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| Image credit: http://www.ed.gov |
In every timezone, social media's positive dent on our field of education is felt by many. The connected educators, parents & students who helped #TEDTalksEd trend tonight realize that social media tools like Twitter and Facebook, feared at first, are now ripping down classroom and home-school walls while allowing teaching and learning to transparently take place on the part of educators, students, parents and community members.
Here in the USA, reality TV shows are still fairly popular in many circles, but there's one area that we haven't harnessed the potential of - a channel focused on innovative teaching, learning and leadership. Ontario, Canada has a wonderful network and online platform called TVOParents, but it does not yet offer interactive opportunities that include social media during their broadcasts.
So let's just say EdTV 2.0 returns for the start of school. Here are a few features I'd look for...
10 innovative ways to use EdTV 2.0
- The channel's free programming, available on TV and streaming live on the Internet, is selected according to the needs of students, teachers and families. These needs are different everywhere and social media offers opportunities to differentiate offerings.
- All archived shows are part of an "On-Demand" option on the Internet and on cable providers offerings.
- Like the #TEDTalksEd hashtag, the hashtag #EdTV is used around the world to discuss, in real-time, the programming offered.
- Conversations continue well after tweets are sent, posts written and episodes shared.
- Some LIVE episodes take place around timely topics according to the time of school year, with social media adding to these conversations, and expanding "voice" on what we need to teach and learn in 2013. (Sample September episode- Maximizing Back to School Night at your school)
- On Tuesdays at 12EDT and 7EDT, #edchat trends on Twitter. Topics range and discussion is jam packed with resources and perspectives. What if there were social media interactive shows where they discussed thought-provoking tweets coming in and allowed others around the globe a way to participate? What if THIS was what we had on in our faculty rooms during the day?
- Using hashtags like #edchat, #ptchat, #globaled, #satchat, #cpchat #elemchat #digcit #ntchat #edtechchat #sbgchat #5thchat #ellchat and others are LIVE-broadcasted during nightly chats for those who prefer the visual to he tweet, or a mixture of the two . Each of these hashtag "channels" could have their own spot and topic for discussion.
- Show guests include leading researchers, gurus, parents, students, educators on a given topic. The key focus is sharing the teaching and learning happening everywhere.
- For those on the way to work, local radio and Internet radio would have the audio of these professional development conversations streaming. Heard something you want to push forward on - use it as a PTA Meeting or faculty meeting starter. The key here is that the programming becomes immediately applicable to practice, much like resources found on social media are shared in schools by 140 characters of text every day.
Will Richardson says we must be bold and think about how to harness and amplify the benefits of social media in education. Connected educators sharing their craft on a daily basis inspire us to be better than we thought was our best. If we add something resembling EdTV 2.0 to the mix, we can connect the benefits of social media and meet much of our society where they still are - on TV and on the radio, making formal education and personal learning something more innovative, fun and interactive for all stakeholders, even the currently unconnected.
Sir Ken Robinson asks us to imagine how our collective voice can start a real movement.
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