Social media in the university classroom used in order to mirror the real world in classroom discussion

In North Carolina, about 100 ninth-grade students in four schools in North Carolina have been issued smartphones for use in their math classes. They use the phones to network among themselves on problems, receive instruction from teachers, play math-improving games, or watch an animation showing the problem being solved.

In Dominique Chargois's Spanish III classes, students interact with native Spanish speakers on Livemocha, a social network for learners of foreign languages. Chargois has used Livemocha Active Spanish as a supplemental learning tool in all of her Spanish III sections in order to engage students and inspire them to learn ad so they could work at their own pace. It also helps expand students' horizons by 'chatting' with individuals who live outside the U.S.

In this L.A. class of Mr. Legaspi, students use cell phones and computers and type off 140 character answers on Twitter when he asks questions. The teacher states he uses the popular social networking site to make his classes energetic. According to him, using Twitter has been very productive in his classroom, helping engage students in the material and is especially powerful for shy students who wouldn't usually speak up in class.

http://www.edweek.org/dd/articles/2010/06/16/03networking.h03.html M. Gottlieb Day School in Jacksonville, Fla. Ms. Tolisano launched her "Around the World With 80 Schools" project with a goal to introduce her school's students to peers in countries around the globe. She built a social-networking site using Ning for teachers from all countries who wanted to participate. Tolisano sets up meetings between classes using Skype, students prepare a list of questions and chat with students in Canada, Finland, New Zealand, and Spain, among a long list of others.

http://mrssmoke.onsugar.com/Travel-Buddy-Projects-Part-II-3064829
This project integrate geography and writing with technology. Individuals/students agree to take kids from a particular school (Patriot Kids) on field trips/vacations and upon return, e-mail a picture from the vacation and an article telling the school about the trip. These stories and pictures appear on their 'Traveling With the Patriot Kids' blog.

A Missouri teacher, Ms. Venosdale and her students bring the world -- virtually -- through a project called KnowGlobe. They regularly talk with students on other continents while at the same time learning about time zones, cultural differences, global weather patterns, and the state of education worldwide. If they come up with a project question that requires the expertise of an astronaut, space engineer, or Egyptologist, they ask their teacher to "tweet it out" and track down an expert for a Skype interview.
http://greatdaytolearn.com/knowglobe/
Skype in the classroom https://education.skype.com/

Matthew Stoltzfus, an OSU chemistry professor, teaches about 350 students in one lecture hall and uses social media helps him to track students' progress in "real time." Students bring cellphones or laptops to class to answer questions by messaging in to a number given to them, instead of using the traditional clicker in the class.

Twitter is also used in Stoltzfus' classes. He gives his students his personal Twitter handle, and they decide whether to follow him from their accounts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmpykXJapyg

Grade 1/2 students in Kristen Wideen's class study tadpoles and frogs. In her class, she incorporates video conferencing, blogging, creating videos and books, teaching and learning from other peers in the classroom. Her students have shared math stories with a class in Iowa and frog data with a class in Singapore. They engage in social media as part of their daily routine by checking their class Twitter account, blogging during literacy centers, and checking on their tadpoles via live web cam.
https://twitter.com/1stGradeThinks
http://www.mrswideen.com/2013/06/the-magic-of-social-media.html

Very interesting to see the relationship/benefits of CoPs in Special Education.

In this article, the author does some 'digging' in order to unearth the origins of PLNs

In this post, an educator likens student's personal learning network to virtual lockers where they store what they learn and produce academically and otherwise.

A great slide show with images and short descriptions of how an individual uses online resources for his own personal learning as well as the definition of connectivism.

The author addresses concerns about the feelings of isolation that can stem from the use of technology (in the sense that it is utilized to the exclusion of in-person connections) but makes sure to point out the benefits of technology as evidenced by Personal Learning Networks.

The article's author briefly touches upon the principles of Connectivism as well as a definition which includes the statement that "Connectivism focuses on the inclusion of technology as part of our distribution of cognition and knowledge."

This article provides a very detailed introduction and definition of Connectivism as well as its components: Chaos Theory, Importance of Networks, Complexity and Self-Organization.

This post's author discusses the differences between Social Learning (where learning is generally unorganized and done by observing, talking, questioning and learning is often not formal or unintenational) and Communities of Practice where learning is more intentional and happens between communities of individuals with common interests.

In this article, the author cites Ettiene Wenger (one the two theorists who coined the term 'Communities of Practice') and summarizes its definition. The quote she includes succinctly and clearly explains communities of practice as: "groups of people who share a concern or a passion for something they do and learn how to do it better as they interact regularly."

This report explores the status of 'connectivism' as a learning theory for the digital age and asks the question: Does Connectivism still meet the needs of today's learners, and anticipate the needs of learners of the future?

This articles defines Connectivism is an emergent theory of learning relating to the importance of networks (connections) in learning for individuals and groups: