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ILS SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES FOR LEARNING AND TEACHING – FOR STAFF AND STUDENTS

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ILS – SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES FOR

LEARNING AND TEACHING – FOR STAFF AND STUDENTS

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Social media guidelines for learning and teaching

Information and Learning Services

April 2014

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Copyright

The University of Worcester, Social Media Guide for Learning and Teaching is licensed

under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike .Licence

Acknowledgements

This work was created by Tim Johnson (Adviser in Digital Literacy, Information and Learning

Services) with support from Dr John Peters (Academic Development and Practice). The

Guidelines were influenced by the work of:

Queensland University of Technology http://www.els.qut.edu.au/docs/SocialMediaGuidelines.pdf

University of Westminster Students Unionhttp://uwsu.com/files/ict_charter_final.pdf

London School of Economics Public Policy Grouphttp://blogs.lse.ac.uk/impactofsocialsciences/files/2011/11/Published-

Twitter_Guide_Sept_2011.pdf

University of Western Sydneyhttp://policies.uws.edu.au/download.php?id=470

University of Tasmaniahttp://www.utas.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/82843/Social-Media-Guidelines.pdf

University of Melbournehttp://socialmedia.unimelb.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/UoM-Social-Media-

Guidelines.pdf

University of Michiganhttp://voices.umich.edu/docs/Social-Media-Guidelines.pdf

University College Londonhttp://www.ucl.ac.uk/social-media/guidelines

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ContentsIntroduction..............................................................................................................................4

An Important Note................................................................................................................5

Scope...................................................................................................................................5

1. Guidelines for good practice................................................................................................7

1.1 Considering the use of social media..............................................................................9

1.1.1 The issue of choice..................................................................................................9

1.1.2 Piloting and evaluation..........................................................................................13

1.1.3 Identifying with the University................................................................................14

1.1.4 Technical support..................................................................................................14

1.1.5 Support in choosing the appropriate tool, and in preparing for use.......................16

1.2 Utilising social media....................................................................................................16

1.2.1 Considerations for engaging..................................................................................17

1.1.3 Photographs and other images.............................................................................19

1.1.4 Clarity of role.........................................................................................................20

1.3 Sustaining and managing the use of social media.......................................................20

1.3.1 Maintaining, updating and archiving......................................................................20

1.3.2 If things go wrong..................................................................................................21

2 Examples of Use.................................................................................................................22

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Social media guidelines for learning and teaching

Introduction

The University of Worcester recognises the important role social media technologies play in

enabling people not only to communicate and collaborate with each other, but also to create,

share and consume content. The uptake of social media has opened up new ways of

learning and teaching, creating new practices and requiring the development of new skills for

educational communities. The rapid growth in Web 2.0 tools and other emerging

technologies, often located outside university managed environments, has occurred

alongside the steady growth in blended learning in Higher Education, with students

becoming increasingly active communicators, collaborators and creators of content in a

virtual community.

Learning and teaching activities now take place both in physical and virtual spaces with a

range of tools, including learning management systems, other university supported

applications and tools, and, increasingly, a variety of public domain social media (Facebook,

Twitter, blogs, wikis, virtual worlds, mash-ups, video-sharing sites, etc.).

These Social Media Guidelines aim to provide guidance to all staff and students in the use of

social media that add value to the educational experience. The guidelines are intended to

provide advice which will help staff and students to successfully engage in social media to

promote effective learning. For those concerned about protect themselves from any

unexpected or undesirable outcomes as a result of their engagement with social media, the

Guidelines also provide advice. The guidelines are intended to enable and encourage the

use of social media tools for everyone who currently uses social media and for those who

have yet to engage with them.

These Guidelines are divided into two parts:

Guidelines for Good Practice

Suggestions for Use

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An Important Note

Any discussion of the use of social media in learning and teaching needs to acknowledge

that:

There is a natural tension between the more open and networked design and practice

that characterises social media, and some of the more formal characteristics currently

evident in most Higher Education Institutions.

