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This article is related to "Facebook: If You Can't
Beat 'Em…" a presentation originally given in the Electronic Village at
the TESOL convention in Dallas, Texas, USA, and then again in Portland,
Oregon, USA and Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Rather than asking adult students to register for and then
regularly visit a new website to navigate an unfamiliar classroom
management tool, the teacher can meet students where they are by using
Facebook as an interactive online course management system. It is not
necessary for teachers to grant students access to their own personal
content on Facebook; it can be done without “friending” students.
Because students are already accustomed to the features of this social
media platform, there is no learning curve as there is with other class
management tools.
Another benefit of Facebook is that most students already
automatically receive notifications from it or visit the site several
times a day.
These are the top 10 tasks you can use a private Facebook group
for with your students to build community and keep them
informed.
1. Introductions
2. Facilitating conversations about aspects of culture shock.
3. Sharing ideas for essay topics.
4. Practicing certain grammar structures (e.g., using subordinate clauses to write complex sentences).
5. Conducting polls.
6. Posting deadlines for applications, dates for activities on
campus, homework assignments, tests, and holidays under the “Events”
tab. (For details about creating events, visit
www.facebook.com/help/events.)
Note: As you enter each event throughout the term, they appear
on the group’s main page in the order you create them, but Facebook also
automatically puts the events in chronological order under the group’s
“Events” tab. These events also appear on the students’ calendars on
Facebook.
7. Posting links to videos or websites for additional
listening, reading, grammar, or vocabulary practice (e.g., TED Talks or a
site such as Quizlet with vocabulary flashcards).
8. Posting emergency announcements or weather warnings.
9. Sharing photographs of group photos or class events.
10. Sharing PowerPoint files, Word files, or other documents.
Recommendations
- Use Facebook groups only if all your students are adults.
- In the group settings for privacy, select “Closed” so only
class members can see what you and class members post. (For details
about creating a private group, visit
www.facebook.com/about/groups.)
- In the group settings for membership approval, select “Any
member can add members, but an admin must approve them,” to prevent
students from granting membership to anyone who is not in your
class.
- Post some content in the group before you invite students to
join so they will see that it is useful as soon as they join. For
example, you may post the assignment for students to introduce
themselves, and under “Events,” you may post important deadlines, test
dates, and graduation day.
- To invite your students to join the group, you may email
them a link to the group, or you may let them search for it by name on
Facebook.
- Instead of forbidding students to share off-topic posts
(e.g., links to funny videos, an excessive number of class photos, or
requests for a ride to school), create a second group for
extracurricular material.
To see an example of a Facebook group for an ESL class, visit
our site here.
Jenifer Edens teaches international students in the
Language and Culture Center at the University of
Houston. |
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