The Transformation of Socialization with the onset of Mobile Phones

The mobile phone has, and continues, to transform the social environment of those who interact with the devices.  Long gone are the days when someone was unreachable because they were not at home, at the store, or driving.  The mobile phone has become an extension of the human body for many individuals whom feel the device “not just on the material level but also on the level of one’s sense of physical self” (Katz, 2006), with this change also comes the loss of the sense of distance when communicating with others through the mobile phone, but this change also brings with it the loss of personalization and physical communication such as gestures, expressions, and the “ability to react adaptively to unpredictable encounters” (Katz, 2006).  Just recently, mobile phones have gained the capability of accessing the Internet as well.

            Now that the mobile phone has gained Internet access, it has made the daily lives of those wielding its power easier, but less personal, by allowing them to communicate through this media regardless of location.  This is quickly noticed when visiting the food court of a nearby shopping center where many individuals will be using the Internet for social media, perhaps even to the extent of instant messaging someone who is physically located with them.  By communicating through the Internet, the two people are able to communicate with each other on their terms, responding when they choose too, allowing the other participant to gather their thoughts appropriately and respond only when he or she is prepared to.  With the non-verbal and non-personal communication habits forming, and social cultures developing, social anxieties and personal inabilities may well be increasing on the horizon.

-Jason K.

References

Katz, J. (2006).  Mobile communication and the transformation of daily life:
The next phase of research on mobiles.  Retrieved November 25, 2011, from the SpringerLink Web site:  http://www.springerlink.com.dml.regis.edu/content/6th40u71y26h497d/fulltext.pdf

Is blended learning the future classroom?

Blending learning is an education practice that is quickly gaining momentum thanks to its potential to increase personalized student learning and to decrease per-student cost expenditures. Realizing this potential is the best case scenario but most blended learning models have not be in practice long enough for substantive research to exist on the impact of blended learning on student achievement. Despite the shortage of research, schools across the country continue to implement blended learning. So what exactly is blended learning? Students in a blended learning environment experience a blend of traditional teacher-led classroom instruction and students-led online instruction. This learning experience exists on a broad spectrum ranging from mostly online student-led instruction to mostly teacher-led instruction that is supplemented with online materials within a single class. This variety has created an incredible about of diversity in the field that is both exciting because of the ability to explore options but also worrisome because there aren’t any enforced quality standards. Blended learning has evolved over the past decade with the increased content creation and availability of online learning programs.

Understanding the demand for blended learning

Blended Learning: The Convergence of Online and Face-to-Face Education by John Watson provides an excellent overview of why schools are taking to implement blended learning in K-12 education. According to Watson, high student demand for online learning options is driving rapid growth of online courses available to schools. He states, “Thirty states and more than half of the school districts in the United States offer online courses and services, and online learning is growing rapidly, at 30% annually. This growth is meeting demand among students, as more than 40% of high school and middle school students have expressed interest in taking an online course.” In addition to pure student demand, many schools are also motivated to explore blended learning options because of the potential cost savings. Given the flattening of, and even reductions to, education funding (Roza, Lozier and Sepe, 2010) schools do need to identify means to reduce costs and blended learning offers the possibility of reduced costs while still offering personalized instruction for students. A handful of states (AL, FL, MI and UT) have even go so far as to require online learning as a state high school graduation requirement because they attest that online learning establishes a practice for life-long learning. Although this may sound surprising to some people, initiatives like Digital Learning Now, founded and led by former Governors George Bush and Bob Wise, encourage more states to make online learning a priority so there may be more than four states with online learning graduation requirements in the not-to-distant future.

Understanding the potential

Wherever a single blended learning practice falls on the pedagogical spectrum, Watson asserts that the goal of blended learning is to “combine the best elements of online and face-to-face learning.” Watson goes on to say that the blended learning approach will “emerge as the predominant model of the future — and to become far more common than either [online or traditional face-to-face instruction] alone.” If Watson is correct and blended learning is the future of education then it is important to better understand the potential benefits that I mentioned briefly at the beginning of this blog. First, blended learning models offer possible per-pupil cost savings. Rocketship Education, located in Palo Alto, is perhaps one of the best know examples of how a blended learning model has resulted in cost savings that Rocketship is then able to reinvest into their schools (i.e.: facilities, professional development) and to scale the model. A basic overview of their cost savings demonstrates $515K in annual savings on salaries and classroom costs versus a typical K-5 school model. Rocketship is just one example but it does demonstrate a significant amount of savings within a single year.

