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Social Media

Redact: Clean Up Your Social Media and Most Used Accounts

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Wishing you could start anew with social media? If you are, you’re not alone. 45% of respondents to a survey shared they were sanitizing their feeds. Let’s look at a few of my favorite tools, and I’ll share some of my experiences.

Why Clean Up Your Social Media?

People have lots of reasons for removing content from social media. Whatever the reason, many agree— it may be time to clean house. Here are some common reasons why people do decide to clean up social media accounts:

  • Protect their personal reputation
  • Get a handle on past oversharing
  • What you shared has gotten negative comments
  • The post didn’t get enough likes

Screenshot by the author | Statista (2018) Report Data

If you’ve ever tried to remove content from your social media account(s), you know it can be a long, arduous process. This is even more true when you want to clean up or remove posts without deleting your account. And even when you delete your account, how do you know for sure that the posts, images, and videos are gone?

Introducing Redact

Redact is a free tool that runs on your computer, making the job of removing content from social media easy.

Screenshot by the author

These days, someone is always trying to clean up one of their 40+ services used, like Discord, Reddit, Facebook, X, and more. Redact can help with that. Some of the things it offers for free include:

  • Mass delete from 40+ websites and apps.
  • Mass delete messages, posts, direct messages, files, images, and more.
  • Schedule automatic bulk deletions.
  • Smart delete by keyword, content type, and more!

Services it can help you cleanse include (but are not limited to):

  • Blogger
  • Discord
  • Disqus
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • Skype
  • Slack
  • Spotify
  • Teams
  • Telegram
  • TikTok
  • Twitter
  • Vimeo
  • Yelp
  • YouTube

Whew! Those are only a few of the ones I have used. Want to see what else Redact can clean up? Explore the complete list when you start Redact on your computer.

Can You Trust Redact?

One question that you should always ask is, “Can this steal my login credentials and use them for ill?” The answer is that Redact doesn’t store any data or run on a server in the cloud.

You save the software to your own computer, then run it. It will work through your web services (which you log in to) and remove posts. What’s more, Redact works as if you were removing content personally. No one will see or know Redact was the tool you used to automate the repetitive process.

Screenshot by the author.

Cleaning Up Social Media

“Why is Miguel cleaning up his social media?” That’s a valid question. I haven’t posted any pictures or videos of me swinging a beer stein while wearing my TCEA badge. But you may recognize this fascinating AI-generated image of a top clergyman:

Worse, some companies are feeding AI image creators bucketloads of digital images. One easy place to find those? Your social media. What a way to bury the lead, right?

If you’re one of the billions of people who have posted pictures of themselves on social media over the past decade, it may be time to rethink that behavior. New AI image-generation technology allows anyone to save a handful of photos (or video frames) of you, then train AI to create realistic fake photos that show you doing embarrassing or illegal things (source).

One of the cool aspects of Redact? You can PREVIEW everything before you decide to delete it:

Screenshot by the author

Here are some screenshots featuring Redact making my social media inaccessible:

Screenshot by the author

Instagram

This experience worked quite well. At least until Instagram noticed Redact was doing something around 100 image deletions into its job. Then, it forced me to log in to the platform again. I had to enter confirmation codes sent to my phone and email to verify my identity. In a few moment’s time, Redact was back at work cleaning out my Instagram account.

Twitter

Deleting Twitter content was pretty easy. You also get a variety of options:

Screenshot by the author

And you can choose what you’d like to delete:

Screenshot by the author

As you can see from the options above, there’s a lot you can do with Redact.

Redact Your Social Media Presence

Stop the AI Overlords. Safeguard sensitive photos, videos, and images. Redact allows you to take control of your social media content and protect your privacy. Plus, it’s free for personal use, which is amazing given its capabilities. Give it a try!

Try Redact

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Digital CitizenshipDigital LiteracySocial Media

Resources for Teaching Students to Fact-Check

by Emily Horn
written by Emily Horn

Teaching students to evaluate, analyze, and think critically about information is absolutely essential. With advancements in technology, communication, and artificial intelligence, it’s easier than ever before for falsified information, photos and videos, and news to spread like wildfire, presented to the world as fact through social media and other avenues. Let’s take a look at some resources for fact-checking, vetting, and analyzing information. But first, let’s look at why it’s so important for students to learn how to assess source credibility. 

What Is Fact-Checking? 

Fact-checking is the process of assessing the credibility, accuracy, and validity of information. The goal is to determine whether information is true or false and whether or not a source is trustworthy and credible. It’s become so important to intercept misinformation that Duke Reporter’s Lab reported a total of 378 fact-checking projects operating in 2022, up from 186 in 2016, and down from 391 in 2021.

Why Is Fact-Checking Important? 

There is a lot of information out there about misinformation and disinformation, its spread, and its impact. With our students being subjected to so much so often, as in daily – especially via social media – teaching them ways to fact check and identify credible sources is more vital now than ever before. We can be a part of changing statistics and helping our students be better informed. And we can do the same for ourselves!

Statistics on Misinformation and Fake News

If you want to dive into 18 gut-wrenching statistics on fake news and misinformation, take a look at this recent article (January 27, 2023) published by TechJury. It references sources from PEW Research, Business Insider, The Economist, and more. They offer some key statistical takeaways, mostly from 2020-2022, with two sources cited in the article from 2016.

Another study, conducted by Poynter Institute for Media Studies, MediaWise, YouGov Inc., with support from Google, found the following: 

  • 62% of respondents think they see false or misleading information online every week.
  • 39% of respondents across countries say they have unintentionally shared false or misleading information.
  • 55% of respondents say they have shared false or misleading information because they say they thought it was true. A third say they shared impulsively.
  • The largest share of respondents in the US are only somewhat confident (36%) that they can identify information as false or misleading. 

Additionally, a 2016 study by Stanford University on student ability to evaluate information showed that 7,804 students across 12 states had difficulty discerning sponsored content from actual news. They also had trouble “identifying where information came from.” The study consisted of five “tests” for middle school students, high school students, and university students. The authors of the study mentioned that, at every level, students lacked preparation and may focus on content rather than on sources when it comes to determining reliability. A more recent 2022 study by Stanford University showed that student ability to identify questionable websites increased twofold with just six, 50-minute lessons. 