Considerable cultural change is happening as a result of the use of new technologies

for communication, for some this cultural change is exciting, for some it is frightening

At the same time, social media are increasingly becoming important communication

and collaboration tools used not only by students but also in industry and commerce.

Universities not only provide the means to learn about a particular discipline they also

provide the means to learn how to successfully engage in everyday life and

employment which includes the safe, sensible and secure use of social media.

There is an increasing body of knowledge that demonstrates the positive effect the

use of social media can have on effective learning

Learning issues, that are hidden in contemporary education practice, are often

highlighted by the use of social media enabling them to be addressed as part of the

curriculum

It is recognised by National and European bodies that Digital Literacy (including the

effective use of social media) are important graduate skills that need to be embedded

in the curriculum

These issues, which are at the heart of the debate around social media use in formal

education, should be considered when using this document.

Scope

Although it is acknowledged there is often considerable overlap between some teaching and

marketing activities these guidelines attempt to address these as separate issues.

These guidelines apply to the use of social media in University of Worcester learning and

teaching activities. As such these guidelines are intended to encourage the use of social

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media and place these technologies firmly within the academic values of intellectual

freedom, rigour, honesty and openness.

Official use of social media for marketing and communication (as opposed to learning and

teaching) purposes for University of Worcester are covered by the Communication and

Development Department.

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1. Guidelines for good practice

Incorporating social media into learning and teaching practice should be a decision

made when planning first starts, right at the beginning of the curricula creation or

(re)development for a module or course. In defining the use of social media in module

or course documents staff should bear in mind the constantly changing nature of this

milieu and, therefore, no particular social media should be stated in these documents.

The purpose for the use of social media and how that is supported by research should

be sufficient for the main course or module document. You might find this video from

University of Oxford helpful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPiveb47UUw .

Social media should be chosen for the potential they have for being most effective in

ensuring the desired learning outcomes are achieved (whether the outcomes are

Intended, Desired, Unintended or Learner Created). As a general principle, use of

social media should be embedded into the curriculum rather than being an added tool

(or activity) to University of Worcester supported learning technologies (many of the

programmes used in the University are “unsupported technologies” and include such

common things as SPSS, Invivo and social media). Current practice indicates that

social media are utilised most effectively (Wankel, 2010):

• if a particular requirement is not easily met within supported tools (i.e.

the central learning tools such as Blackboard)

• as a strategy to enhance communication or engagement

• as an alternative way of exploring a concept or experience

• as a means to improve the agility of the curriculum

This guide provides advice on procedure under three headings:

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1.1 Considering the use of social media

1.2 Utilising social media

1.3 Sustaining and managing social media.

Future iterations of this document will consider the rapidly changing role and place of

social media in learning and teaching and provide guidelines accordingly.

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1.1 Considering the use of social media

This section mainly applies to University staff but education students keen to use social

media in their courses and students planning a presentation that includes social media

might find this information useful too.

People planning to use social media in their teaching should focus on the desired

learning and teaching outcomes — at a course and module level — first, decide on the

strategies most likely to achieve the learning outcomes, and then consider the

appropriate tools or platforms that might enable those strategies to be met.

1.1.1 The issue of choice

The first thing you want to think about of course is, what do I want to achieve. We tend

to lump all social media together and, at first, they all seem to do more or less the same

thing. In one sense they do, they all help people to network but they all do it in slightly

different ways and with slightly different results. You need to think about what you want

the end result to be, do you want:

something that students can return to at any time after the event

to display results of student’s activities such as photographs or videos

a long conversation, a critical discussion or immediate reactions

students to create a social media site in groups or individually

the work in the social media to be mandatory or voluntary

to encourage the engagement of people from outside the University such as

employers or work placement mentors

students to collaborate with other universities and/or leaders in your discipline

At this point you need to marry your knowledge of learning theories to the type of

learning technology and the activity you wish to pursue.

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You will also need to think about how you will get people to engage with the activities

you are planning. For most people this will be something new. People might have used

the social media tool before but they might not have used it in an education setting

before. This can be very confusing for some people as, even today, social media are

often thought of as “entertainment” rather than as something you use for work. You

need to think about how you will present the activity and what you will tell people about

it to encourage them to engage with it in a meaningful way.

