1.1. Social Media
Social media is a phrase used to explain a mixture of Web-based platforms, applications and technologies that enable people to socially interact with one another online. Some examples of social media sites and applications include Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, blogs and other sites that have content based on user participation and user-generated conten. It involves blogging and forums and any aspect of an interactive presence such as community-based input, interaction, content-sharing and collaboration which allows individuals the ability to engage in conversations with one another, often as a discussion over a particular blog post, news article, or event.
Social media is becoming an integral part of life online as social websites and applications proliferate. Most traditional online media include social components, such as comment fields for users. The process of social networking has been in existence for well over 15 years and dates back all the way to the birth of online bulletin boards prevalent during the late 90s. Today's social networks take advantage of cloud-based Web 2.0 know-how and have left the bulletin board and listserve predecessors behind. However, the listserve is still a widely used tool throughout the vision impaired community.
There are over 200 social networks in existence today, not including the internal social networks created by organizations to be used by their students, instructors, employees, or members. There are two steps to participate in any of these networks.
The first step is to simply sign up for an account. The process is pretty straightforward: establish a username (usually an existing e-mail address) and a password and provide some basic information.
The second step, creating a profile, is a bit more involved. This profile is for current and future members of the social network to learn more about who they are and to connect them to communicate via all the features that the social network offers. The more specific profile of oneself nurture existing relationships and make new personal and professional connections via this online community. It includes one’s personal interests, hobbies, work history, and educational background to find people who have common experiences or histories.
1.2.Examples of social media
- Facebook is a popular free social networking website that allows registered users to create profiles, upload photos and video, send messages and keep in touch with friends, family and colleagues.
- Twitter is a free microblogging service that allows registered members to broadcast short posts called tweets. Twitter members can broadcast tweets and follow other users' tweets by using multiple platforms and devices.
- Google+ is Google's social networking project, designed to replicate the way people interact offline more closely than in other social networking services. The project’s slogan is “Real-life sharing rethought for the web.”
- Wikipedia is a free, open content online encyclopedia created through the collaborative effort of a community of users known as Wikipedians. Anyone registered on the site can create an article for publication; registration is not required to edit articles. Wikipedia was founded in January of 2001.
- LinkedIn is a social networking site designed specifically for the business community. The goal of the site is to allow registered members to establish and document networks of people they know and trust professionally.
- Pinterest is a social curation website for sharing and categorizing images found online. Pinterest requires brief descriptions but the main focus of the site is visual. Clicking on an image will take the viewer to the original source, so, for example, if we click on a picture of a pair of shoes, It will take us to a site where we can purchase them. An image of chocolate cakes might take us to the recipe.
1.3. Uses of Social Media in Education
1. It Aggregates images and information to share with classmates or with interest groups that cut across courses and institutions
2. It gathers and share data collected with mobile devices during field work or travel abroad
3. It helps to create a public profile to showcase personal research interests and to connect with a broad audience
4. Using social networks in class to will keep students engaged and to get a sense of what students are thinking about during lectures
5. It helps to Form student study groups with the use of Google+ Hangouts and other social tools
6. It helps to Add social tools to e-textbooks
7. Create a community: It's common for many students to be challenged by the same learning concept or course assignment. Social media can help centralize the collective knowledge of an entire class to make studying and communicating more efficient for everyone.
· Designate a course or study group hashtag
· Start a contact list or group for the class to collaborate and share study tips.
· Invite professors who use social media to follow the group conversation or join chats.
8. Continue the conversation: Starting a collaborative study network to tap into the group mind can save everyone time and effort.
· For missed classes or lectures, have someone stream or record the lecture on Periscope, Skype, or SnapChat
· Use Google Hangouts to facilitate group study sessions
· Follow or become a fan of the authors who wrote the books that are being used in the class
· Ask questions to experts and influencers.
9. Organize learning resources: Social media tools can help keep course information organized and accessible.
· Save, curate, and share resources using collection-building tools
· If course documents aren't already posted online, use Google Drive, Box, or Dropbox to gather study materials
· Have classes use content services like Google Docs for team projects; it can make keeping organized and sharing notes much easier.
· Supplement course materials: Social media can help identify additional content to reinforce or extend core instruction.
· Look for YouTube videos and playlists for extra learning on the most challenging topics.
