Digital Smarts Blog

The controversy over whether President Trump’s Twitter account should be banned because some of his posts could be considered threats or bullying continues. In recent news, there was a renewed call to bar Trump from Twitter after Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea, stated that recent inflammatory tweets from Mr. Trump should be considered “a declaration of war.” Recently, Twitter issued a statement from its policy team saying that it took a number of factors into account when dealing with violations of the company’s user agreement, including the “newsworthiness” of the tweet. Many users took issue with this policy because they feel it violates Twitter’s Terms of Service statement and implies that some users and their tweets, even those that may be considered bullying or threats, are protected because Twitter deems them “newsworthy.”

It was not so long ago that some experts were predicting the collapse of coherent thinking in this country because of the 140 character limit on Twitter. Now Twitter is considering doubling that length by testing a character limit of 280 characters. "When people don't have to cram their thoughts into 140 characters and actually have some to spare, we see more people tweeting," a company blog post stated. Twitter said the people who will get to test the 280-character tweets would be randomly selected, and whether that would include prominent Twitter users like President Trump is unclear.

A new survey by Gallup and Strada Education Network has found that when choosing a college major, most students look to friends, family, and information online for help in making the decision. However, amidst the rapidly changing world of work, the report on the study suggests these sources are unreliable and that instead students should be seeking advice from potential employers or university faculty members who have a better finger on the pulse of industry trends, and can help them assess their strengths and skills more fully in light of future job market predictions.

A new book of interest for parents in the digital age is We Need to Talk: How to Have Conversations That Matter. Author Celeste Headlee mentions new research that suggests even the mere presence of a cell phone can negatively impact the quality of a conversation and that humans, even with all our protests to the contrary, cannot multitask. A podcast of her recent appearance on NPR on September 19, 2017 called “Could Your Conversations Be Better?” can be found on the 1A podcast directory list.

An OfficeTeam survey has found that 71% of professionals feel it is okay to become Facebook friends with coworkers, although only 49% of senior managers said they were comfortable doing so. It is often best to accept requests to prevent hurting coworkers' feelings, especially if you can use privacy settings to adjust what they can see on your profiles, OfficeTeam said. Of course this also means you need to be vigilant about not posting updates or photos that reveal too much.

Do you have a child who is interested programming or wants to make a difference in the world? Something that might spark their interest is a game jam, a hackathon-type event where kids get together to design a computer game or app based on social issues such as immigration, climate change, or future cities. Want to know more? Check out this article called Taking Advantage of the Power of Play on the Edutopia site for ideas on how to get started.

Who are the bullies at your child’s school? Many would believe they are kids with multiple challenges – unpopular, at risk, or with issues at home or other special needs. While many times those students do tend to act out, a recent National Research Council report on bullying has found that most bullies, especially in high school, are actually the socially skilled, popular students who are hurtful as they try to establish and maintain social dominance.

How are schools approaching this finding? Many have come to realize that the “rules and punishment” approach to bullying and cyberbullying doesn’t work, and could even make the bullying worse. Evidence shows that often students will not report hurtful incidents for fear that it won’t help or just make things worse.

One new approach being suggested by many experts is getting schools to switch from bullying prevention to ensuring a more positive climate. One group that is working to bring about that kind of change is Embrace Civility in the Digital Age. Their site is full of ideas and resources to help school staff, students, and administrators to lay the foundation to fight bullying by creating a school environment where hurtful behavior is incompatible with the accepted social norms. 

If you are on the fence about whether to stop buying paper books and go with digital versions instead, one of your considerations might be the environmental impact of buying paper. While many publishers are moving towards sustainably sourced paper, there are two greener directions you might decide to go. Joining a library or getting an eReader can both help the environment and unclutter your life. Some advantages of eReaders include being able to read in the dark, no storage room needed, and access to independent authors you may have never heard about before.

Second Grade teacher Kathryn Mills started a Facebook book club to encourage students who were unable to attend school during Hurricane Harvey to post videos about the books they were reading. The Hurricane Harvey Book Club started with 70 members and has grown to more than 72,000 followers. It is a great example of how digital book reports can be done.