That said, let’s look at some resources to use with students to boost their skills when it comes to recognizing false information. 

Resources for Student Fact-Checking 

1. Civic Online Reasoning (COR)

News Literacy Project
Screenshot by Emily Horn | Civic Online Reasoning

This is the curriculum that was tested in Stanford’s 2022 research study, which demonstrated that six, 50-minute lessons can positively impact students’ ability to discern credible information. The curriculum is based on three questions:

  1. Who’s behind the information?
  2. What’s the evidence?
  3. What do other sources say?

There are lessons (lateral reading, sponsored content, news vs. opinion…), assessments (website reliability, home page analysis, article evaluation…), and collections (for the history classroom, for the science classroom, classroom posters, click restraint…). This resource is of great quality and extremely relevant! Highly recommend. 

2. News Literacy Project 

I love this resource! The News Literacy Project has been around since 2008. As a nonprofit (like TCEA), it has a nonpartisan mission for news literacy and a vision for everyone to know how to identify credible news sources and information. New Literacy Project has a lot of resources for educators, including: 

News Literacy Project
Screenshot by Emily Horn | News Literacy Project

Checkology: “Checkology is a free e-learning platform with engaging, authoritative lessons on subjects like news media bias, misinformation, conspiratorial thinking and more.” For more information, read this.

The Sift Newsletter: “The Sift, NLP’s free weekly newsletter for educators — delivered during the school year — explores timely examples of misinformation, addresses media and press freedom topics, and discusses social media trends and issues. It also includes links, discussion prompts, and activities for use in the classroom.” 

Resource Library: “NLP’s resource library includes lesson plans, classroom activities, posters and infographics, quizzes, training materials and videos for educators teaching news literacy.” (Grades 4-12+)

Professional Learning: “The News Literacy Project’s professional learning emphasizes teaching educators essential news literacy concepts they can integrate into the curriculum to provide their students with the abilities, knowledge, and confidence to navigate an increasingly complex and ever-changing information landscape.”

3. PBS Learning: Be MediaWise 

PBS Be MediaWise
Screenshot by Emily Horn | PBS Be MediaWise

PBS offers resources and lessons for grades 6-12 on media literacy and fact-checking which are part of the Poynter Institutes’s Teen Fact-Checking Network. When you go to the site, you will need to change your city in order to proceed. You can share Be MediaWise lessons to your Google Classroom, to students using a link, or to your social media. Lessons offered range from ChatGPT and out-of-context quotes to checking scientific claims and how misinformation spreads. They also offer supporting materials like background reading, handouts, activities, discussion questions, and/or vocabulary.  

4. Five Websites for Fact-Checking 

There are numerous websites available to help students and teachers fact-check information. Here are a few of the top sites for fact-checking:

“When misinformation obscures the truth and readers don’t know what to trust, Snopes’ fact-checking and original, investigative reporting lights the way to evidence-based and contextualized analysis. We always link to and document our sources so readers are empowered to do independent research and make up their own minds.”

“Fact-checking journalism is the heart of PolitiFact. Our core principles are independence, transparency, fairness, thorough reporting and clear writing. The reason we publish is to give citizens the information they need to govern themselves in a democracy.”

“We are a nonpartisan, nonprofit “consumer advocate” for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics. We monitor the factual accuracy of what is said by major U.S. political players in the form of TV ads, debates, speeches, interviews, and news releases. Our goal is to apply the best practices of both journalism and scholarship and to increase public knowledge and understanding.”

“AllSides™ is a media solutions company that strengthens our democratic society with balanced news, media bias ratings, diverse perspectives, and real conversation. We expose people to information and ideas from all sides of the political spectrum so they can better understand the world — and each other.”

“This tool allows you to easily browse and search for fact checks. For example, you can search for a politician’s statement, or for a topic. You can also restrict results to a specific publisher. You can search by keywords and see a list of matching claims and the corresponding fact checks. Keywords can be anything from specific topics to full politician quotes. Basically anything you would also put into the regular Google Search bar.

How do you plan to equip students and build their judgment when it comes to discerning the accuracy and validity of information and the credibility of sources? If you have any resources or activities to add, please showcase them in the comments, and thanks for reading! 

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LeadershipSocial Media

How to Use Your Website and Social Media to Attract Teachers and Staff

by Jess Cook & Dr. Roland Rios
written by Jess Cook & Dr. Roland Rios

The United States is currently facing a significant teacher shortage, with many districts struggling to attract and retain qualified teachers and staff. In such a competitive environment, it’s crucial for K12 administrators to market their school or district effectively to stand out from the crowd. One of the most effective ways you can recruit well is by leveraging your website and social media platforms to showcase your school’s unique offerings and values.

In today’s digital age, your website and social media play an increasingly important role in your school marketing efforts. These platforms allow you to connect with potential teachers and staff and provide them with the information they need to make informed decisions about where to work.

Let’s explore some specific ways you can leverage your website and social media to attract and retain teachers and staff.

1. Create a Recruitment Landing Page

Use your website and social media to highlight your school’s unique culture, values, and mission. Most schools only include a link from their homepage to open positions, which leaves potential candidates with too little information about the school culture and personality. You can improve upon this experience by creating a recruitment landing page on your school website and linking to that instead.

How to build a recruitment landing page:

  • Create a separate page on your website for staff recruitment. Link to it from your home page and social media profiles.
  • Share stories and testimonials from current and former teachers and staff. This gives potential candidates an inside look into what it’s like to work at your school. 
  • Highlight events and activities that showcase your school’s values and mission.
  • Share photos and videos of your school’s facilities and classrooms. 
  • Include a link to your online application system. 

Need some inspiration? Here is a sample recruitment landing page that may inspire you.

sample recruitment landing page; teacher recruitment
Sample Recruitment Landing Page

2. Use Job Listings and Application Tools

Make it easy for candidates to apply for open positions by using your website to post job listings and provide online application tools. Help make posting open positions and recruiting a breeze by finding a web hosting provider with an online job posting module. 

