The 21^st century has brought many new methods of communication that can be used in the classroom. The role of teachers and how they communicate with students and with parents has changed a good amount in the past 15 years. Teachers have become more innovative and have started to use technology more in the classroom. The use of social media has also increased in schools. In today’s classroom many teachers use social media to interact with students. By teachers using tools such as Blogger, Twitter and Pinterest it has changed the classroom significantly. By using social media in the classroom it has become easier for everyone to participate and voice their opinion without actually having to say their opinion out loud. Social media can be used for much more than just voicing opinions, it can be used to post discussions, homework, important dates and information for parents. By using social media in the classroom teachers can give students a digital presence that can stay with them by doing this, teachers can also teach students how to be mindful on the internet and social media. The Guilford County Schools have social media guidelines for their teachers. I agree with the guidelines from Guilford County Schools. There are many purposes of making these guidelines. The main reason is to make a collaborative environment where students can share knowledge, opinions and information. Teachers have special responsibilities when it comes to social media. Online behavior should reflect your professional life, not everything that says private is actually private. Bringing social media into the classroom can really help students flourish and communicate in a different way.

Twitter is a great use of social media in the classroom. With Twitter students can easily post and respond to others in the class. When teachers use Twitter they can use hashtags. If a teacher uses a unique hashtag students will be able to search for it on Twitter. Teachers can attach questions, responses and pictures to the tweet making it available in and out of class. By using Twitter, it lets the quieter kids still participate in class without having to speak in front of the whole class. As shown in the video doing this makes the classroom more unique and helps more of the class participate helping everyone. 

Pinterest is another social media site that can be very beneficial. It gives the teacher a place to share knowledge and add value to the discussion. Pinterest is like the Swiss army knife of social media. Pinterest can be used in many ways ranging from YouTube videos to photo journals to study guides. Pinterest is a very easy website to use. The user friendly website is great for group and individual projects because you can pin everything to your board making it available to the whole group. Students and teachers can also post to a board embedding videos and pictures along with it. Pinterest also makes it easier to have students with different educational backgrounds in the same class with gifted students. On the board you can have different groups that will do different things helping everyone learn at the level that helps them most. Having something like a Pinterest also helps students keep a digital portfolio of their best work. High school students can also use Pinterest as an online resume.

Blogger is a great resource in the classroom. Using blogging sites such as Blogger make it easier for students to post in discussions and comment on other people’s work. By being able to post your own work and by commenting on others it makes the classroom become much more interactive. Using Blogger helps improve writing skills and gives each student personalized learning. Blogger is an effective resource because you can post important dates and assignments, also it gives students the chance for a more independent individualized education.

In my mind social media in the classroom is a great idea. There are many ways that social media can be used in the classroom. Social media sites such as Twitter, Pinterest and Blogger are great ways to expand student learning and be innovative in the classroom. Using social media is good because it gives students another way to communicate with the class and the teacher. Social media can be used in all types of classrooms and age groups making it perfect for school.