The second potential outcome for blending learning is the possibility of further personalizing a student’s learning experience. Technology has the capacity to increase a teachers’ effectiveness by providing students with online modules that will challenge students at the appropriate level – whether that means revisiting concepts that the teacher has already covered but the student didn’t fully grasp or offering more challenging opportunities to a more advanced student. The results of students’ online work can then be shared with the classroom teacher and that will inform the teachers’ instruction because the teacher will know more about the student – such as what gaps persist in their understanding of a concept.

It is important to note here that technology for cost savings or to promote personalization is a means to an end; technology is not a panacea for improving student achievement. Technology, in this case applied through blended learning, has unbelievable potential but it is important to apply technology through a student-centered approach. Technology can support a student but it is not the be-all-end-all.

Resources:

1) Michigan Department of Education, Michigan Merit Curriculum: Graduation Requirements FAQ (2007) www.michigan.gov/documents/mde/faq19_178611_7.pdf

2) Roza, Marguerite, Chris Lozier and Christina Sepe K–12 Job Trends Amidst Stimulus Funds: Early Findings. Accessed on November 24, 2011 from http://www.crpe.org/cs/crpe/view/csr_pubs/332

3) Staker, Heather et al. The Rise of K-12 Blended Learning: Profiles of emerging models (2011) Accessed on November 30, 2001 from http://www.innosightinstitute.org/innosight/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/The-Rise-of-K-12-Blended-Learning.pdf

4) Watson, John Blended Learning: The Convergence of Online and Face-to-Face Education (2008).

--Phil

Social Media – Where Old School Marketing Meets Technology

Follow us on Facebook or Twitter

The way people do business today goes beyond just having a local store, or a company having a website. Most people are familiar with Facebook or twitter as a wonderful way to stay in touch with family and friends; but big corporations are also aware of the benefits that social media can bring to their stores. This is why we see several corporations asking their customers to follow them on Facebook or twitter. Some examples are: Barnes and Noble, Athleta, Victoria’s Secret, The Weather Channel, and CNN. Those are just a few of the many corporations that use social media to advertise. Maybe not everyone will follow those specific brands that I just mention, but think about your favorite team sport, or maybe the martial art school where you trained; when people feel passion over their sports team, I bet more than one will click “I like.” Just one click and the incoming traffic begin to flow. Social media connects people, but also is a great method to advertise one’s business. The amount of traffic social media can bring to a business is a must have for anyone who is thinking to advertise online. It is fast, easy, convenient and best of all Free.

The two main ideas to consider when advertising a business are the tools and the study of the markets. Marcus & Taylor (2011) explain, “The tools of marketing are public relations, publications, social media, brochures, Websites, and networking” (p.15). The study of market refers to demographics information, motivation for buying and social class among many others.  It is important for a business as well as for a marketing company to set mutual expectations; clear and specific to avoid misunderstanding.   

RSS and Facebook     

 

Thanks to social networks, companies, artists, and business owners can see how many followers they have and the market that composes their business sector. Also, they can see the interest that people have and communicate in a way that is transparent. Campbell (2010) explains, “Blogs or websites should contain SEO, or search engine optimized, keywords and phrases that help visitors find the business when they search via Google, Yahoo, Bing, and others” (p. 76).  When creating a website or a blog, RSS feeds are useful links to the blog. Campbell (2010) mentions that “RSS feeds allow you to import content from outside sources and are a great way to share information that visitors find interesting” (p.76). People who use search engines are searching for information, education, products, and entertainment. So depending on the blog that the person is trying to create, RSS is a great tool which allows one to syndicate any type of information that a blogger wants to use in their blog. For example, in Facebook one follow a newspaper and it update the latest news. If one has a blog with RSS, then in the blog the latest news will be updated.

 

Why would a company ever want to use social networks to advertise their business?       

 One reason is word of mouth advertisement. Referral business usually is the best, it is free!  How many times does one see on a Facebook wall that a close friend likes a specific brand or restaurant? This causes those close to that person to go and check that out. Family members often mention something that they like to us, and then they invite us to like it as well. This simple sharing through facebook brings business owners potential customers and attention. It seems that word of mouth never fails. Another reason is fast, cheap, and has a considerable amount of traffic.