Some staff and students may initially be uncomfortable in certain social media

environments. This is not unexpected; as mentioned in the Important Note on page 4,

social media in Higher Education is comparatively new and, therefore, can create

conflicting feelings. These conflicts are usually related to teaching and learning styles

and inexperience with social media; they are not related to age or social background

(Jones and Hafner 2012). These are some of the concerns that people mention:

concern about “loss of control” of the teaching environment

fears about the “safety” of social media

feelings of inadequacy in relation to skills in modern technologies

concern about students being asked to learn skills apparently in addition to the

“content” of the course or module

concern about students being excluded as a result of lack of access to certain

technologies

concern about the time it will take for staff and students to become comfortable

with using social media

It is important to expect some or all of these questions to arise and to deal with them

before people become over anxious about them. Provide information and training in

the tools and platforms people will be using. The training is assimilated better if it is

interspersed with discussions with people who have previous experience of using

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social media in teaching. People’s concerns and anxieties should not be brushed

aside, there should be opportunities for issues to be freely and openly discussed.

Those who are almost blindly enthusiastic and those who are almost phobic about

social media need to find the middle ground, it does exist (Jones and Hafner 2012).

Good areas of learning theory to explore for research evidence on the support of

social media in education are: social learning, constructivism, connectivist learning

theory, experiential learning and communities of practice. You might find such sites

as ESCalate (http://escelearn.wordpress.com/) from University of Leeds and

Web2practice by JISCNetskills

http://www.netskills.ac.uk/content/projects/2008/JISC-web2practice/index.html

helpful in your discussions. Some documents such as Researchers of Tomorrow by

JISC and the British Library

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/publications/reports/2012/researchers-of--

tomorrow.pdf and Developing Digital Literacies by JISC

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/publications/briefingpaper/2012/

Developing_Digital_Literacies.pdf can also be very useful for stimulating discussion.

There are also plenty of documents on research into the efficacy of social media in

learning. Here are a few you might like to look at:

The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades (2011)

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2729.2010.00387.x/full

Using microblogging to facilitate Community of Enquiry : an Australian tertiary

experience (2011)

http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/hobart11/downloads/papers/Sinnappan-

full.pdf (You can search papers from all other ascilite conferences too:

http://www.ascilite.org.au/index.php?p=conference )

Learning by Tweeting: using Twitter as a pedagogical tool (2011)

http://jmd.sagepub.com/content/33/2/193.short

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The use of online social networking for higher education from an activity theory

perspective (2010)

http://people.eng.unimelb.edu.au/sherahk/Papers/2010/PACIS_2010.pdf

Educational use of social networking technology in higher education (2010)

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13562517.2010.507307

Microblogs in higher education – a chance to facilitate informal and process-

orientated learning (2010)

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360131509003418

A web 2.0 based collaborative annotation system for enhancing knowledge sharing

in collaborative learning environments (2010)

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360131510000886

Once a course of action for the module or course is agreed there must be no

opportunity for opting out of using social media. No one opts out of lectures; where

disabilities cause problems, ways are found to accommodate the member of staff or the

student to overcome this problem without disrupting the other students, module or

curriculum. It must be understood that the same process must be followed with social

media; the problem must be overcome without disrupting either students, module or

curriculum.

Where social media are an integral part of the assessment and/or the creation of a

social media account is a requirement of the module, this must be clearly articulated in

the Course Handbook and the module outline. Students are thus made aware early in

their studies of how important it is to access any training in modern media that the

University or their Module Leader provides for them.

