Education Publications School of

11-2019

Learning with : Bringing popular platforms into the classroom to develop , identity, and citizenship

Benjamin W. Gleason Iowa State University, [email protected]

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Recommended Gleason, Benjamin W., "Learning with social media: Bringing popular platforms into the classroom to develop literacy, identity, and citizenship" (2019). Education Publications. 190. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/edu_pubs/190

This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the School of Education at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Education Publications by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Learning with social media: Bringing popular platforms into the classroom to develop literacy, identity, and citizenship

Abstract Walk into almost any secondary school today and you’ll see students seemingly glued to their phones. A study from 2018 revealed that almost 50% of youth are online “almost constantly” and they’re often engaging with social media, whether watching videos on YouTube, participating in the latest dance craze on TikTok, checking , or making videos on Snapchat. Through these sites, young people are creating sophisticated digital stories, finding and sharing eler vant information, contributing to current discussions and, in short, developing digital literacy, digital citizenship, language, and other valuable 21st- century skills.

Disciplines Curriculum and Instruction | Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research | Educational Methods | Educational Technology | Higher Education

Comments This article is published as Gleason, B., Learning with social media: Bringing popular platforms into the classroom to develop literacy, identity, and citizenship. Literacy Today, Nov/Dec 2019; 26-28. Posted with permission.

This article is available at Iowa State University Digital Repository: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/edu_pubs/190 FEATURE

26 literacyworldwide.org | November/December 2019 | LITERACY TODAY LEARNING WITH SOCIAL MEDIA Bringing popular platforms into the classroom to develop literacy, identity, and citizenship By Ben Gleason

alk into almost any secondary school today and you’ll see students wseemingly glued to their phones. A study from 2018 revealed that almost 50% of youth are online “almost constantly” and they’re often engaging with social media, whether watching videos on YouTube, participating in the latest dance craze on TikTok, checking Facebook, or making videos on Snapchat. Through these sites, young people are creating sophisticated digital stories, finding and sharing relevant information, contributing to current discussions and, in short, developing digital literacy, digital citizenship, language, and other valuable 21st-century skills.

Teachers, museums, and other complement formal education and serve post, students develop language educational innovators are beginning to introduce marginalized voices into competency through the use of FlipGrid to introduce social media into their the curriculum. to record videos. Many students have learning environments, finding Third, as young people are reported that FlipGrid allows them to that social media can support the collaborating with others to tell learn language naturally and in a fun development of a number of valuable multimedia stories and curate and share way. literacy skills. information from diverse perspectives, Another exemplar comes from they are developing digital citizenship high school English teacher Jenna, through strategic participation in civic who uses to share images Educational benefits activities. and videos of her student work. What Teachers interested in integrating social Young people need to develop sets Jenna apart is her use of the media are finding many benefits. First, traditional and new literacy skills for full affordances, or possibilities, of the as young people are using sites such as political, economic, social, and cultural social media platform. In addition to Facebook, they are developing valuable participation in a global, mediatized posting images and videos, Jenna shares traditional literacy skills (e.g., attention world. videos of her stories in the platform’s to audience, grammar, and voice), as Story Highlights, which makes them well as digital/new literacy skills (e.g., permanently accessible. These stories constructing a story with other people Digital literacy, social media, are a way to make explicit connections through text and images/video). and classroom learning between the classroom and the real Second, social media facilitates Innovative teachers know the power that world through sharing links to learning learning new perspectives from diverse can be unleashed when social media resources. voices, and young people have noted is incorporated into the classroom. In Both teachers are making student that on social media they interact with Washington State, high school Spanish learning explicit, a high-value learning those who are different from them—in teacher Regina uses a wide range of practice that encourages students to gender, background, political affiliation, social learning tools to help her students demonstrate what they have learned. and so forth. These perspectives often develop digital literacy skills. In one They are also pairing digital literacy