Job posting tips:

  • Be sure to include information about the application process, including any required documents and deadlines. 
  • Make every element of the application digital, including form uploads, to save candidates time.
  • Include information about other requirements your school has for employees, such as attending Open House or working the gates at athletic events.
  • Include a listing of employee benefits as well so that candidates know the full compensation beyond your salary scale.

Need some inspiration? Here is a sample job description page.

Job description; teacher recruiting
Sample Job Description Page

3. Highlight Professional Development Opportunities

Professional development (PD) is crucial in attracting and retaining high-quality teachers and staff. Prospective job candidates want to know that your district invests time and resources in its teachers. 

Ideas for showcasing PD opportunities:

  • Use your website and social media to highlight the professional development opportunities your school offers, including workshops, conferences, and mentoring programs. 
  • Highlight the benefits of these opportunities, such as the chance to learn new skills, network with other educators, and career advancement. 
  • Post web stories and social media posts often and regularly to highlight these PD opportunities. 
  • Using a web hosting service that allows you to cross post information to your website and social media at the same time will lighten the load with this task.

4. Share Benefits and Perks

Use your website and social media to highlight the benefits and perks of working at your school. Benefits like health insurance, retirement plans, and tuition reimbursement can be powerful tools in attracting top talent to your school or district. 

Ways to highlight job benefits:

  • Be sure to provide detailed information about each benefit and perk, and make it easy for potential candidates to apply for these benefits. 
  • Include any and all programs that your school employs to take care of its teachers and staff. Is Friday a jeans day? Let them know that! Does your PTA annually sponsor a wellness manicure session day? Tell the world.
  • Post photos and stories of your current staff members enjoying those perks (Free Coffee Fridays, Spirit Week Dress-Up Days, Volunteer Time Off, etc.) to your social media channels.

5. Engage with Potential Candidates

Use social media to engage with potential candidates and answer their questions about working at your school. Use the “social” element of social media to make this a two-way communication platform.

Way to use social media to engage prospective teachers:

  • Consider hosting Q&A sessions or virtual job fairs to give candidates an opportunity to connect with current staff and learn more about your school. 
  • If a potential candidate posts a question and gets a quick reply, it will show them that your district is sincere about wanting to recruit qualified candidates.
  • If you’re hosting a job fair or other large recruitment event, or if you’ll be attending a similar event at a local university, be sure to publicize this far and wide.

6. Leverage Your Website’s SEO

You can leverage your website’s search engine optimization (SEO) to attract and recruit high-quality teachers and staff by identifying the keywords that potential candidates might use when searching for teaching positions in your area. 

How to use SEO for recruitment:

  • Come up with a list of common search phrases such as “teaching jobs in [your city],” “K12 employment opportunities,” or “best school districts to work for in [your state].” 
  • Once you have identified these keywords, incorporate them strategically into your website’s content, job listings and descriptions, and landing pages. 
  • By optimizing your website’s SEO, you can increase your online visibility, reach a wider audience, and ultimately attract and recruit top-tier talent to your school district. 

Need some inspiration? For more information on website SEO enhancement, see Edlio’s Guide to SEO for Schools ebook.

edlio's guide to seo for schools; teacher recruitment
Edlio’s Guide to SEO for Schools ebook

7. Get Everyone Involved in Your Recruitment Efforts

Recruitment should not be solely left to your human resources or administrative teams. In “How Google Works,” authors Eric Schmidt and Jonathan Rosenburg state,

“…the job of finding people belongs to everyone, and this fact needs to be woven into the fabric of the company. Recruiters can manage the process, but everyone should be recruited into recruiting.” 

How to get everyone involved in the process:

  • Quality recruitment should be a whole team effort. 
  • Encourage your current staff to share their experiences working at your school on social media. Consider featuring these posts on your website and reposting them to your own social media.
  • Start a referral program to encourage current staff to bring in friends or colleagues from other areas. You can even give them a small prize, like some school swag, if their referral is hired.

8. Harness the Power of Technology in Recruitment

Finding the right web hosting partner can help in your school’s recruitment efforts. Edlio is a premiere K12 communications solution that can help schools and districts effectively market themselves to potential teachers and staff. 

Here’s how we do it:

  • Edlio’s website builder and content management system make it easy to create a professional and engaging website that showcases your school’s unique culture, values, and offerings. 
  • Our social media management tools also allow schools to easily manage and schedule social media content, engage with potential candidates, and promote job listings. 
  • Our online forms allow you to collect information and document uploads for job postings, and we even have a built-in job listings page module you can use.

By leveraging Edlio’s communication tools, K12 administrators can effectively market their school or district and attract and retain top talent in today’s competitive education landscape. Edlio is also proud to be a TCEA Silver Sponsor, where we provide free resources to members helping them advance teaching and learning through the use of technology. For more information about Edlio, visit us at www.edlio.com.

Want to learn more? Don’t miss TCEA and Edlio’s Partner Webinar, “If You Boost It, They Will Come: Using Your Website for Teacher Recruitment,” on March 2, 2023 at 11:45 a.m. Central! Edlio will share tips and tricks that are easily adaptable for educators regardless of which web solution you’re using.

Register Now!
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Social Media

How to Get Started with Mastodon

by Miguel Guhlin
written by Miguel Guhlin

Looking to expand your network and connect with educators, find tools, problem solve, and share even more on social media? Mastodon could be an additional option to explore. But what is it? And what does this free and open source software (FOSS) offer educators? This social network is a federated universe of websites that offers similar services to Twitter. It is comprised of independent servers called instances which act as independent communities, usually based on themes or topics. Let’s look at how to get started with Mastodon and go over some tips along the way.

An infographic with the many branches of the Fediverse.

Glossary of Helpful Mastodon Terms

Before we get started, let’s take a look at some helpful terms related to Mastodon. Since it doesn’t use the same vocabulary as other social media and networking platforms, going over these terms will give you a point of reference as we walk through the steps to creating an account and diving in.

Image Source: James Wilson @MastodonProject, Available November 8, 2019

Bookmarklet: A bit of code you add to your browser (drag-and-drop) so that you can share webpages you are reading with others via your Mastodon account. Read tutorial.

