Why some MN high schools use social media

If anyone’s either building a case for social media in school or worried about such a crazy idea, check out this 2-min. video at The Educator’s PLN blog (PLN for personal learning network). In it, English teacher Delainia Haug at Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis says, “My take on education is that if you don’t engage the kids you might as well be talking to the wall.” So Twitter is one of the tools she uses in a classroom that appears to be outfitted with its own laptops for use during classtime. “The point is to get them engaged and make it pertinent to them, but I’m still sneaking in there all the things that I know are good language arts … learning skills.” Other new media tools used at Roosevelt are wikis, iMovie, PPT, and iPhoto, one of the students says on camera. The school has adopted a program developed at the University of Minnesota Dept. of Curriculum and Instruction called “DigMe” (for “Digital Media”), which “brings the university’s experience in technology, literacy and learning into Minnesota classrooms to raise the engagement and academic achievement of the students.”