Social Media as Community



MONDAY, 10/19 (purple day/double period)Collect essaysDO NOW: What role does social media play in your life? 3. Lion’s Club speech competition introduction: Lion’s Club High School Student Speech Competition: IN WHAT WAYS HAS SOCIAL MEDIA CHANGED SOCIETY?5-8 minute speech – Wednesday, November 18th Read two articles belowSocial Media as?CommunityKeith Hampton is an associate professor in the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers, and a past chairman of the American Sociological Association’s section on Communication and Information Technologies. He is on on Twitter as @mysocnet.Updated June 18, 2012, 3:33 PMDominique Browning and Eric Klinenberg extol the virtues of living alone. In so doing, Klinenberg correctly points out that living alone is only common in cultures where prosperity makes this arrangement economically feasible. However, this has not slowed arguments that social media is increasingly a part of these same prosperous societies, and that this new tool is responsible for a growing trend of social isolation and loss of intimacy.Neither living alone nor using social media is socially isolating. In 2011, I was lead author of an article in Information, Communication & Society that found, based on a representative survey of 2,500 Americans, that regardless of whether the participants were married or single, those who used social media had more close confidants.The constant feed from our online social circles is the modern front porch. A recent follow-up study, “Social Networking Sites and Our Lives” (Pew Research Center), found that the average user of a social networking site had more close ties than and was half as likely to be socially isolated as the average American. Additionally, my co-authors and I, in another article published in New Media & Society, found not only that social media users knew people from a greater variety of backgrounds, but also that much of this diversity was a result of people using these technologies who simultaneously spent an impressive amount of time socializing outside of the house.A number of studies, including my own and those of Matthew Brashears (a sociologist at Cornell), have found that Americans have fewer intimate relationships today than 20 years ago. However, a loss of close friends does not mean a loss of support. Because of cellphones and social media, those we depend on are more accessible today than at any point since we lived in small, village-like settlements.Social media has made every relationship persistent and pervasive. We no longer lose social ties over our lives; we have Facebook friends forever. The constant feed of status updates and digital photos from our online social circles is the modern front porch. This is why, in “Social Networking Sites and Our Lives,” there was a clear trend for those who used these technologies to receive more social support than other people.The data backs it up. There is little evidence that social media is responsible for a trend of isolation, or a loss of intimacy and social support. _______________________________________________________________________Are Anonymous Social Media Networks DangerousBy HYPERLINK "" \o "More Posts by Katherine Schulten" Katherine Schulten March 11, 2015 5:09 am March 11, 2015 5:09 am How often do you read or post in anonymous online social media forums? Why do you think they are so popular? Do you think that kind of online anonymity can be dangerous? Why or why not?In “Who Spewed That Abuse? Anonymous Yik Yak App Isn’t Telling,” Jonathan Mahler writes:During a brief recess in an honors course at Eastern Michigan University last fall, a teaching assistant approached the class’s three female professors. “I think you need to see this,” she said, tapping the icon of a furry yak on her iPhone.The app opened, and the assistant began scrolling through the feed. While the professors had been lecturing about post-apocalyptic culture, some of the 230 or so freshmen in the auditorium had been having a separate conversation about them on a social media site called Yik Yak. There were dozens of posts, most demeaning, many using crude, sexually explicit language and imagery.After class, one of the professors, Margaret Crouch, sent off a flurry of emails — with screenshots of some of the worst messages attached — to various university officials, urging them to take some sort of action. “I have been defamed, my reputation besmirched. I have been sexually harassed and verbally abused,” she wrote to her union representative. “I am about ready to hire a lawyer.”In the end, nothing much came of Ms. Crouch’s efforts, for a simple reason: Yik Yak is anonymous. There was no way for the school to know who was responsible for the posts.Eastern Michigan is one of a number of universities whose campuses have been roiled by offensive “yaks.” Since the app was introduced a little more than a year ago, it has been used to issue threats of mass violence on more than a dozen college campuses, including the University of North Carolina, Michigan State University and Penn State. Racist, homophobic and misogynist “yaks” have generated controversy at many more, among them Clemson, Emory, Colgate and the University of Texas. At Kenyon College, a “yakker” proposed a gang rape at the school’s women’s center.In much the same way that Facebook swept through the dorm rooms of America’s college students a decade ago, Yik Yak is now taking their smartphones by storm. Its enormous popularity on campuses has made it the most frequently downloaded anonymous social app in Apple’s App Store, easily surpassing competitors like Whisper and Secret. At times, it has been one of the store’s 10 most downloaded apps.Like Facebook or Twitter, Yik Yak is a social media network, only without user profiles. It does not sort messages according to friends or followers but by geographic location or, in many cases, by university. Only posts within a 1.5-mile radius appear, making Yik Yak well suited to college campuses. Think of it as a virtual community bulletin board — or maybe a virtual bathroom wall at the student union. It has become the go-to social feed for college students across the country to commiserate about finals, to find a party or to crack a joke about a rival school.Much of the chatter is harmless. Some of it is not.