Domain Block List: A list of blocked domains that have been found to send out spam. You can import or add a list of blocked domains to your Mastodon account so you can block unwanted spam or attacks from others. Read this short “tootorial.”

Federated: The fediverse is an ensemble of federated servers that are used for web publishing and file hosting, but which, while independently hosted, can communicate with each other. On different servers, users can create so-called identities.

Fediverse: A non-centralized network of loosely joined web servers that offer a variety of services. Mastodon is but one of the many types of services you will find in the Federated Universe (or fediverse for short).

Following List: A list of the people you are following. This list can be added via a CSV upload, or manually one by one. Read this short tootorial for instructions on importing an educator list.

Group: Several online groups allow you to reach a wider audience. Post to a group, and many more people will see it. One popular educational technology group is @edtech@chirp.social. Other groups can be found at Chirp.Social and A.Gup.Pe. Hashtags, though, are the preferred way of connecting with others on Mastodon.

Instance: This term refers to a server that runs a copy of Mastodon software, not unlike a Moodle instance or Wordpress instance. You can also think of a Mastodon instance as a self-governed community, each with its own set of rules and guidelines, some more strict than others.

Mastodon: The software that runs on a web server that makes this social media, or social networking, solution work.

A quick graph of around 4500 Mastodon instances via Mapstodon.

Post: Previously known as a “Toot,” this is what a post you make is called. The act of posting is also known as “tooting” or “publishing.”

Tootorial: A portmanteau of the words “toot” and “tutorial.” It is a tutorial about Mastodon topics.

How to Create a Mastodon Account

If you have about forty minutes, you can watch as I create an account in a Mastodon instance. It walks you through the opening steps of Mastodon. Does it take forty minutes to do everything? No, you can get set up pretty quick.

  • Part 1 – Introductions and Selecting a Mastodon Instance
  • Part 2 – Exploring Mastodon Preferences, Importing Following Lists, Adding People
  • Part 3 – Apps to Use on Smartphones and Tablets
  • Part 4 – Migrating from One Mastodon Instance to Another
  • Part 5 – How to Set Up Your Profile, Bio, and Pin a Post
  • Part 6 – Importing the EduTooters List

If you’d rather watch the videos later, here are five quick steps to follow to get started and start connecting.

Find a complete list of academics on Mastodon!

Five Steps for Joining Mastodon

Step 1: Pick a Mastodon instance and create your account.

I recommend using a web browser to create your account. The smartphone app will limit the number of communities (instances) you are able to see to seven or eight, and there are currently more than 13,000 Mastodon instances!

You can click one of the education-focused Mastodon instances listed below, and then “Create an Account.” Or you can click the invitation button below. Since Mastodon is a collection of instances, you can pick any instance to start with. You can always move to a new one later.

Here’s My Invitation to You to Join Mastodon.Education

Step 2: Get the right app for your smartphone or tablet.

A lot of folks get the official Mastodon app. But there are many apps that work better than the stock Mastodon app. For example, you can’t post animated GIFs with the stock Mastodon app. Instead, use one of the apps below and install the Gboard GIF Keyboard (available for iOS and Android).

Here are some options for free and paid apps:

Free apps include:

  • Android: Tusky – This is the best free app I’ve encountered for Android. It’s not quite MetaText quality, but it makes a strong effort.
  • iOS: Ice Cubes for Mastodon – This is a nice iOS app that is free. Another app that works for both Android and iOS is tooot.

Paid apps include:

  • FediLab ($2.49) – This app is my preferred app on Android, as it works smoothly and without issue.
  • iOS: Toot! ($3.99) – This is a great app and has the added benefit of making “tooting” sounds (although you can turn that off).

Step 3: Create a hashtag-rich introduction.

Mastodon lacks an algorithm to throw content at you, so this means there isn’t any advertising except what others post, and you must use hashtags to make it easy for people to find you. If you are into education, use hashtags that reflect your interests.

Here’s a short list of some hashtags you can include, although the sky is really the limit:

  • #Academic
  • #AdultLearning
  • #Bilingual
  • #Counselor
  • #EdTech
  • #Education
  • #EduColor
  • #ESL
  • #GoogleEDU
  • #HigherEd
  • #InstructionalCoach
  • #InstructionalSupport
  • #k16
  • #Librarian
  • #Literacy
  • #MathChat
  • #MicrosoftEDU
  • #NonProfitEducation
  • #Paraeducator
  • #Pedagogy
  • #PrimaryTeacher
  • #Professor
  • #Reading
  • #Robotics
  • #SchoolAdministrator
  • #SpecialEd
  • #Teacher
  • #TCEAjmg and #TCEA
  • #TOEFL

Note: Notice that the hashtags use PascalCase. This a cultural norm on Mastodon that caters to the blind using screen readers. You can either mix hashtags throughout the text of your posts, or add them at the end.

Here’s what my Mastodon profile looks like, hashtags and all:

Join me on the Mastodon.Education instance (or server)

Step 4: Follow people and import the EduTooters list.

Since it can take time to find people, here’s a quick way to reconnect. Use the EduTooters list to get started. It includes over 500 educators who have joined Mastodon. Here’s a detailed tutorial on how to import the list of educators into your Mastodon account.

Be sure to follow the #edtech and #TCEAjmg hashtags (you can follow hashtags and pin them to your profile) once you get your account set up.

Watch this short video on how to import a CSV file from Google Sheets EduTooters list into Mastodon:

Step 5: Learn the culture and bookmark items of interest.

Get to know the culture of Mastodon and boost what you like, don’t just “favorite” or star it. Also, bookmark anything of interest so you can easily find it again. The Fediverse is a big space. If you’re not sure where your toots may end up, the chart below may help:

Data Security and Privacy

Many often ask, “How safe is my data on Mastodon?” You can find the rationale behind why people put up Mastodon instances and see who actually holds your data in Mastodon.

Additional Resources

Want more tips? I’ve organized a series of tutorials you can take advantage of:

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Content AreasContent CreationSocial Media

Three Social Media-Inspired Student Projects

by Dr. Monica Burns
written by Dr. Monica Burns

How do you use social media in your classroom? Our favorite social media platforms can act as inspiration for student creations! Today, I have three ideas to get your wheels spinning. These three social media-inspired student projects are flexible and adaptable for different grades and subject areas. So as you’re reading, think about how these projects could be used with your students and the content area(s) you teach.

