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Course: Social media literacy > Unit 1
Lesson 1: How to use this courseSuggestions for using this course: Teachers
Want to know how you can help students get the most out of this course? Start here!
Using this course: Teachers
Research shows that social media has caused significant and measurable harms to society and individuals. But we also know that social media could be a powerful tool for learning and connection. In this course, designed by the Center for Humane Technology, students will learn how and why social media has been designed to "hack" their brains. They will reflect on the role of social media in their own lives and in the lives of their peers. And they will imagine what more humane technology might look like and fight to realize a better future.
Suggestions for using this course:
This course is filled with articles, reflection and discussion guides, and activities designed to engage students in better understanding the technological world around them. To get the most use of out of this course, we recommend:
- Doing paired articles and reflection activities together
- Giving students time to individually think before discussing reflection questions
- Providing students with time in class to work on the Take Action! lessons at the end of units. These lessons are designed to empower youth to take control of their own social media use and work for a more humane technological future.
- Creating space for students to publicly share their thoughts and experiences, but not requiring them to. Some of these topics may make students feel vulnerable.
Want to join the conversation?
- why do they always target a younger audience? does it benefit them in any way?(6 votes)
- Younger people are always easier to "trick". Essentially it is an appeal to authority; younger people are more susceptible to other people's opinions, for good or for bad intentions(10 votes)
- what if they use your kindness as a weakness(5 votes)
- That, I'm afraid, is something that is commonly used in the world, even outside of technology. I've experienced this fairly often, and the best route to take would be to express your kindness with a more cautious approach; be more weary of who is receiving your kindness and why they're receiving it.(2 votes)
- How should we make students feel more comfortable with expressing their opinions?(5 votes)
- Many bashful students will not want to express opinions at first. When leading a discussion about these topics with my students, I found it helpful to let those who want to speak do so first. Every child has something to say about their experience on social media. Some just need some time to listen before they will speak.
I woudl recommend against forcing expression as it seems to only quiet shy students further.(2 votes)
- Why do certain people target a younger audience instead of older people(1 vote)
- Children's minds are more moldable since they're still discovering the world around them yet cannot quite tell whether something is entirely good or bad without guidance (i.e., they could consistently interact with advertisements or content, believing that these are simply regular people and not big corporations marketing with the sole purpose to reel in their potential customers), and this is why companies like Microsoft and YouTube now have policies in place specifically for avoiding targeted marketing toward children.
In addition to this, older generations are only recently grasping the concept of social media and technology's mental consequences.(4 votes)
- Do the pros outweigh the cons since the birth of social media?(2 votes)
- How does social media affect our lives?(2 votes)
- Going for mental therapy. Talking to a counsellor.(2 votes)
- Going for mental therapy. Talking to a counsellor.(2 votes)
- Going for mental therapy. Talking to a counsellor.(2 votes)
- Whats better dogs or cats?(2 votes)