Reflection (Week 11, Blog 3)

 This week was an "international" day for me personally, which aligns with this week's topic. I flew from Korea back to Tallahassee after visiting my family for three months. As someone who has lived in the UK and the US for a fair number of years but spent the most time growing up in Korea, my home country has never felt so exotic. When I landed in Korea at the end of April, everything felt surreal. People walking on the street, cars and transportation, cafes open late at night—it had only been nine months since I was last home (still wondering where I should call home), but it felt extremely different. When I returned to Tallahassee, I had a similar feeling: "Why is everything so surreal?"

 I guess this is where reality kicks in for somebody living away from their home country in a different culture, speaking a different language, etc. Social media can definitely connect you with "what you miss," whether that be casual conversations with friends or your favorite places to visit. It also helps in gaining an international view—I found that there are so many statistics and travel information shared on Threads (the new text-based version of Instagram)! However, it can at the same time deepen the gap between those who have access to it and those who do not. This is an interesting point to delve into further, and I'm also interested in having a more international viewpoint when conducting research in my areas of interest.

Is Social Media Connecting the World or Not? (Week 11, Blog 2)

 Is social media connecting the world or not? This is a tricky question to answer. First, I thought yes, of course. We get to see and connect with others worldwide by the click of a mouse. We see different profiles from different backgrounds and choose to connect with selective ones, laugh at some funny memes made by you-know-who, or even participate in making similar reels or challenges on TikTok or Instagram. Especially with the AI-assisted translator functions, we can connect with somebody from the opposite of the globe. Yes, those are all the silver lining sides. 

Change of thoughts - if you think about those who might not be exposed to these contents, or, I would say, opportunities, do they even have access in the first place? Isn't social media rather solidifying the connection between the chosen and leaving some behind? These are some important points to consider, and I'd like to hear your thoughts!

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Social Media Use in Developing Countries (Week 11, Blog 1)

 One can vaguely imagine the lack of social media use in developing countries and how it could be due to the lack of infrastructure. When I jumped into the school library to search terms with the keywords "social media" and "developing countries," I found many articles written during the time of COVID-19, which especially hit those countries hard. I found this article by Haque et al. (2023), a comparatively recent publication, which elaborates on examining not only the use of social media in Bangladesh, an emerging country but also closely looking at some mediating effects that may be related to the culture. 

 Haque et al. (2023) explore how factors like social value, communication, trust, and perceived benefits of sharing knowledge through social media enhance the academic development of university students. They also examine how families and technology support have mediating effects. Here are some quotes I want to share from the paper:

"Bangladesh’s internet and digital technology use have grown rapidly in recent years. ... Bangladesh’s socioeconomic growth depends on education. To meet development goals, the government is expanding and improving education. Studying growth in academia, especially in relation to social media and technology, can help enhance educational outcomes and the nation’s overall development....  Bangladeshis value family. Parents often influence their children’s educational and employment choices." (Haque et al., 2023, p.3)

"From observation, it was found that the direct and positive influence of communication and collaboration in social media for academic development are significantly related to family and technological support. The findings from the study endorsed the positive relationship of communication and collaboration factors, and there was a mediation of family and technological support between them. ... Thus, family and technological support play a significant role in a student’s academic performance at the university level." (Haque et al., 2023, p.19)

I think this finding has much to imply to other developing countries, and even some developed countries, but with the high digital divide or educational gap. Especially in countries where the internet itself is expanding and influencing to a great extent, social media can play a crucial role in students achieving networked knowledge and knowledge sharing. Also, support from families and technology could be crucial in students achieving performance to the extent that they make the best out of social media.

References

Haque, M. A., Zhang, X., Akanda, A. E. A., Hasan, M. N., Islam, M. M., Saha, A., ... & Rahman, Z. (2023). Knowledge Sharing among students in social media: the mediating role of family and technology supports in the academic development nexus in an emerging country. Sustainability, 15(13), 9983.

Digital Citizenship (Week 10, Blog 1)

 Richardson and Milovidov (2019), a digital citizenship education handbook created by the Council of Europe, discusses digital citizenship in the setting surrounding schools and families. A digital citizen is defined as "someone who, through the development of a broad range of competences, is able to actively, positively and responsibly engage in both on and offline communities, whether local, national or global" (Richardson & Milovidov, 2019, p.11). The figure below describes principles that can be used to guide and assess digital citizenship skills from contextual, informational, and organizational levels.