LITERACY TODAY | November/December 2019 | literacyworldwide.org 27 activities, such as creating digital Parks and Recreation. In one episode, an Recommendations for content with FlipGrid, with traditional elderly character argued against hiring teachers literacy activities, such as close reading women because they are “frail” and and small-group discussion. By inviting “breakable.” The character Leslie Knope Social media provides a powerful way families, teachers, administrators, and cleverly retorts, “Is it possible you’re to create engaging spaces of learning others into the classroom, these teachers thinking about lightbulbs? Or your hip?” and literacy development. By meeting are working to create inclusive learning The use of humorous pop culture students where they are—literally and spaces that are open and accessible to references provided a way into the figuratively—teachers can support all. conversation about feminism, allowing learning by lowering barriers to Teachers can also incorporate Lori to challenge the nonsensical participation, offering opportunities high-quality content from real-world polemics of male chauvinism. Lori for students to develop powerful learning spaces, such as museums and developed an identity as a feminist social identities, and recognizing that historical organizations. One creative through her actions on social media. She meaningful education includes both example is from the Tower of London, tweeted information on the wage gap, offline and online activity. which has created a multimedia “choose shared her observations and opinions Teachers might find success your own adventure” narrative in which and, critically, received recognition for integrating social media when they Twitter users play by trying to escape statements like, “I don’t understand why center young people’s experiences, the Tower. You move through the story all women aren’t feminist. Feminism language, and youth culture as not by answering questions such as “You’re is about equal rights, not about just valuable but also as necessary kept in a small cell in the Salt Tower, making men inferior.” A key indicator with a guard who spends hours every day of learning with social media is the to the functioning of the class. right outside. Do you attempt to make development of a social identity that is Currently, much social media use conversation?” The correct choices will recognized by others. Over three years, in education seems to demonstrate eventually lead you to victory, but all Lori demonstrated her knowledge of teacher practices—what teachers are players will experience history through feminism by being known as a feminist. doing to support student learning. historical simulation. Examples of powerful learning The next step is to emphasize student Teachers should remember that abound. In the same study, a young learning—how young people develop there are many ways to integrate social man named Ryan demonstrated how critical literacy skills, express media, depending on local educational he developed digital citizenship by identities, and demonstrate digital context (i.e., school policies and current integrating traditional civics knowledge citizenship. learning practices), the motivation and (e.g., understanding the political At the same time, teachers can competence on the part of the teacher, process) and digital citizenship (e.g., honor youth practices that embrace and expectations on the part of families, taking part in a protest at his state multiple, diverse perspectives teachers, students, administrators, and capital). Ryan showed how social media by incorporating social media others. Teachers can begin where they could support his learning by offering feel comfortable and, keeping in mind accounts from nondominant a way to connect his online support for their educational goals, they can always communities. This practice not increased services for town residents “do more” later. only is pedagogically sound but with his offline political advocacy—in also provides a way to link real-life this case traveling to the state legislature experience with individual and to protest the cuts and ask for his town’s Mobilizing social networks for societal development. “fair share.” engaged learning Lori and Ryan’s experiences suggest Finally, social media can provide One major reason to incorporate social that social media can support powerful a way to engage in a pedagogical media into the classroom is that social learning and development by lowering strategy of concerted “listening,” media leverages the power of our social barriers to participation and providing a which can provide a way to develop networks—not only the technical space for young people to develop digital teacher–student relationships while resources, but also the human ability to citizenship by sharing knowledge, offering a way to better understand express opinions and build knowledge— connecting offline and online activities, young people’s capacities, to help us learn with, and from, other and leveraging student interests in competencies, and learning and people. service of expansive academic learning. development. In a study I conducted on adolescent literacy and learning with social media, I was astounded to see the range and depth of learning that occurred. Over three years, Lori, a young woman Ben Gleason ([email protected]) has worked in education for who initially voiced her opposition to the past 17 years, fi rst in youth development and then as a high anything related to feminism, developed school and college teacher in California, Guatemala, and Michigan. into a self-identified feminist. Key He now teaches and researches educational technology in the resources that played a part in her School of Education at Iowa State University. development were literacy artifacts such as memes referencing the hit TV show

28 literacyworldwide.org | November/December 2019 | LITERACY TODAY