After reading the second third of 25 Years of Ed Tech, I am again reflecting on the history of many innovations in Ed Tech and my interaction (or lack of) with each. As time has advanced in the book, I see my personal history intertwined with each passing chapter. The chapters I have read this week have been less surprising, however interesting to learn of the origins, success, and failures of innovations in Ed Tech.
Weller (2020) describes the introduction of social media, in particular Twitter, as being a revolutionary way to make connections globally and engage in meaningful discussions across disciplines. The democratization of the academic space through the use of social media has increased the importance of establishing an online identity. Weller (2020) uses the example of keynote speakers often being those with a solid online identity rather than a lengthy list of publications. I believe this to be the case across many, if not all sectors. In our current time, to amplify your voice, you likely need to have an established online identity with frequent and meaningful contributions to content and dialogue.
In the chapter on Open Educational Resources (OER), Weller (2020) identifies the value of OER while also indicating the role that privilege can play in open education. In the Between the Chapters podcast, Laura Pasquini (2021) describes open education as being focused on “access and equity” (28:28). Although I wholeheartedly agree with this statement and the concept of open education and OER, I come from 15 years of work in community education in the not-for-profit sector and offer a different perspective. Managing an underfunded organization with limited opportunities to fundraise meant having to charge for much of our resources and education. In my heart, I wanted to be able to offer everything for free, yet the systems in place meant I could not. Many of our partner organizations with more robust funding could provide more resources at no cost and this was frustrating. From a not-for-profit perspective, funding can lead to privilege. When considering OER and open education, equity and access should be considered across the whole system, not just from the user perspective.
References
Pasquini, L. (Host). (2021, January 21). Between the chapters: Sharing about OER & our open practices (No. 11) [Audio podcast episode]. In 25 Years of Ed Tech. Transistor. https://25years.opened.ca/2021/01/27/between-the-chapters-oer/
Weller, M. (2020). 25 years of ed tech. Athabasca University Press. https://doi.org/10.15215/aupress/9781771993050.01
I, too, was shocked by my acknowledgement of Twitter’s value. When Twitter came out, I was deep in the world of restaurant openings in London. Much of what I saw in the media was online drivel. I was not in the sphere of education or an industry where enlightening conversations were happening. It never gained appeal.
I tend to agree that if you want an online identity, you have to use social media in some form, but can we amplify our identities professionally anymore without being online? Is online visibility the pathway to credibility? I feel there must be industries and areas of academia where this still holds, but maybe not.
Leah, thanks for sharing your views on OER and social media. I like you have not had as much interaction with the ed tech depicted in the earlier chapters (Weller, 2020) but recognised more as we move through the years.
When I was listening to the Between the Chapters Chapters podcast regarding Twitter, I enjoyed listening to them reminisce about the early days when they made valuable professional connections and had a new means to share ideas. It exposed me to a world on Twitter I have never explored – a professional and/or educational one. I saw the value in a space I have always avoided.
I like that you stated “meaningful contributions” for amplifying one’s voice and creating a solid online identity because it is easy to create an identity and be recognised for something said online that is “not solid.”
Do you think it is possible to amplify one’s voice in a positive manner without social media anymore? I ask because I am not on social media :).
Hi Gill, thanks for reading! I will admit that I did not listen to the Between the Chapters podcast on social media. In the short time I have known you in this program, I know you value your privacy and tend to avoid social media so now I am interested in listening to see how you have discovered value in Twitter. I share some of your feelings about Twitter, however, I do have an account, although I rarely use it. I find Twitter to be too fast for me and have always felt that you really need to be engaged continuously to keep up.
To answer your question – I think that you can amplify your voice without social media (i.e. blogging) however, I believe it is limited. Social media is a place where a lot of people spend a lot of time and in a sense, you have a (large) captive audience. Blogging, for example, you would need to have people either check in on your blog or subscribe to an RSS feed to follow (and also have the time to read), which I am sure people do, but not as many who subscribe to social media. I am not sure how else you can leverage your online identity and amplify your voice without the use of social media, to be honest as it seems to be where the people (the listeners) are. Perhaps you or others have different ideas?