· Follow existing subject-area hashtags
· Send video notes, questions, or reminders to the classmates.
· Search on all the social channels often for course topics, keywords, and expert names
Social media no longer has to be an obstacle to studying; it can help students create and manage a study community, make the best use of study time, and find new resources to help them learn and retain knowledge if they use properly.
1.4. Social media and visual communication
As a photo editing and sharing network, it offers much to the educational process simply in its ability to allow students to create and publish original content. But when considered from the context of instructional design, it takes on new dimensions that would otherwise be nonexistent. As stated before, visual literacy includes the ability to create messages that capture our own visual thinking.
It is used in text messaging, have incredible potential in directing students to effectively communicate through visual designs. At the most basic level, people use it to illustrate their emotions through minute smiley faces and faces with tears. But when utilized as an instructional tool, these otherwise informationally cosmetic accessories could encourage students to consider the emotional tapestry and perspectives of figures from history had they been provided the communication tools and platforms of today.
Memes require analysis and application to share one’s intended message with social stickiness. Lending itself more to commentary on a given topic, understanding what an image is saying requires mature linguistic and social dexterity. And while viewing and responding to memes requires one set of intellectual skills, creating them based on a current unit of study requires a skillset entirely different.
1.5. Social media among visually impaired
Social media has helped bring people of all backgrounds and interests together to form communities. While this type of connectivity can be life-changing for people of all walks of life, it is especially useful for visually impaired individuals who are looking to connect with others going through similar experiences.
Through the use of screen readers and internet accessibility options, the visually impaired are able to use many of the same social media sites that the sighted enjoy not just to keep in touch with friends and family, but also to create awareness.
Social media is also bringing together the parents of visually impaired children. For example, many parents of blind children have created blogs such as Leading the Blind to share their story with the world. Not only do such blogs help create awareness, but they also have become a support system for parents who are looking to connect with others that are learning to manage similar difficulties.
The web is becoming more blind-friendly by the day. For example, Audioboo is an audio-focused social network that is focused on helping blind people connect with others via audio.
1.6. Disadvantages of Social media
1. Comments and criticisms
When potentially offensive content is posted online, the amount of feedback can be excessive and is often brutal. This backlash can also have a long-term impact on a person's future, especially in a world that has fallen prey to over-sharing. Even high school students are learning that comments they post on social media can influence whether a college approves their application for admission.
2. Cyberbullying and cybercrimes
Use of social networks may expose individuals to other forms of harassment or even inappropriate contact. This can be especially true for teens and younger children. Unless parents diligently filter the Web content their family views, children could be exposed to pornography or other inappropriate content.
Besides unleashing age-inappropriate content, the digital age also gave birth to a social phenomenon - cyberbullying. It is often levied more harshly against young females that males and, unlike traditional bullying, it is not limited to physical interaction. Cyberbullying can happen 24 hours a day, every day of the week.
3. Risks of Fraud or Identity Theft
The information we post on the Internet is available to almost anyone who is clever enough to access it. Most thieves need just a few vital pieces of personal information to make others life a nightmare.
4. Waste of time
The GlobalWebIndex poll shows that 28 percent of the time spent online is on social networks. With these type of numbers, some of the time spent on social media occurs at work. When these visits are for non-work related activity, it can cost companies money through lost productivity. A report on Forbes states that 89 percent of responders admitted to wasting time on social media while at work.
5. Business Attack of Privacy
Social networking invites major corporations to invade the privacy and sell personal information. If Facebook and other social networking sites don't charge their members, however, how do they make so much money? They do it by selling the ability to specifically target advertisements. On social networking sites, the website isn't the product - the users are. These sites run algorithms that search for keywords, web browsing habits, and other data stored on the computer or social networking profile and provide with advertisements targeted specifically to the user.
1.7. Safe social networking
1. Do not share personal information’s such as phone number, resume, photo and address
2. Check out the settings, configuration and privacy sections to limit who and what groups can see various aspects of your personal information.
3. Limit the work history details. Expand the details during the job hunting process and then cut back later.
4. Avoid content on the site doesn’t look like or sound like fake.
5. Avoid replaying to anonymous comments.
6. Avoid accidentally updating your status when you are alone.
7. Search your profile on Google and check out how the profile as others sees it on social networking sites.
8. Avoid accepting friend request form unknown or anonymous persons.
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