Figure 4: Nine guiding principles for digital citizenship (Richardson & Milovidov, 2019, p. 19)

 ISTE standards also handle digital citizenship. ISTE standards, which are designed to guide students and educators in using technology, specifically provide standards for students on how to be digital citizens. Below are the standards under this category.

1.2.a. Digital Footprint: Students manage their digital identity and understand the lasting impact of their online behaviors on themselves and others and make safe, legal and ethical decisions in the digital world.

1.2.b. Online Interaction: Students demonstrate empathetic, inclusive interactions online and use technology to responsibly contribute to their communities.

1.2.c. Safeguard Well-being: Students safeguard their well-being by being intentional about what they do online and how much time they spend online.

1.2.d. Digital Privacy: Students take action to protect their digital privacy on devices and manage their personal data and security while online. 

Responsibility, opportunity, security, and privacy are some common terms mentioned in both principles that underpin digital citizenship for students. These critical points must be considered for students living in this world to protect themselves from any cyber harms and to become digitally mature. 

Reference

International Society for Technology (2020). ISTE Standards. https://www.iste.org/standards

Richardson, J., & Milovidov, E. (2019). Digital citizenship education handbook: Being online, well-being online, and rights online. Council of Europe.

Reflection (Week 9, Blog 3)

This week, reading many of my classmates' posts on group messaging tools and their thoughts on them was very interesting. I could feel that everyone has their own take on what works best for them and what doesn't. It was refreshing to reflect on the platforms I use daily for communication. Some platforms certainly work well in fostering a sense of belonging within a community.

Linking this to my research interest, I want to explore how teachers use these messaging tools to feel a sense of belonging and how it can help build their PLN. I look forward to exploring and elaborating on this topic in the upcoming assignments!

Group Messaging Tools (Week 9, Blog 2)

 This week's tool focused on looking at different communication tools for group usage. We have more and more new platforms coming out, and some past ones dwindling in popularity. The list can go from more daily and immediate platforms like WhatsApp, GroupMe, iMessage, Instagram DM, and Facebook Messenger to more group-based platforms with lots of resource sharing, such as Slack, MS Teams, Miro, Discord, and Padlet. You can find more tools on this website (even though this talks more about the business side, many things overlap!)

One question that stood out for me this week is whether we need all these different tools. As a graduate student engaging in different research projects and some social groups, I am currently using almost all the tools listed above. Some projects or research teams even combine tools like MS Teams plus GroupMe, Slack plus WhatsApp, etc, to boost efficiency. I agree with the part about how different people prefer different platforms, and each platform has its pros and cons, but sometimes it gets overwhelming. It can mean you have to check on each different platform every day so as not to miss any important news! 

Another issue to look at when discussing group messaging tools is whether we want all notifications turned on. What if we want to turn off and miss out on the very important news that you had to receive? Is there to blame someone if you miss a chat, or is it the responsibility of individuals to catch up on it? 

Here are some things we can consider when it comes to group messaging tools. Everybody seeks efficient and meaningful communication tools. What are your thoughts?

Digital Detox (Week 9, Blog 1)

 It's been long since I wrote my last post here. I gave myself a digital detox for two weeks. I can't say I was off my laptop and phone the whole time, but I spent considerably less time online. And it felt great! 

One good thing about staying away from online was giving my brain a rest from ongoing news. Sometimes, these news whether it be a gossip on social media or politics on local news page, especially headlines that are very provocative make people tired. Your brain needs a break and you need a break. 

Apart from this digital detox period, I have also been in my personal detox from Instagram. I have been spending considerably less time on Instagram which is my main social media platform. Checking people's accounts much less actually didn't change my life at all. I sometimes felt some pressure of having to upload what I'm doing, eating, and up to on a daily basis, but I didn't do it for a while on my private account and nothing changed. I saved some time having to take a picture that I want to upload and contemplating on what comments to write. I don't know how long I will do this but for now it feels great! 

Now, off to the last few weeks of the semester. I would say I feel refreshed, and I plan to spend more time on exploring course materials and keep writing blogs!