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1.1.2 Piloting and evaluation

Although it is not possible to carry out a full research project into the learning

experience of using a particular social media every time, there are some times when a

short assessment and evaluation of the media prove useful. When deciding which

social media might be most useful to a group, it is recommended to conduct a trial with

a smaller group first before finally deciding on using the tool. Where possible the small

group should represent the range of technical skills such classes usually exhibit. The

piloting of the social media is about the ease of use of the media, therefore, students

should be asked to compare and contrast their experiences in using two different social

media in the trial. Those in the pilot should concentrate on the ease (or otherwise) of the

use of the human-computer interface and the advantages and disadvantages, in

communicating with others, using the different media. Asking students whether they

“liked” the media is insufficient. Besides helping you to decide which media you will

use, all the information you obtain from this exercise will be helpful in planning training

exercises and leaflets for people.

When using social media in a module or course it is important to constantly review and

evaluate the effectiveness of the media. The evaluation should include not just the

ease of use of the media but also its suitability for the learning experience. That is not

to say that people should exhibit knee jerk reactions to every positive or negative

experience or comment. However, it should be possible to review changes in

technologies and student behaviour in relation to those changes over a period of time.

For this type of review and evaluation the method and period of data collection and

analysis must be decided during the planning of the course or module, well in advance

of any data collection. This allows for an accurate evaluation of the effect of the media

on student learning.

1.1.3 Identifying with the University

Many people are unaware of exactly what is provided by the University, this is

particularly the case where social media are used. Social media are provided and

controlled by organisations outside the University but utilised in modules at the

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University’s behest. Everyone should be aware that, owing to the wide range and rapid

change of these media, support for these resources is beyond the remit of the

University. Some guidance in the use of social media is provided by the Adviser in

Digital Literacy and, where they exist, communities of practice provide support within

the University. It is also important that everyone should be aware that, where they are

provided, the use of these resources is an integral part of their module or course. For

these reasons it is expected that, in the first instance, students will access the social

media from a link within Blackboard. This provision also allows for those who are less

technically able to find a link to the resource.

Some social media provide the opportunity for you to use your own colours and/or

images. The University provides guidance on what colours, logos and fonts to use. If

there is little or no marketing element to the activity it is often unnecessary to ask for

guidance from the Communication and Development Department but you might find the

University of Worcester Identity Guidelines helpful and you should read the Social

Media Policy (Responsible Use of). If you intend to use the University logo or pictures

you should ask for advice from Communication and Development on how to use these

on your site.

1.1.4 Technical support

Many programmes and technologies that people use in the University are considered,

“unsupported” by the University. This does not mean that people cannot use these

programmes or technologies, it just means that the University does not provide a

designated expert person or group who provides training or technical support for them.

When planning to use any non-University provided or unsupported technologies,

including social media, people need to consider that they will not be able to call on the

IT Helpdesk if they have difficulties using the tool of choice. Part of the remit of the

Adviser in Digital Literacy, however, is to try to find ways of providing support for these

“unsupported” technologies. You will find an increasing number of alternative methods

of support available and it is hoped that one of these will be communities of practice

based around the different technologies.

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It is not unusual for staff and students to provide one another with support when using

new or unfamiliar technologies; the same courtesies will, no doubt, be extended in

respect of social media. Staff and students may need to be prepared to assist less

technically able colleagues and friends in their use of the tool, or be able to point them

to support resources offered by the social media provider in question. Some are

identified below (these are links, urls are in the References section) but you will often

also find a “community help” blog or forum on most social media sites.

Facebook Data Use Policy

Facebook Help Centre

Twitter Privacy Policy (https://twitter.com/privacy)

Getting Started with Twitter

Troubleshooting Twitter

YouTube Help

Wordpress Forums

Flickr Help

SlideShare Forums

If properly prepared, people should have nothing to fear from the learning demands of

new technologies. As in any other situation relating to a course or module, it is the

responsibility of the module or course leader to ensure that lecturers and people

teaching on modules have acquired the necessary knowledge and skills in order to use

the media in the module.

As the safe and responsible use of social media is an employability issue, some

responsibility for learning to use social media rests with the learner (see Developing

Digital Literacies JISC, 2012). There are various support resources available and

people are encouraged to avail themselves of these resources right from the beginning

of their academic career. For students this could apply to periods both before attending

University and during Induction Week. The Students’ Union is just one place that has

many knowledgeable and able helpers.

