W6 Suha | W6 Q1 | Forum

My argument would be for the use of social media and microblogging sites, and I will attempt to make my case by drawing from not just the readings prescribes this week, but also from the experiences most of involved in teaching and learning have had for more than a year since the pandemic hit this world.

Gao et al. (2012) conducted a review of 21 studies at a time when social media and microblogging sites were beginning to expand in their scope of use, and even almost ten years ago, the uses of these spaces was evident as seen in their work. To begin with, using these spaces, make for participation to be possible for teachers and learners who are not necessarily located in the same physical space. In other words, it is now possible to have teaching and learning to take place among people across geographical boundaries, by inviting “immediate participation” through virtual means (p. 788). These spaces also push teachers and learners to look for content relevant to what they are studying to go beyond traditional materials such as book chapters and readings. This, in turn, will also enable learners to find current relevance in the work they are involved in, by contributing to discourses in the field with their peers and colleagues outside their immediate networks and institutions (p. 790). Incorporating microblogging sites have also been seen to encourage learners to work more collaboratively, along with give them the opportunity to use reflective thinking (p. 792). These skills have been celebrated in current times as necessary skills in the workforce cutting across industries, and therefore add to not only the educational training of the learner, but their overall potential professional development as well.