Caption This

One of the common features you’ll find across social media platforms is captions accompanying a photograph or text that connects to a link or image. You can try a “Caption This” activity with students and have them think creatively about what is going on in a picture or how to communicate a captivating message alongside an image.

For a “Caption This” project, share a picture with students and ask them to write a caption to accompany the image. You might share a few examples to help them get started or provide additional context for the image. If you’ve tried this with students in the past, you might introduce a specific challenge, like a minimum or maximum character count or a list of vocabulary words to include.

Although students could certainly use photographs they’ve snapped themselves, you might decide to locate images for students instead. One of my favorite spots for finding high-quality, royalty-free images is Unsplash. I share a few reasons why I love it in this blog post. Unsplash is an excellent place to go if you’re looking for a landscape or action picture. Alternatively, you might locate a primary source document and share that with students instead. 

Carousel of Tips

A popular format on Instagram is a carousel post. This type of post includes a series of images someone can swipe through. These are usually set up to show a sequence of items, a progression of ideas, or a series of connected pieces of information. Students can use a selection of graphics to simulate a carousel post. Here are examples of two I’ve shared on Instagram: Three tips from a back-to-school blog post and Four alternatives to a traditional teacher book club.

Screenshot of an example social media project
“Three Ways to Help Student Readers Get Ready for School” carousel post on Instagram.
Screenshot of an example social media project
“Four Alternatives to Traditional Teacher Book Clubs” carousel post for Instagram created in Canva.

For this project, you might share examples of carousel posts with students to help them envision their own creations. You can make a carousel post with students in Adobe Express with the new multiple pages option. Alternatively, students can use a slide-based presentation tool like Google Slides or Microsoft PowerPoint to create a series of images.

Quick Info

With an Instagram Reel or TikTok connection, students can jump on camera and share a handful of fun facts or some quick information about a topic. These videos usually have a person or a captivating background on the screen and quickly present information. Often the caption expands on what is in the video, or there is an additional piece of content, like a podcast episode or blog post, to explore. Here is one I made with ideas for using storyboards in the classroom. In this video, I share tips for tech-friendly activities. Instead of creating these on Instagram, you might use Microsoft Flip or another favorite video tool with your students.

screenshot of an example social media project
Instagram Quick Info Video “Seven Lesson Ideas: Storyboard Examples for Students“

In the math classroom, you might ask students to jump on video and point to three helpful tips for solving a challenging math problem. A science teacher might ask students to make a video with seven vocabulary words their fellow students should know for an upcoming unit of study. Or a social studies teacher might ask students to put three quick facts on the screen about a historical figure or current event.

If you’d like to expand upon these ideas, don’t miss Dr. Monica Burns at TCEA’s Convention & Exposition in San Antonio, January 30- February 2, 2023! She’ll model how to try these projects alongside some of her favorite open-ended creation tools. Early bird pricing ends November 4, so hurry and register!

Save My Spot!
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Feature image asking, "Are you using alternative text?"
AccessibilitySocial Media

How to Increase Accessibility with Alternative Text (Alt Text)

by Lindsay Foster
written by Lindsay Foster

Maybe you wear glasses. Maybe you only need reading glasses. However, 253 million of the world’s population live with vision impairment: 36 million are blind and 217 million have moderate to severe vision impairment (American Federation for the Blind). Providing alt text can support a wide variety of learners, improve navigation for those who have text-based browsers or limited internet connections, and assist search engine optimization (SEO) in locating your information.

What Is Alt Text?

If you’re wondering how to use the “alt text” that appears on images in your school’s Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook page, but don’t know what it means, you’re not alone. For those who may use a screen reader or if an image fails to load, alternative text, also known as alt text, appears in place of the image and offers a description if one has been added. This has been featured in the news of late as individuals and corporations have leveraged the alt text field for hyperlinks, caption credits, and source citations rather than to facilitate understanding. 

Here are some tips that you can use to provide accessible materials in your social media presence.

The ABCs of Alt Text

When composing alt text, it’s important to remember your ABCs:

Accurate: Be as accurate as possible. When you are able to name individuals, such as “Superintendent Smith” or “Principal Jones,” do so. If you have a group of students at a football game using “Cypress Hill High School students at a football game” is sufficient, for example. 

Brief: Many alt text tools limit descriptions to 120 characters (approximately). If you need more than that to describe a complex image such as a map, chart, or graph, consider adding alt text that directs the person to a longer description. The alt text of an image on a website might read, “Longer description link is available below the image” while the alt text of a Twitter post might read, “Longer description is available in post as a shortened URL.”

Complete: Remember that the purpose of alt text is to offer a person who cannot view the image the same information as a person who can view the image. If your image includes dates, times, locations, etc., be sure to include that in your alt text description. Put the most important information first. “Sun rising over the desert: ACME logo” is better than “ACME logo: Sun rising over the desert.”

Image used with example alt text "TCEA Annual Convention attendees smile and laugh during opening keynote session." Image used for examples of good, better, and best alt text. The example alt text is below the image in the blog post.

For example, alt text for this image might read: “TCEA Annual Convention attendees smile and laugh during the opening keynote session.”

Examples of Good, Better, and Best Alt Text in Context

Take a look at this Creative Commons Zero image and the examples of good, better, and best alt text for it. Tip: A screen reader will identify that there is an image and will read the description, so there is no need to begin your alt text with “image of” or “picture of.”

This image is used for examples of good, better, and best alt text. The example alt text is below the image and included in the blog post.

Good Example: “A large statue of a woman holding a torch in her fully raised right hand and a book in her left.”

While this is an accurate description of the image, it doesn’t offer any context (national monument, location, significance, etc.) 

Better Example: “The Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island in New York City against a blue sky with wispy clouds.”

This is a better Alt Text description because it names the statue, offers a location, and gives a description of the weather conditions. However, consider how the changes below would make the description the best for a news story regarding immigration:

Best Example: “The Statue of Liberty on Ellis Island in New York City serves as a powerful symbol for prospective immigrants, as she stands ready with her torch raised in her right hand and holding the text in her left.”