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1.1.5 Support in choosing the appropriate tool, and in preparing for use

It is advisable to create a support network right from the start of planning the course,

module or session. You should seek information from

peers who have experience of using social media,

LTTU (Learning and Teaching Technology Unit

http://www.worc.ac.uk/elearning/), on the affordances of University supported

media

The Adviser in Digital Literacy ([email protected]) for a range of social

media for which Communities of Practice within the University might be available.

Education Development Unit http://www.worc.ac.uk/adpu/) for advice on Learning

and Teaching practicalities

You can also find links to more help on SAM

(http://socialaccessiblemobile.wordpress.com/ ) and the UW, Calling All Lecturers

Scoop.it site (http://www.scoop.it/t/calling-all-lecturers ), do use the comment option on

the Scoop.it items. If you want to find out how to use a new technology you might find a

video on QuileR (http://quiler.omeka.net/ ), the searchable database of quick learning

resources.

1.2 Utilising social media

Just as in any class discussion or activity, the use of social media is best supported

by a previously agreed contract of accepted behaviour with all those engaged in the

activity. It is the responsibility of everyone in the contract to ensure it is adhered to.

For example everyone should be asked to agree:

To what extent they will engage in the interaction

Clearly and unambiguously, how frequently and in what way they will engage in

the social medium

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To act quickly and appropriately if an emergency arises e.g. if an argument gets

out of hand or if someone feels they have been wronged in some way

To keep to the path of enquiry

To correct the misconceptions of others with, no more and no less than,

appropriate evidence when necessary

To be supportive and non-confrontational

There are specific techniques for moderating in an online environment (Salmon, 2011);

effectively used, they will add value to the educational experience. Salmon (2011)

provides a good background on how to get students started in an online environment

and how to maintain their interaction there.

It is important that some behaviours are explained to students and modelled by

academic staff members. Below we provide a list of some of the most important.

1.2.1 Considerations for engaging

There are a number of simple issues that should be explained to people before they

engage in social media. These are simple skills students need to develop as part of the

employability agenda.

Two dimensions of normal conversation are lost in many social media and online

engagements (voice and body-language) and have to be compensated for. This

is achieved by:

o Choosing words carefully before posting

o Using emoticons

o Using verbs instead of body-language e.g. Bob waves to Jane

o Using adjectives to describe behaviours e.g. Tom laughs ironically

Capital letters are reserved for indicating strong emotion such as anger or shock.

If this strong emotion is intended to convey self-mockery or humour it should be

followed by a “smiley”.

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Whilst typographical errors, short-forms and minor errors in spelling are

accepted, it is only up to the point where the message becomes unintelligible to

the average user

Rudeness and unkindness are never acceptable

Statements made in a social media environment are often public and best

considered permanent

People should be discouraged from writing their contributions in Word then

copying and pasting to the site as it stilts the natural flow of the conversation and

students will soon find they cannot keep up – people with dyslexia might find this

TechDis ( http://www.jisctechdis.ac.uk/techdis/resources/atincomputer ) page

helpful. There are also far more text-to-speech and speech-to-text programmes

available for smartphones, PCs and Macs which can be used with such things as

Twitter and Facebook.

It is unlikely but unauthorised people might gain access to the group in an

attempt to ‘phish’, or gain control of it. People should learn to recognise the

written “voices” of their fellows to be able to quickly deal with this sort of problem.

Normally when engaging in social media it is important to only speak

authoritatively on issues you have some substantial understanding of. In

academic circles much debate revolves around opinion and conjecture therefore

these are expected in such discussions. When engaging in social media, you

must be sure to identify when you are talking authoritatively and when you are

just offering your opinion or conjecture. A simple acronym such as IMHO (“in my

humble opinion”) is often enough to indicate you are not talking authoritatively.

As social media should be considered as open to the public, confidentiality must

be maintained at all times. You must not talk about or gossip about things that

are private, sensitive or form part of someone’s research.

You must not denigrate someone’s beliefs, culture or opinions.