Carol H.

References

Campbell, D. (2010). WHAT'S YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY?.  Black Enterprise, 41(4), 74-76.

Marcus, B. W., & Taylor, S. T. (2011). Building a Firm for Now and the Future. Of Counsel, 30(8), 12-17.

 

 

Politics and Facebook

Politics and Facebook

Facebook has changed the face of politics. The 2008 presidential election is proof of that. In 2008, both the Democratic candidate, Barak Obama, and the Republican candidate, John McCain, utilized Facebook as a means to reach the younger and more internet savvy population. Not only did both parties have pages, they were both wildly popular. “… in the 2008 presidential election, all Democratic and Republican candidates established Facebook and MySpace profiles, and hundreds of thousands of social network sites (SNSs) users added them as ‘‘friends’’ (Fernandes, Giurcanu, Bowers, & Neely, 2010, p. 654). This new development has caused many political campaigners to change their plans and include a social media profile in their campaigning process.

Facebook Politics in the Future

This development had a major impact on the Presidential elections in 2008. “In fact, the use of Facebook for political purposes was so significant that it caused major news organizations like CNN to pose the question, ‘Will the 2008 presidential election be won on Facebook?’” (Woolley, Limperos, & Oliver, 2010, p.632). The use of Facebook can allow for mobilization of supporters, advertising products, and promoting debates. This new brand of campaigning also allows supporters to connect with one another, and even organize events on their own. “…as political candidates design their campaigns, the implementation of SNSs as a campaign strategy should take center stage to reach and communicate with these young voters” (Fernandes et al., 2010, p. 672). With its ease of use and amazingly far reach, Facebook campaigning is definitely something we will see in the future.

Samantha J.

References

Fernandes, J., Giurcanu, M., Bowers, K. W., & Neely, J. C. (2010). The Writing on the Wall: A Content Analysis of College Students' Facebook Groups for the 2008 Presidential Election. Mass Communication &
Society, 13(5), 653-675. doi:10.1080/15205436.2010.516865

Woolley, J. K., Limperos, A. M., & Oliver, M. (2010). The 2008 Presidential Election, 2.0: A Content Analysis of User-Generated Political Facebook Groups. Mass Communication & Society, 13(5), 631-652. doi:10.1080/15205436.2010.516864

Ethical Issues Involved With Blogging

Ethical issues
Blogging is a communication phenomenon that has really taken off for many companies as way of advertising new products for their business. Many people like to read the reviews about the products and use this information as a tool to whether or not to buy the product. Some big businesses allow their employees to set up blogs either using the corporate website while others might set up outside the companies firewall because of fear of disciplinary or legal actions of a particular topic.

Principles

“What are the principal legal and ethical issues related to anti-employer blogging” (Markel, 2009)? Some companies have incorporated a special confidentiality contract that they have employees sign to protect their interest and are included as a written policy in the employee handbook. Here are a few examples of the most common ideas from the handbook that are used in regards to blogging; act in professional manner, be aware of the law, cite your sources, and talk over any new ideas with your boss.

Making Changes

My husband enjoys writing editorials for our local paper, but sometimes he notices some of information has been left out. According to Tallant, (2009) the big question for most bloggers is who owns the information and should someone other than the blogger be able to edit the information? A newspaper in Spokane, Washington has been working on trying to critic the code ethics for their company (Tallant, 2009). The plan was to have everyone’s input regarding the code, which included holding lunch meetings to help gather the information for task force that has been assigned (Tallant, 2009). The staff worked very hard on gathering information to help create a code with appropriate language to cover other issues that may arise (Tallant, 2009). One way to help prevent these kinds of problems are for companies to encourage and allow input from their employees in regards to these blogging policies (Markel, 2009). Blogging is a way for individuals to give opinion about a subject matter. We all have the responsibility to post accurate factual information when blogging. The information we set out to blog about if not accurate could affect others livelihood.
Donna S
Reference
Markel, M, (2009), Anti-employer blogging; overview of legal and ethical issues, Journal of Technical Writing and Communication, 39, 2, pp. 123-139.
Tallant, B, (2006), Newspaper works to include blogging in the code ethics, Quill, pp. 27.