When creating your alt text consider the context of the situation as well as the function of the image. If an image of books is a link to the library catalog, “Search the Library Catalog” is much more useful than: “Photo of a collection of books and other reading materials scattered on a table.”

Check Grammar, Spelling, and Punctuation in Alt Text

Check your spelling, grammar, and punctuation. These are key for a screen reader to pronounce and offer the information to the listener correctly. If you are dictating using speech to text, verify that the tool translated your words to text correctly as well. Everyone has seen what can happen when artificial intelligence misinterprets speech!

Using Alt Text on Social Media Platforms

Instagram

Instagram logo

For Instagram Stories

Instagram has a creative alt text feature for stories. Once you have taken a video on stories, you can access a sticker called “captions,” and auto-generated captions are visible on Instagram.  

Screenshot showing Instagram Stories Captions Sticker.
Instagram Stories Captions Sticker

Another way of adding captions on Instagram is by going to the text sticker and adding the captions manually. This will be more accurate than the auto-generated ones. And this feature will be more helpful if you speak a language other than English. 

For Instagram Images

The process of adding alt text for images is quite easy for Instagram. In the last step of posting, just before you share, tap “Advanced settings” at the very bottom of the screen. Then under “Accessibility” tap “Write alt text.”

Screenshot showing where to find alt text for an instagram photo post.
Where to Find Alt Text in Instagram

Twitter

Twitter logo

For Images

Twitter has made its platform more accessible with the alt text feature for images. They also have a higher character limit (1000) than LinkedIn, so you can be as descriptive as you wish to be! In the app or using a browser, just click on “+ALT” in the bottom right corner of the image. A box called “Description” will appear where you can add the alt text for your images.

Screenshot showing where to access the alt text feature for a Twitter post.

For videos

Twitter users can add subtitle files to videos. 

Facebook

Facebook logo

For Images

On the web-based version of Facebook, under edit image, you will find “Alternative text.” Select this option and enter your custom description.

Screenshots showing how to add alt text to a Facebook post on the web-based platform.

On the app, look for the three white horizontal dots on the right side next to the “x.” When selected, the “Edit alt text” option appears.

Screenshots showing how to add alt text using the Facebook app.

Facebook has a feature that auto-generates a description on its own as well. This feature is usually not as descriptive or completely accurate. This description can always be customized, even after the picture is posted. So a brand can go to their older images and select the option “change alt text” to make all of their content accessible.

For Videos

The videos on Facebook also auto-generate captions, but there is an option to edit the caption frame by frame. This is an excellent feature for those who do not have subtitle files ready with them, they can upload native videos and customize the captions on Facebook itself. Be aware that auto-captions are only 70-80% accurate and can often miscommunicate information. Be sure to check the captions before publishing. Alternatively, the channel has given the option to upload subtitles files as well!

More on Alt Text and Accessibility Topics

I hope you’ve found this information helpful and information on your journey to making all content accessible. Know any other tips and tricks? Add them in the comments!

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CybersecurityDigital CitizenshipSocial MediaSocial-Emotional Learning

Where Do We Go from Here?

by Luann Hughes
written by Luann Hughes

I can’t stop thinking about May 24. Nineteen innocent students and two faultless teachers senselessly lost their lives. One teen, only 18 years old, was so troubled that he shot his own grandmother and murdered 21 people in what should be a place of safety– school.  

I have been in public education for 42 years. As all of us who have been around for a while can attest, there are many changes and challenges that public schools have weathered. But this continuing trend of hatred and rage has me worried and heartsick.  

The Effects of Social Media and Online Content

We are seeing the profound effect of social media, access to inappropriate information, and easy anonymous communication on those that we in public schools want most to protect– our students. In our physical world, the boundaries and restrictions are easier to maintain. But, in the world of technology, “anything goes.”  The easy access to hatred and violence online can cause children to be desensitized and create the potential for aggression. Things that people would never say to each other in a civilized conversation in our society are celebrated on social media. Make no mistake, our students are watching how adults, including our country’s leadership, behave (or misbehave) online. 

Managing and Monitoring Online Access: How?

School districts spend thousands of dollars every year trying to keep inappropriate websites off the screens of school computers. Parents face an almost insurmountable challenge in trying to keep their children away from information that should never be exposed to those of such a tender age. Our children have access at their fingertips to things that can be very harmful to them (think sexting, cyberbullying, and pornography.) There are reasons why children SHOULD have restricted access to certain content until they are adults. Children do not have the skill set, maturity, or experience to handle it. 

Digital Citizenship Needs Action, Not Just Talk 

The time has come for us to recognize this problem and take action. Digital citizenship requires more than mere lip service in our state standards and local curriculum. It must be intentionally taught and supported in the classroom. However, teachers have not been provided with the right tools to help students navigate this brave new world that technology has brought us. Technology leaders and parents must demand that funding be provided and regulations enacted to keep our children safe and smart online, both in and out of school. Additionally, it is imperative that we find better ways to use technology for recognizing students who are crying out for help. We have left our students alone to manage technology that is too much for them for too long.   

Five Ways to Take Action 

Now we ask, “Where do we go from here?”  Here are some steps we can take to 

  1. Contact your state legislators.  
    • Let them know the importance of funding ways for students to ask for help online, or help other students by reporting what they see.  
    • Stress the importance of teaching digital citizenship and safety as a required part of the curriculum.
  2. Explore some of these free resources to learn more:
  3. Get students involved on your campus to help create a Digital Safety Awareness program.  
  4. Partner with your counselors or student services department to have digital safety and awareness sessions for parents. Even better still, engage and encourage parents to help lead these sessions.
  5. Speak up often about how to be safe and healthy online. You know that your students (and your own children and grandchildren) are listening and looking to you for guidance. Learn how your students can get help online and then share with them how to use those resources. Let them know that it is OK to ask for help or tell an adult when they know someone who needs help.

I have talked about this for too long without taking enough action to correct the problems that unsafe online access is creating for our students. I’m ready to take action. Will you join me?

