surveyed expressed concerns about the possible pitfalls that arise from mixing professional work with social media.
• Many teachers have used social media to share best practices, provide an authentic audience for student work, cultivate digital citizenship among their students, and build more connected school communities.
• To protect student privacy, establish transparent, FERPA-compliant policies, and use parental consent/opt-out forms.
• Consider creating a separate account for professional use and review the privacy settings on any personal social media accounts.
• Use photo-editing tools on your phone or tablet to quickly crop or obscure sensitive parts of an image before posting.
• Explain to students what they’ll be doing, and facilitate a discussion about the why—both the benefits and the risks.
• Walk around your classroom and look for any visible student or class information, and take an inventory of your digital files and folders.
• Don’t share students’ faces or names without explicit, parental consent, and be mindful of how your posts commercialize your classroom.
• Don’t make any grades, assessments, or any other part of a student’s educational record public.
• Use a classroom-only tool such as a learning management system to share safely, and build your classroom’s digital citizenship skills.

The Benefits of Social Media in Education

• Social media and technology have become an indispensable part of modern life.
• Social media can benefit learners and help to fill in gaps in learning if used in a safe and appropriate way.
• Social media allows for better communication and collaboration between students and teachers.
• Social media provides access to concrete information online, helping students prepare for important lessons and learn certain concepts with great efficacy.
• Social media also helps parents stay involved in their child's learning and progress.
• Social media can improve literacy, communication, and reading skills by providing engaging online content.
• Social media provides distance learning opportunities for disadvantaged students who are not able to attend regular classes in person.
• Social media can contribute to improving academic performance and overall learning.
• Social media can be accessed via smartphones, tablets, and computers, making it easily accessible to learners.
• Social media can offer support with sharing documents and preparing for school projects.
• Social media can be used by teachers to connect with students and parents, offering a more interactive and engaging learning experience.
• High security must be maintained if minors are using social media websites, and parents should take steps to keep their children safe online.

Gamified Instruction: 8 Principles for Empowering Students to Own Their Learning

• Gamified instruction uses game mechanics to encourage learning.
• It is an approach to teaching and learning that leverages the Millennial mindset and the unique power of games to sustain interest and build commitment.
• The author of "Level Up Your Classroom" develops eight research-informed principles that support gamified instruction as an approach to teaching and learning.
• The first principle is that gamified instruction empowers students to own their learning.
• Gamified instruction also develops persistence, self-direction, social skills, and encourages students to build self-directed learning communities.
• The democratic and meritocratic nature of gamified instruction encourages risk-taking.
• Playful learning is a natural consequence of gamified instruction.
• A powerful sense of flow is an inherent part of gamified instruction.
• Gamified instruction is not the same as game-based learning (GBL).
• In gamified instruction, the teacher's work starts with the learning objective, and specific kinds of games are chosen to offer mechanics that can be mined for the teacher's gamified purpose.
• Machi Koro, a popular board game, can be used as an engine for gamified instruction.
• Teachers can use the Machi Koro engine to teach complex historical events, such as the Salem Witchcraft Crisis, in a way that encourages critical thinking and expansive learning.

Test your knowledge on protecting student privacy on social media with this informative quiz! Learn about the potential pitfalls of mixing professional work with social media, and how to establish transparent, FERPA-compliant policies to protect student privacy. Discover ways to use social media to share best practices, cultivate digital citizenship, and build more connected school communities while keeping student information safe. Take this quiz to ensure you are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to protect your students’ privacy on social media.