Social Networking: Should they be banned in schools?

OHHH!!!!

Did you know that Brittney isn't dating Brian anymore? And that theres an upcoming event this weekend? Or that Jason's zombie was attacked and he lost 200 points??? Yeah...I know. But honestly, don't even pretend that you don't know what I'm talking about.

"According to the survey done in the article by eschool news, 96 percent of the U.S. students ages 9 to 17 who have internet access use social-networking technology to connect with their peers."

96%??? In other words the majority of teens spend a great deal of time on the computer. Whether it be on Facebook, MySpace, or even LiveJournal, they are typing away to their fellow peers. In fact, "students also say they are spending nearly as much time using social-networking services and web sites as they spend watching television. Among teens who use social-networking sites, that amounts to about nine hours a week online, compared with 10 hours a week watching TV. "

Unfortunately though most schools ban these sites from the students and prohibits them to use them in the school (more than 8 in 10 districts.) And ecspecially in schools today, a large amount of teachers assign homework that must be completed through the use of the internet. "This means that schools might be starting to use the internet more effectively. This may also encourage students to use the internet and get used to the important research tool."

Social networking is also great practie for anyone. It allows students to gain more knowledgable information on computers and other technologies. For example:

Activities on social networking tools:

1.writing

2.art

3.collaborative projects

4.uploading pictures that they made or they took

5.uploading video that they made

I believe if we can somehow find a way to utilize these different social networkings, we could use that to keep the students attention and make learning even more fun. After all, that is our job.

Link to article:

http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showstoryts.cfm?Articleid=7304

Highschool.com: The Virtual Classroom Redefines Education

Christina Wood author of the article, Highschool.com: The Virtual Classroom Redefines Education, discusses the increasing popularity of virtual schools. Virtual schooling allows students to trade in the typical classroom setting for text messaging. The origin of virtual schooling can be traced back to 1996 when the Concord Consortium and Hudson Public Schools, both in Massachusetts, partnered and created VHS, the virtual high school project. Their goal was to, “pool teaching resources and increase course offerings to high schools”. Many states, including Florida have followed suit to create VHS programs of their own to offer virtual courses. According to this article, in 2002-03 nearly 300,000 high schoolers attended online classes. Virtual schools give students the chance to take advanced placement classes or classes not offered at their school online. The results of these classes are shown in the students to who achieve things they thought where impossible. One example of the positive benefits of virtual classrooms is demonstrated by online computer-science courses which helped Daniel Spangenberger, of Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, get accepted into Carnegie Mellon University -- and earn a scholarship to pay for it. "Those courses expanded my field of study and my knowledge in areas that my small high school couldn't," he explains. "There was no way I would have been able to start as a sophomore in my computer-science study at Carnegie Mellon without those classes." In addition to high schools, the National Education Technology Plan released by the U.S. Department of Education in January states that, “Approximately twenty-five percent of K-12 public schools offer some form of virtual instruction in the classroom”. Virtual classrooms are also becoming increasingly popular in rural areas.
There are many different types of technologies used in a virtual classroom. Technologies used include digital whiteboards, animations, labs, threaded discussion forums, group projects, blogs and e-mails. The use of technology often allows the interaction to occur faster than in a typical classroom. Also, virtual classrooms provide the opportunity for immediate feedback.

Students enjoy the benefits that virtual classrooms have to offer such as:
* Larger selection of course offerings, including advanced courses.
* Freedom to complete work when they decide to.
* Immediate feedback.
* Freedom of expression for all students.
* Interactions with students throughout the world.
* Flexibility to participate in extracurricular activities or jobs.

Although virtual classrooms are poplar, they still have some problems. One problem is underfunding. Many classrooms are physically crumbling down because of the lack of government funding. Another issue is the difficulty in recruiting principal and teachers. Additionally, the quality and training of teachers create problems in creating quality courses. Student work ethic is another issue that is being explored. According to Matt Wicks, director of virtual learning at Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, “Students must be willing to take responsibility for their own learning”.
Virtual classrooms provide a great tool in the field of education. This article reports that within the next ten years blended learning, that is some online and some in the classroom, will likely become the norm. Students will participate in virtual classrooms to supplement in class learning. It is important to remember, as this article points out that, “Schools are essential institutions in the community. Schools play a tremendous role in socialization and in the community”.

< http://www.edutopia.org/high-school-dot-com>