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Digital LiteracySocial Media

How to Search Twitter for Anything

by Jennifer Bergland
written by Jennifer Bergland

Twitter is a great place for you to connect with others who share common interests. You can discover people who teach the same subject or grade levels you teach. Perhaps you are passionate about robotics and would like to connect with others who are as well. Or maybe you are concerned about the exodus of teachers from the classroom and want to find some resources on this topic? You don’t have to look too hard to find others with similar interests or concerns. But do you know how to search Twitter and find what you’re looking for?

Like other applications, you can use some search terms to help you locate exactly what or who you are looking for. The inspiration for this blog post came from the Twitter user @TessaRDavis. She tweeted a thread that illustrated how to search Twitter, and I thought it was pure gold! So I wanted to share some of her insights with our educator readers. 

Search Terminology

Search operators are words, phrases, and symbols you use to tell a search engine what you are searching for. The operators tend to be the same or at least similar on different search engines. Thus, you can use the same phrases or words to search in Google as you would on Twitter. I will demonstrate how to use these, and then I’ll provide a list of terms at the bottom of the blog. 

How to Search for Tweets about a Person

You can search for any mention of a user by simply typing in their Twitter handle (for example, @jbergland).

Searching using a Twitter handle.

How to Search for Tweets from a Person

You can also search for tweets from a specific person.

Twitter search by person
Searching tweets from a specific person.

Note that in the first search, @LLeneWinokur is tweeting about Desiree Alexander (@educatoralex), and in the second search I was searching for Peggy Reimers’ tweets. 

How to Search Tweets from One Person to Another

I might also want to search for tweets from one individual to another. In the following example, I searched for tweets in which Miguel Guhlin specifically tweeted Peggy Reimers. 

How to Search Tweets from a Person about a Topic

I might also want to find out what an individual has to say about a topic I’m interested in. In the following example, I wanted to know what Andre Daughty had to say about “math.” I discovered that this is a topic he frequently tweets about. 

Twitter search by topic and person

How to Search Tweets by Topic

Searching is also useful if you are wanting to see others’ thoughts on a specific topic. For instance, I am extremely interested in the topic of virtual learning. Let’s see how I can use the search operators to help me find some resources related to this topic. 

First, I did a simple search with the phrase virtual learning. I found a variety of topics that were mentioned. The one below reminded me that virtual learning is happening in all types of fields, not just in education. In this example, virtual learning is being used in the field of agriculture. 

Also, in this example note that the phrase virtual learning stands alone. There are no other symbols or terms placed around it. This will pull up any tweet that has those two words in the text. They do not need to be placed together in one phrase. If I only want tweets with words in a certain order, then I need to place quotation marks around them, i.e.  – “virtual learning”. 

How to Search Tweets by Date

Next, because I don’t want to look for tweets that focus on the failure of online learning, I am primarily interested in posts that were tweeted after the first year and a half of the pandemic. I’m looking for how schools have adapted to it. In order to do this, I will need to include a range of dates. 

The placement of the dates is critical. You must start with the year, then the month, and then the day. If you want tweets from a specific date range, you will need to use the terms “since” and “until.” Here is an example: “virtual learning” since:2021-09-02 until:2022-05-05. Of all the search terms, following this formula seems to be the pickiest. Follow it exactly. I actually found that it helped to copy and paste it in the search field and then change the dates to fit my needs. 

Twitter search by date

I also used the date search with these two terms robots and dash to find this gem: 

Twitter search by date

How to Narrow a Search by Location

I am especially interested in any public policy discussions that involve virtual learning, so it might be helpful to narrow my search to those tweeting from the Austin area– which is where most of the legislative hearings are held. I used this search term to narrow my search to Austin: near:austin within:10mi. 

I found a tweet that mentioned a hearing that I haven’t watched yet. Once I discovered the tweet, I scheduled some time to go back and watch the recording of this hearing, so I can see what else was mentioned about virtual learning. 

virtual learning

How to Search for Viral Tweets

Sometimes we are wanting to find tweets that have gone somewhat viral. You can do this with a variety of search terms: 

min_retweets: x

min_faves: x

min_replies: x

In the following example, I wanted to find tweets about Ukraine that had more than 1000 retweets. 

Ukraine Twitter search

You might be searching for tweets that include a link to a blog post, news article, or video. You can do that by filtering your tweets. In the example below, I wanted to find news articles about the teacher shortage. I used this operator to accomplish that: filter:links

teacher shortage Twitter Search

How to Search for Tweets with Media

Sometimes our favorite ed tech presenters have posted one of their recommended tools. Here is one I found that Leslie Fisher posted using the filter:media. 

Conclusion

As you can see, there is gold to be mined using Twitter’s search feature. You just need to know what search operators can help you find what you need. To be honest, I had a hard time stopping my search once I got started. I kept thinking of new ways I could unearth tweets that would help with my work or just for fun. Happy searching!

List of Search Terms

  • @twitteruser – Any mention of a twitter user
  • word 1 word 2 – Simple word search 
  • from:@twitter user – Tweets from a specific individual
  • from:@twitteruser to:@twitteruser – Search for tweets from a specific person that they directed to a specific person
  • from:@twitteruser math (or other word) – From a twitter user and a word or topic they mention
  • from:@twitteruser filter:media – From a twitter user with some type of media image
  • Word or phrase filter:links – Specific word or topic in which the tweet contains a link
  • Word or phrase min_retweets:x – Looking for viral links – search for a minimum number of retweets
  • Phrase or twitter user: since:YEAR-MONTH-DAY until:YEAR-MONTH-DAY (ex: 2022-05-08) (since:2022-01-01 until:2022:05-08) – Looking for tweets that fall within a specific time frame
  • Phrase:min_retweets:x since:2022-01-01 until:2022:05-08 – Search for tweets that mention a topic with minimum retweets within a certain time frame
  • Phrase near:austin within:10mi – Tweets about a specific topic by people living in a specific location
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Digital CitizenshipSocial MediaSocial-Emotional Learning

Five Myths About Helping Students Navigate Social Media and Technology

by Andrea Jenkins
written by Andrea Jenkins

FOMO. Anxiety. Online drama. Group texts gone awry. 

