A question for #Mastodon instance admins from a skeptical educator who refuses to leave Twitter because she doesn’t understand why. So I thought I would ask on her behalf, then share the responses with her: “I really
want your opinion on this
platform. Since someone has
to pay for the “server”, I am
wondering what the host gets
back.”
What do you say, admins? #Edtech #education #Altruism #TwitterMigration
@mguhlin as a computer science teacher I have benefited from online professional communities but wished that they were not on platforms I rail against as being detrimental to our students and society.
I am willing to donate my money and, more importantly, my time to create a new space free of that stain. I hope that others well join me and share in the administrative and financial burden.
My investment is driven from the same place my teaching originates, hope for a better future for all.
@AlliFlowers @scerruti @mguhlin Applying the concept of scaffolding to this issue tells me that they need a safe, supported, non-public space to try, fail, make mistakes, get feedback about those mistakes, and learn-by-doing what works and what doesn't. I had great success introducing juniors and seniors to blogging this way. An authentic intro to copyright issues, digital citizenship, and web tech they wouldn't get otherwise.
@tedcurran @scerruti @mguhlin Sounds a little lime PBL.
@AlliFlowers @scerruti @mguhlin That's where I come from, so that makes 100% sense
@tedcurran @scerruti @mguhlin Nothing wrong with lime in your PBL. I’d object to lime in PB&J though.
Ted, I’m not sure walled gardens work for young adults or teens. There is something to be said for exposing middle and high school students to the open web, making their work subject to viewing, but having strong moderation in place…so you can use unfortunate occurrences as teachable moments, but not show-stoppers. Otherwise, no one would do anything unless they wanted to get into trouble. :-) For K-5 students, I have no objections. But at some point, young people year to connect with a world outside the one carefully cultivated for them. It is artificial and they know it. Instead, we must model how to best behave and act in the public sphere and invite them to do so with us. @tedcurran @AlliFlowers @scerruti
@mguhlin @tedcurran @scerruti So what we need is more curation than moderation?
Wouldn’t you need both? You need to model curation but also have moderation in place that is selective about what outside contacts are allowed in. But I could be wrong. What worked for me as a parent may not be what I would enforce as policy in a K-12 school. As a tech director, I realized that this has to be a community conversation handled by our most skillful educational leaders (not always the person holding institutional authority, like a superintendent or principal/head).
And, that the worst of our fears may happen but is unlikely, making draconian controls unnecessary. You should be prepared to act, but not hold others back in learning and exploration and learning as much as possible through “real life exposure.”
I do endorse a problem-based teaching approach after building a strong foundation.
@mguhlin @tedcurran @scerruti Which also means including all our stakeholders. In K-12, we’re not always good at that.
Trojan horse
@AlliFlowers @tedcurran @scerruti Amen, include even the stakeholders who have an agenda to end public schools because they are havens of wokeness. Consider the attached image in all its problematic glory. While I see “wokeness” as a good thing, an awareness that all we know about the structures (cultural, economic, political) has a foundation in systemic racism, others see as a challenge to their very way of life and their belief structures. What I see as an awakening, a better understanding of the truth, they see as a serpent in the garden. @AlliFlowers @tedcurran @scerruti
Trojan horse
@mguhlin @tedcurran @scerruti Another good reason to offer appropriate “PD” to parents.
Trojan horse
@mguhlin @AlliFlowers @scerruti It's well known that higher levels of educational attainment lead to more liberal views. This threatens conservative people and institutions, and they've worked to make "woke" a bad word the way they smeared "liberal" a generation before. Educators need to be staunchly committed to democracy and justice, of greater dignity for marginalized people, and pro-social values to counteract the ignorant and unjust.
Trojan horse
@tedcurran @AlliFlowers @scerruti Amen, preach it!
@mguhlin @AlliFlowers @scerruti I didn't say "walled garden", I said non-public. Blogs (and Mastodon) can be unlisted, invisible to search engines, so that the only people who can find it are people who know to look for it. That should be the default to recommend to young learners. They can then choose to make their work public if/when they're ready.
@tedcurran @AlliFlowers @scerruti I see what you mean. Thanks for the clarification.
@scerruti @AlliFlowers Stephen, I’m not sure we can make it safer except by law, and there are many spaces beyond the control of adults in one locale. To motivate children, we first have to teach them how to interact well, build trust, and learn. That is a job, as Dr. Flowers points out, for parents or teachers in loco parentis. A few thoughts that remain true from my perspective: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/in-loco-parentis_b_771926
@AlliFlowers @scerruti Yes, they do. Society is split (in America) down the middle…I love George Lakoff’s “Don’t Think of An Elephant” because he captures the perspectives in play. Add to that mix a more radicalized Christian Nationalist perspective, and being a teacher today means doing nothing, saying little, that would oppose parents eager to take umbrage at the work of teaching.
I’m reminded of my high school religion teacher, who dogmatically refused to ever share her perspective, instead asking questions to see what students might come to think on their own.
Book link: https://www.chelseagreen.com/product/the-all-new-dont-think-of-an-elephant/
@AlliFlowers @scerruti Dr. Flowers, while I agree, human teens have a long history of appropriating adult spaces for their own, safe or not. It’s part of their becoming adults.
As a parent of two adults, for me, the key was building trust and openness into the use of social media tools, setting clear expectations for how we would all behave. Then, accepting that I wouldn’t have any control over how they chose to interact with others. I am grateful that they made mistakes during the trust/open period, so that I could suggest alternative ways of interacting with others.
I’m sure they goofed up on their own, but I am confident of their overall trajectory of use was kind, helpful, and responsible.
@AlliFlowers @mguhlin I started thinking about this after some human trafficking training which said that children fall victim because there are no safe spaces on the Internet. Kids are on the Internet, that won't change, can we make it safer?
How can we motivate children to stop using public social networks if there isn't a better alternative?