Will We Push Them Off Facebook?

Steve Ritchie just wrote this post about making the case for social media engagement on edSocialMedia.  In the post he discusses new findings by iStrategy about Facebook demographics.  Specifically, Ritchie focuses on the jump in the number of 35 to 55 year olds joining Facebook.  Ritchie goes to state that because more parents and alumni are using Facebook schools must seriously consider using social media to attract and connect their school to the blossoming 35 to 55 demographic.

While this may be the case, I also saw a trend that cannot be ignored.

1)  The 35-54 year old demo is growing fastest, with a 276.4% growth rate in over the approximate 6 months since we last produced this report

2) The 55+ demo is not far behind with a 194.3% growth rate

3) The 25-34 year population on Facebook is doubling every 6 months

7) The largest demographic concentration remains the college crowd of 18-24 year olds (40.8%) which is down from (53.8%) six months ago.

While the percentage of 18-24 year olds may be down due to the increase of 35-55 year olds, I have a feeling that that trend will only increase.  Students do not want to be friended by their teachers, they do not want their parents to see their profile.  While schools may be investing in Facebook as a tool to recruit potential parents and alumni donors, sooner rather than later students will find another medium for their online presence.

So while we should invest in using social media as a tool for schools, we must realize that the trend will shift because no matter if it's 1909 or 2009, adolescents want to be different, they don't want to be like their parents.

I am happy to see that education is catching up to the idea of using new technologies to connect and communicate with their constituencies but they also must realize that Facebook is not a sliver bullet.  Trends change fast and Facebook may be useful now but don't bet the house on it.

As my boss, Antonio Viva, told me, "It's about the vision, not the tool".  Using social media in a school is the right call.  It is the way to communicate your message.  Unfortunately, if schools are looking to reach students, teachers, and alumni on one platform that is a mistake.  Students will begin to leave Facebook sooner rather than later and with the way schools work, that trend will be lost in a school's effort to catch up.

So, while I am happy to see more people join Facebook and schools wanting to utilize social media, don't be surprised when the 18-24 demographic on Facebook rapidly declines.

Photo Credit: Stabilo Boss

Teaching Through Social Networks: Help Someone

The following video by Seth Godin, author of Tribes, addresses a question that many teachers bring up.  How can social networks help teach?  While Godin's response is for marketers, the same concept applies in education.  Help someone.  If social networks (Facebook, Delicious, Twitter, Wikis, and Blogs) are used by classes to help others, this will be more powerful than any test the students will ever take.

Lets say students in a Biology class learn about AIDS and its role in Africa.  Rather than simply taking a test, the students could use their social networks to connect to a community in Africa that has been ravaged by AIDS.  The students would then Tweet about the community and what they are facing.  Using Delicious, the students would post links about the disease.   A fundraiser could be set up through Facebook and students could invite all their friends.  A blog could be dedicated to the effort of raising money and awareness about the true impact of AIDS.   If we used our social networks like this, we would not only help others, our students would learn a lot more about the content covered in class.

Social networks are not going away.  We must use them to our advantage. Use them to help others and learn from the experience.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OujgPgNCLvk

The Next Step

I have been thinking a lot lately about where teaching will go next. As mobile and cloud computing become more ubiquitous and globalization increases, collaboration and communication will define the success of an educational institution.  In the 2009 Horizon report, the authors state that some of the future trends in educational technology will only enhance these principles.

3 C's

While at Educon 2.1, Kendall Crolius, founding partner of The Sulevia Group, stated that the purpose of school is based upon the three C's: Creativity, Collaboration, and Courage.  Those three C's are the basis of what students need to learn and how we need to teach.  If our teaching does not address these three C's and I would add a fourth, Communication, we are doing our students a disservice.

Globalization

As our world becomes smaller and folks in New York must work live with their peers in Bejing, it is imperative that education help students develop the skills necessary to be prepared for the scope of collaboration needed for success.

The majority of our classrooms are not built for this kind of learning.  We must force our students to see beyond hardbound books and multiple choice tests to have them prepared for the world they will face after school.

How To Get There

If we are to maximize the global collaboration and communication stated in the Horizon Report, we must focus on developing programs like the Horizon Project 2008. The project brings schools from all over the world together to work on a common goal.  Programs like Skype, Ning, and Google Docs allow the ability to design an environment where students from around the world can communicate and work together.  It is this type of communication that will build a community and it is that community that will build the skills and understanding that our students require as they look ahead to their future.