Second Grade teacher Kathryn Mills started a Facebook book club to encourage students who were unable to attend school during Hurricane Harvey to post videos about the books they were reading. The Hurricane Harvey Book Club started with 70 members and has grown to more than 72,000 followers. It is a great example of how digital book reports can be done.

Paper may trump digital when preparing for exams, according to a report from the Paper and Packaging Board. Data shows that 70% of junior- and high-school students use handwritten class notes to prepare for tests, while 81% of college students still use paper notes to prepare. Not to be outdone, the National Pen Company has also put together an infographic that highlights the pros of putting pen to paper. Some of the benefits they mention include having better recall of the information jotted down, making you think about the concepts discussed more deeply, and helping you process the information presented.

Paper may trump digital when preparing for exams, according to a report from the Paper and Packaging Board. Data shows that 70% of junior- and high-school students use handwritten class notes to prepare for tests, while 81% of college students still use paper notes to prepare. Not to be outdone, the National Pen Company has also put together an infographic that highlights the pros of putting pen to paper. Some of the benefits they mention include having better recall of the information jotted down, making you think about the concepts discussed more deeply, and helping you process the information presented.

With kids getting cell phones at younger and younger ages (10 is now the average), schools are struggling to catch up on establishing proactive policies about when and how the devices can be used. If your school is working on these policies, or if you are interested in how teachers are handling the situation in other schools, check out 3 Tips for Managing Phone Use in Class. While this article is written for teachers, parents may also find it useful in setting up a policy for home, using the questions posed for starting a dialogue about cell phone use.

With kids getting cell phones at younger and younger ages (10 is now the average), schools are struggling to catch up on establishing proactive policies about when and how the devices can be used. If your school is working on these policies, or if you are interested in how teachers are handling the situation in other schools, check out 3 Tips for Managing Phone Use in Class. While this article is written for teachers, parents may also find it useful in setting up a policy for home, using the questions posed for starting a dialogue about cell phone use.

A newly updated article on the Edutopia site (supported by the George Lucas foundation) on evaluating the quality of resources online is worth reviewing with your kids, especially before they start on any research project. Part of the article addresses how to be a healthy skeptic, providing a particularly helpful list of questions we should all ask ourselves when conducting online research.

A newly updated article on the Edutopia site (supported by the George Lucas foundation) on evaluating the quality of resources online is worth reviewing with your kids, especially before they start on any research project. Part of the article addresses how to be a healthy skeptic, providing a particularly helpful list of questions we should all ask ourselves when conducting online research.

Looking for some new learning apps that will engage your children? Take a look at this list from eSchool News that provides suggestions for kids in Kindergarten through grade 12. Some examples include SPRK Lightning Lab - an introduction to coding and robotics, and Comic Life, an app that creates comic strips from your images. Coach’s Eye is a great tool for young athletes that provides instant video feedback, allowing kids to capture and review their strengths, as well as see areas for improvement, while engaging in their favorite sports. They can then share their video with friends and teammates.

Looking for some new learning apps that will engage your children? Take a look at this list from eSchool News that provides suggestions for kids in Kindergarten through grade 12. Some examples include SPRK Lightning Lab - an introduction to coding and robotics, and Comic Life, an app that creates comic strips from your images. Coach’s Eye is a great tool for young athletes that provides instant video feedback, allowing kids to capture and review their strengths, as well as see areas for improvement, while engaging in their favorite sports. They can then share their video with friends and teammates.

Is your local school district trying to find ways to bridge the digital divide and give all students access to education technology, both at home and in the classroom? The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) has developed a free Digital Equity Action Toolkit that is full of ideas for finding cost effective solutions in new technologies. It is a great resource for those looking to address the question of equity.

Is your local school district trying to find ways to bridge the digital divide and give all students access to education technology, both at home and in the classroom? The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) has developed a free Digital Equity Action Toolkit that is full of ideas for finding cost effective solutions in new technologies. It is a great resource for those looking to address the question of equity.