As technology becomes more embedded into our lives, students everywhere are facing tremendous daily challenges — socially, emotionally, and academically. School leaders are left asking, “How can we possibly get ahead of this?”

As a former school administrator, teacher, and middle school advisor, I experienced these challenges every day. I watched students make big mistakes online and felt helpless as our school played “whack-a-mole” with each behavioral issue.

I still see schools struggling with these same issues today. But I also see innovative schools overcoming myths and challenges by implementing modern SEL. They are proactively empowering students to navigate social-emotional well-being, social media, and technology positively, all because they’ve shattered these five common myths.

Myth #1: All SEL programming should launch at the beginning of the school year.

SEL Programming Myth

Many educators falsely assume that the only time to begin a social-emotional program is at the start of the school year. After leading hundreds of teachers through professional development, I’ve found that “layering in” new programming throughout the school year can actually be highly beneficial. When schools launch programs mid-year, teachers can take advantage of the strong relationships they’ve already built with their students. Additionally, they can leverage well-established class routines and schedules. When these relationships between students and teachers are firmly in place, along with class norms, launching a new program that connects with students can be a seamless process. 

Myth #2: All digital citizenship programs should be built in-house.

Digital Citizenship Program Myth

Schools are passionate and protective about their mission and culture, and rightly so. Social media needs to be a standard part of your SEL programming. But while it’s common for schools to create programs with the expertise of their teachers and leaders, social media is a different ball game. Helping students navigate social platforms from TikTok and YouTube to texting and video gaming is different than creating a math program. Many adults in school communities are not digital natives, and they lack the expertise and bandwidth to fully understand how social media behaviors and trends differ from grade to grade. Leaning on a trusted partner that stays at the cutting edge and speaks the students’ language can be a critical path to success. 

Myth #3: Any teacher who educates students about social media should be an expert themselves. 

Social Media Education Myth

Over the past five years, our team at The Social Institute has seen tens of thousands of teachers facilitate meaningful digital citizenship conversations with students, even without knowing much about TikTok, the latest iPhone 13, or Fortnite. One successful strategy we help our partner schools implement is having students “coach up” and teach fellow peers and adults how to navigate technology positively. After all, students are ahead of the curve when it comes to social media. Plus, there is no better way to learn something than to have to teach it yourself.

Myth #4: One-off speakers that scare and lecture students are enough.

Digital Citizenship Social Media Program Myth

When a school experiences challenges around students’ social media use, a typical reaction is to bring in a speaker to warn students about the perils of social media and share scary messages about what not to do online. While students should be educated, they should also be equipped with that to do. Proactively educating students with relevant ongoing lessons — lessons that grow with them year over year — yields stronger outcomes than one-time speakers who are disconnected from your students’ realities. As educators, we have the unique opportunity to empower and equip students in a sustainable and systematic way. 

Myth #5: New programs are too heavy of a lift for teachers right now.

Social Media Digital Citizenship Program Myth

It’s no surprise that teachers are tired, stressed, and feel the weight of the last two school years. And no one wants to add more to teachers’ plates. This is why schools are choosing to integrate turnkey programs now more than ever. Providing teachers with lessons that are completely developed, engaging for students, and proactively addressing real-time topics make teachers’ lives easier. Instead of spending their time building content or dealing with student issues, they can lean into the lessons and open meaningful dialogue with their students. Teachers feel the challenge of supporting students lifted and discover a new way to connect with their students.

My mentor once wisely advised, “There is no perfect time to launch something new, and there will always be excuses not to. Don’t let perfection get in the way of action.” More than ever, our students need us to take action. Waiting until a new school year or for full buy-in only enables students’ challenges to grow. When we bust these five myths, we can fully support students when they need it the most — right now.

Andrea Jenkins is a TCEA 2022 presenter leading a session on Reimaging SEL to Win Over Students and Address Social Media, Current Events, and Well-Being. Andrea is a team member at The Social Institute (TSI) which provides a unique, gamified platform. TSI uses a positive approach to supporting students’ digital citizenship skills and social media navigation. Check out this #WinatSocial preview to learn more about TSI’s social media education program for schools.

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Digital CitizenshipSocial Media

Six Things You Didn’t Know About Social Media

by Sara Qualls
written by Sara Qualls

If you’re reading this on June 30, happy Social Media Day! If it’s not June 30, don’t fret. The online social world is alive and well and here to stay. Let’s explore social media with a few trivia facts about social media.

The first social platform was created in 1997.

Social media platforms didn’t hit the scene until the late ’90s with Six Degrees. It allowed users to upload a profile and connect with other users, but faded into the background by 2001. It got its name from the popular theory of humans only being six steps away from connecting to anyone. Hello, Kevin Bacon.

Users spend a lot of time each day looking at social posts.

social media
Via Oberlo 10 Social Media Statistics You Need to Know in 2021

In 2021, the average user spends 2.5 hours daily on social media. As the social media queen here at TCEA, there is no judgement for this one. In fact, when I ask someone how much time they spend online socially, I usually add an hour and sometimes two. All of those minutes add up.

Facebook still rules.

The word on the street is that Facebook is dying, but it’s not true. Every five seconds a new Facebook profile is created. By the time you are done reading this, 60 new users have joined. If you’re a slower reader or get distracted easily like me, it’s probably closer to 100. In fact, Facebook drives 23% of traffic across the entire internet.

Videos were and still are the hottest thing.

Who knew that video creation would become so massive? Me, I knew. Videos are the number one way that people discover a new company or product. Users have become accustomed to no longer scrolling through their feed, but now swiping to the right to view stories. Unfamiliar with stories? Stories are short-form videos that typically only last 24 hours. Twitter and LinkedIn have even tossed their hats into the ring with fleets and stories.

88% of people under the age of 29 use social media.

Social Media Use by Age via Broadband Search

That’s not a typo. 88% of people ages 18-29 years old are online socially. Although that age range doesn’t include the students in your classroom, we can safely assume that they also match that statistic as they are being born into a digital world.

The hashtag was created by a user.

The hashtag idea came onto the scene from a Twitter user, Chris Messina, in a tweet in 2007. People were not impressed and fought the idea, but hashtags won.

Did you learn anything new about social media? What surprised you the most? Let me know in the comments.

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