Social media is about communication not broadcasting. In other words write in a

way that will encourage people to write back to you. Write in an informal way,

use speech patterns not literary patterns when writing, be genuine and honest,

use open ended questions, be modest (up to a point), do not denigrate people or

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their ideas, if you must disagree do so politely, be helpful to people, provide links

to interesting blogs and web pages, reply to requests for help, always answer

genuine contact attempts.

Although you must be honest you must also think about your personal safety in

social media. Do not tell any casual acquaintance in the medium about:

o Who you are (use your avatar name, keep your identity in social and

business social media spaces separate)

o What you are doing at this moment (you might say you are at a

conference but use text for more personal information)

o Where you are at this moment

o When you are going to be in a particular place

and

o Do not use your full face image as your avatar, use a three-quarter or

wear something that partially hides your face. From an employability point

of view it is better to use your face but if this makes you anxious just use a

picture of a flower, an animal or something inanimate. Do not just use the

default image.

o Do not automatically “follow” someone who “follows” you

o Always report spam or unacceptable behaviour and remove the offending

item from your discussion

1.1.3 Photographs and other images

The use of images and photographs requires special consideration, both in terms of

protecting University staff and students’ intellectual property, and in respecting the

copyright of others. You are strongly advised to consult the guidance provided by ILS in

the documents below, which you can find on SAM under Guidelines

http://socialaccessiblemobile.wordpress.com/guidelines/ :

Copyright FAQ

Creative Commons,

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Staff will need to consider carefully who will be allowed to ‘follow’ or ‘friend’ a social

media site, and who will be allowed to post comments (particularly if this extends

beyond the student group). There are quite simple procedures that can prevent most

annoying or dangerous behaviour. Most social media sites have a range of security

settings you can use to safeguard your environment. What you usually have to be

careful of is making the environment so “safe” that no students or assistants can get in.

Using very restricted social media is probably more important to schools than

universities but there are times when minors are within the university setting.

1.1.4 Clarity of role

If staff or students are using social media in their personal life and identify themselves

as a staff member or student of UW they must indicate their views are not those of the

Institution. If they are specifically acting in their role as a student or member of staff of

UW the person must act according to the standards laid down by the University which

can be found at http://www.worc.ac.uk/personnel/842.htm

1.3 Sustaining and managing the use of social media

1.3.1 Maintaining, updating and archiving

Where feasible, staff should archive the content after each iteration (for example, after

each semester) and ensure that essential student work is stored within the unit site for

the required time. For example it might be necessary to have an archive accessible for

an external examiner, or by inspection by governing or quality bodies in particular

disciplines. It is essential to have a Policy to deactivate or delete sites once the

teaching period is over and the site is no longer used. In some social media it is not

possible to delete a site but you should make it clear that the site is out of use.

Responsible teaching areas should also have a business continuity plan to cover any

staff changes or absences to ensure that social media sites are maintained and

archived as necessary.

Where material is archived for potential future use you must ensure that students have

signed the General Informed Consent form before you start. You can find a link to the

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Informed Consent form on Policies in SAM

http://socialaccessiblemobile.wordpress.com/policies/ .

Included in the maintenance of a site must be a written plan of when and how items are

taken down from the site. This information should be provided to everyone who is

involved in the activity and should be easily available to anyone who wishes to read it.

If the strategies planned at the beginning become untenable or redundant, those people

responsible for the activity should alert users of any change in status or intention on the

Blackboard site, as well as through the selected medium.

1.3.2 If things go wrong

Sometimes material may need to be taken down due to a mistake, misuse, someone

else’s misuse or — at worst — a breach of law.

The most important things to remember when things go wrong:

Take action immediately Immediately remove the offending material/comment (but keep a copy)

Immediately apologise to the person who has complained

Immediately inform your manager or module leader

Usually when people complain or when something has gone wrong, what people most

want is an apology and reassurance that something like this incident will not happen

again either to themselves or to someone else.

For information relating to Copyright please see the documents mentioned on page 19.