“Yik Yak is the Wild West of anonymous social apps,” said Danielle Keats Citron, a law professor at University of Maryland and the author of “Hate Crimes in Cyberspace.” “It is being increasingly used by young people in a really intimidating and destructive way.”5 minute writing prompt – In what ways has social media changed society? Introduction to Socratic Seminar on social mediaGuidelines for Participants in a Socratic SeminarRefer to the text when needed during the discussion. A seminar is not a test of memory. Your goal is to understand the ideas, issues, and values reflected in the text. When you know that you will be having a Socratic Seminar in class after a reading, it’s important to mark passages in the text that you can refer back to. Do not participate if you are not prepared. A seminar should not be a bluff session.Do not stay confused; ask for clarification.Stick to the point currently under discussion; make notes about ideas you want to come back to.Decide as a group whether you want to raise hands before speaking or take turns without raising hands. Listen carefully.Speak up so that all can hear you.Talk to each other, not just to the leader or teacher.Frequently, I will break the class into two groups. Group one will participate in the discussion first, while group two watches and takes notes. Halfway through the allotted time, I will have the two groups switch. Expectations of Participants in a Socratic SeminarWhen I am evaluating a Socratic Seminar, I ask the following questions about participants. Did they…Speak loudly and clearly?Cite reasons and evidence for statements?Use the text to find support?Listen to others respectfully?Stick to the subject?Talk to each other, not just to the leader?Paraphrase accurately?Ask for help to clear up confusion?Support each other?Avoid hostile exchanges?Question others in a civil manner?Seem prepared?Socratic Seminar: Participant RubricName: _____________A Level ParticipantParticipant offers enough solid analysis, without prompting, to move the conversation forwardParticipant, through his/her comments, demonstrates a deep knowledge of the text and the questionParticipant, has come to the seminar prepared, with notes, questions and textParticipant, through comments, shows that he/she is actively listening to othersParticipant offers clarification and/or follow-up that extends the conversationParticipant’s remarks often refer back to specific parts of the textParticipant is an active member of the discussion, yet does not dominate or interrupt othersB Level ParticipantParticipant offers solid analysis without promptingThrough comments, participant demonstrates a good knowledge of the text and the questionParticipant has come to the seminar prepared, with notes, questions, and textParticipant shows that he/she is actively listening to others and offers clarification and/or follow-upC Level ParticipantParticipant offers some analysis, but needs prompting from the teacherThrough comments, participant demonstrates a general knowledge of the text and questionParticipant is less prepared, with few notes, questions, missing textParticipant is actively listening to others, but does not offer clarification and/or follow-up to other’ commentsParticipant relies more upon his or her opinion, and less on the text to drive his/her commentsD or F Level participantParticipant offers little commentaryParticipant comes to the seminar ill-prepared with little understanding of text and questionParticipant does not listen to others, offers no commentary to further discussionParticipant distracts the group by interrupting other speakers or by offering off topic questions and commentsParticipant ignores the discussion and participantsHOMEWORK: Read “The Masque of the Red Death” (link on website) for WednesdayDaily Objectives (Students will be able to):Participate in a Socratic SeminarRead and respond to two different perspectives on social mediaTuesday, 10/20 (gold day/single period)Review speech rubricDraft speechesHOMEWORK: Read “The Masque of the Red Death” (link on website) for Wednesday/ Speech due in class, Monday, November 2ndDaily Objectives (Students will be able to):Participate in a Socratic SeminarRead and respond to two different perspectives on social mediaWednesday, 10/21 (purple day/double period)Poster response - There are five posters posted around the classroom (setting, imagery, plot, questions, symbols). Take your colored marker and silently comment on each poster. Your comments may be statements, questions, or images. If you agree with something that someone else has posted, put a checkmark next to it. Introduction to allegoryDiscussion of the story using discussion questionsBegin reading and annotating “Harrison Bergeron” (handout)HOMEWORK: Finish reading “Harrison Bergeron” and prepare for a graded Socratic Seminar tomorrowDaily Objectives (Students will be able to):Define and apply the term, “allegory”Analyze the setting, imagery, and symbols in “The Masque of the Red Death”Thursday, 10/22 (gold day/single period)Write 5 questions for discussion of “Harrison Bergeron”World Connection QuestionWrite a question connecting the text to the real world.Example: What would you do if your parents forbid you to date someone you were interested in because they hated his/her parents? (After reading Romeo and Juliet)Close-Ended QuestionWrite a question about the text that will help everyone in the class come to an agreement about events or characters in the text. This question usually has a “correct” answer.Example: What happened to Hester Prynne’s husband that she was left alone in Boston without family? (after the first 4 chapters of THE SCARLET LETTER).Open-Ended QuestionWrite an insightful question about the text that will require proof and group dialogue and “construction of logic” to discover or explore the answer to the question.Example: Why did Gene hesitate to reveal the truth about the accident to Finny that first day in the infirmary? (after mid-point of A SEPARATE PEACE).Universal Theme/Core Question:Write a question dealing with a theme(s) of the text that will encourage group dialogue about the universality of the text.Example: After reading John Gardner’s GRENDEL, identify its existential elements.Literary Analysis Question:Write a question dealing with HOW an author chose to compose a literary piece. How did the author manipulate point of view, characterization, poetic form, archetypal patterns, for example?Example: In THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES, why is it important that the story be told from a child’s point of view?Graded Socratic Seminar on “Harrison Bergeron”Self-assessment of participation in Socratic SeminarHOMEWORK: Read “Who’s Irish?” (handout/document on website)HOMEWORK: Finish reading “Harrison Bergeron” and prepare for a graded Socratic Seminar tomorrowDaily Objectives (Students will be able to):Write five types of questions for discussionParticipate in and assess peers’ participation in a Socratic SeminarFriday, 10/23 (gold day/single period)Do Now: What were your feelings towards the grandmother in the story? Towards Sophie? Towards Natalie (Sophie’s mother)? Explain. Discussion of “Who’s Irish?” using discussion questionsSHOP HOMEWORK: Finish writing speech on social media and prepare to present on Monday, 11/2 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download