Everyone today has something to say and everyone has followers, multiplying a post or tweet’s impact exponentially.
That’s how people who have less than 100 followers can lose jobs because of a stupid tweet, which can go viral in less than a minute when others retweet that information. That’s why college scholarships for top recruits dry up when pictures get posted on Facebook of high school heroes doing something inappropriate.
Kenneth Shelton, an Apple Distinguished Educator, noted a quote from “Spider-Man” — “With great power comes great responsibility” — rings true. Shelton told educators Friday at Leyden High Schools’ 1:1 Summer Symposium that with a click of a button, lives could be forever changed when a blog, Facebook post or tweet goes live.
“Voice is not limited to auditory exchanges,” Shelton said. “It extends well beyond that because of social platforms that don’t require the spoken word.”
The Leyden conference was for educators around the country who have issued computers to all of their students, providing for one-to-one learning environments, are in the process of going to 1:1 learning or are considering the step.
Shelton, an educator for more than 14 years, encouraged instructors to make class projects and assignments live on the web so students are writing for more than just an instructor. He encouraged educators to also amplify students’ work through social media tools.
Leyden officials know the power that social media can have. Three years ago, the district launched its own hashtag — #leydenpride — to promote the district’s achievements. When negative tweets about the district surfaced under the hashtag, the social media effort was abandoned for a spell. Leyden officials regrouped and came back with a stronger effort to promote the district’s positives, an effort that included the community and business owners. It is now, indeed, a source of pride in the Leyden community, officials say.
“Put the positives out there,” Shelton said. “By promoting the positives, it pushes the negatives down in the [Google] rankings.”
The #leydenpride effort now rarely gets negative responses, East Leyden principal Jason Markey said.
“We worked to get the positives promoted,” Markey said, “and it’s been largely productive. The community got involved with us and it has become our identity.”
Along with #leydenpride, throughout the school, including on the stairs, are constant reminders to “Be kind,” “Know your passion” and “Commit to excellence.” Markey said the goal is to have students consider others and to continually work to improve themselves.
Brian Weinert, director of technology in Leyden District 212, noted that the district has created a tech support internship for students, which has them troubleshooting technology problems at both campuses.
He said the program gives students the opportunity to learn work skills and helps the district, providing help for the two technical support staffers at each campus.
“We now have 13 extra sets of hands every period of the day,” Weinert said.
The program has nearly doubled heading into its fourth year, going from 91 students the first year to 175 students this coming school year.
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“They are providing level one support for the entire district,” Weinert said. “They are providing the level one support that any company would have. They are helping with real issues. They are assisting with real problems, working to find solutions. They are an extension of the tech department.”
Besides District 212, several other area school districts attended the 1:1 Symposium, including River Grove District 85.5, Oak Park District 97, Skokie District 72, Elmwood Park District 401, Warren Township High School District 121, Deerfield District 109, Hinsdale District 86, Oak Park and River Forest District 200, Elmhurst District 205, and officials from Northwest Side Catholic high school Resurrection College Prep.
Kevin Beese is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.