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2 Examples of Use

Social media are not just a gimmick to keep people entertained or to meet demands for

maintaining an innovative module. Social media can contribute to achieving learning

and teaching objectives, by adding learner-focused features to a learning environment

that provides ‘real-world’ experiences and the chance to learn authentic employability

skills.

The examples that follow are just a few of the ways Social media can be used.

Digital Literacy

If you are finding it difficult to include certain Digital Literacy skills in your sessions try

using social media as a vehicle for your subject. Many of these modern skills are learnt

by students as part of the process of using social media.

An example can be found at St Edward’s University, Social Media Class

http://academic.stedwards.edu/socialmedia/blog/2012/04/16/teaching-students-to-

become-curators-of-ideas-the-curation-project-3/

Blended Learning

Are you trying to find a way to provide students with access to a rare resource and also

help them to find other information that will widen their understanding of that resource?

Take a look at the JISC funded, Scarlet Project at Manchester University

http://www.m-libraries.info/community/groups/library-content/docs/scarlet-case-study

Are you thinking of using Facebook with your students? This link will take you to a

paper about the use of Facebook with College students. Even though it is not about

University students the same advantages and disadvantages exist, making this a very

interesting read. Do download the slides, it is impossible to read otherwise.

http://slidesha.re/Oc1TQx

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Employability

One of the things module and course leaders become very concerned about is ensuring

students gain employability skills. Take a look at what University of Birmingham, have

been doing with Panopto for employability skills development,

http://demo.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer/Default.aspx?id=369d0d56-

772a-4022-8778-a474204e2a38

Feedback

There are some very simple and effective ways of giving feedback to students. One I

particularly like is this example shared on the ALT (Association of Learning

Technologists) mail list on February 1st this 2012. [email protected] Feb 1st ALT list

http://wallwisher.com/wall/FdAEYJan2010 Wallwisher has now been updated and

changed to Padlet http://padlet.com/

Assessment

Use of social media for assessment needs to be carefully considered, particularly

around such issues as reliability, accessibility, privacy, equity and other obligations to

students (see the UW Learning and Teaching Assessment Strategy). JISC ran some

projects on e-assessment and feedback, you might like to watch the short video they

produced about the projects

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/programmes/elearning/assessment/digiassess/

assessresource.aspx You will also find the new Jisc site, Design Studio, helpful on this

subject http://jiscdesignstudio.pbworks.com/w/page/33596916/Effective-Assessment-in-

a-Digital-Age-Workshops

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Reference

Facebook (ndg) Data Use Policy http://www.facebook.com/about/privacy/

Accessed 2012.07.31

Facebook (ndg) Help Centre http://www.facebook.com/help/

Accessed 2012.07.31

Flickr (ndg) Help http://www.flickr.com/help/

Accessed 2012.07.31

JISC (2012) Developing Digital Literacies

http://www.jisc.ac.uk/media/documents/publications/briefingpaper/2012/

Developing_Digital_Literacies.pdf

Accessed 2012.07.17

Jones R.H. and Hafner C.A. (2012) Understanding Digital Literacies: A practical

introduction, Routledge, Abingdon

Salmon, G (2011) E-Moderating: The key to online teaching and learning, Routledge,

Abingdon

Slideshare (ndg) Forums http://help.slideshare.com/forums

Accessed 2012.07.31

Twitter (ndg) Help Centre https://support.twitter.com/

Accessed 2012.07.31

Twitter (ndg) Privacy Policy https://twitter.com/privacy

Accessed 2012.07.31

Wankel, C. (2010) Cutting-edge Social Media Approaches to Business Education

Teaching with LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Second Life and Blogs, Information Age

Publishing Inc, Charlotte, North Carolina

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Weller, M. (2011) The Digital Scholar: How Technology is Transforming Scholarly

Practice, Bloomsbury Academic, London

Wordpress (ndg) Forums http://wordpress.org/support/

Accessed 2012.07.31

YouTube (ndg) Help http://support.google.com/youtube/?hl=en-GB

Accessed 2012.07.31

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