Our model of education is outdated, are we ready to address this on the macro level?  I sure hope so.

Tech In 20: Technology Professional Development

The following presentation was given at Educon 2.1 hosted by the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia, PA on January 25, 2009.

The presentation focuses on how to maximize your faculty professional development by presenting topics in 20 minute chucks and supporting it with teacher led technical assistance.


Tech In 20: A New Vision For Professional Development from David Bill on Vimeo.

CoverItLive Session On How To Reform Our Schools

WA @ The Inauguration: The Documentary

Eric Rubino, one of the 11 students on our Inauguration trip created, edited, and published this video documenting our trip. Well done! Enjoy.


Worcester Academy @ The Inauguration from Eric Rubino on Vimeo.

The Educational Impact Of Our Inauguration Trip

I write this from Worcester, MA the day after returning from Washington, D.C. and our Inauguration trip. While in Washington, 11 students from Worcester Academy worked three 18 hour days, conducting interviews, producing videos, and writing blog entires examining the Inauguration. While it is obvious that experiencing the Inauguration alone is monumental, it is the work that the students have done and their intrinsic motivation that stands out in my mind.

Ever since this project was developed, the idea behind it was two fold.  My co-director, Pete Smith and I wanted our students to experience the Inauguration but just as important, was the educational potential the trip provided.  This trip was about giving our students the opportunity to document history and express themselves and their perspectives.  Watching my students wake up at 6am and for some to work until 1am the next morning was awe inspiring.  These students put their all into collecting and producing quality content about the Inauguration.  They spent time developing strong articles on real issues surrounding the Inauguration.  They had to develop questions and interview tactics for everyone from Dee Meyers, President Clinton's Press Secretary and Congressman James McGovern, to high school students.  The challenges they faced are one's journalists face on a daily basis and the work they created added a valuable perspective. The students recognized that they were not only witnessing history, they were documenting it and people were interested in what they had to say.

The Educational Impact

Our 11 students' focus and dedication that developed from this trip drives at the idea that the way students learn no longer can fit into a 19th century or even 20th century model.  The value of the students taking ownership of this trip to produce a quality article, image, video, or twitter update (tweet), outweighs any learning they would have gained through a lecture.  Brian, one of the students on the trip, stated the following on his Twitter account:

no it was a lot of work but it was much more fun than the work back here.....soooo maybe it was a vacation?

Today's students are capable and ready but we must engage them.  We must get them interested in learning.  This trip did that but it does not have to be the exception to the rule.

No matter the topic, whether it is the Inauguration or Geometry, when students can produce and share something of value, their willingness to really invest their time and energy will dramatically increase.  If we really want to find out how you can get your students to want to learn and be engaged, find a way to have them take ownership of the material.

Students today are surrounded by an amazing array of media tools.  These can be used by classes in any discipline to get your students to synthesize learned content and produce a something of value that highlights their understanding.  A student's education is not about simply learning facts but rather understanding the concepts.  If you want your students to really understand the content, they need to see its worth, they need to produce something of value connected to that content.  Regurgitating information does not work.

While social media was our medium for this, there are many ways and methods for a class to accomplish this concept.  Student driven learning is possible and necessary.  As the technology becomes more ubiquitous, we must prepare our students to understand that the tools they use on a personal level can produce quality content of value.

I witnessed history and I will never forget that but what will always stay with me was the dedication and efforts put forth by our students.  Their work is proof that student driven or project based learning is valuable and worthwhile.  As my memories of the Inauguration fade, it will be the dedication and hard work that our students put into producing their work on this trip that will always stay with me.

Photo Credit: Brandy Agerbeck

A cross-posting from http://wainauguration.org

Our First National News

So the Worcester Academy trip to the Inauguration got its first national mention today on USA Today. It mentions the trip and highlights a video from one of our applicants. Check out the link to read more.

Inauguration Update

The application process has ended and we have selected 11 students to travel to DC. Our inauguration site is now live.

To follow the trip's progress and find out what the students are doing leading up to and during the inauguration, visit the following site:

http://wainauguration.org