Standard Testing Video Funny Gerry Brooks State Testing
Gerry Brooks is known for his popular YouTube aqueduct where he playfully digs into the thoughts, frustrations, inspiration, and excitement of being an elementary school principal. He's also a featured presenter at the upcoming 2020 TCEA Convention & Exposition, back for a second consecutive year. He's now collected his heartfelt, funny, and useful stories into a new book, Get See the Primary: Truthful Tales from the School Trenches , released April 30. In the excerpt below, Brooks offers his take on the gluey event of social media and schools.
Want to encounter Gerry in person? Annals today for the 2020 TCEA Convention & Exposition. Learn more here.
I hate social media. I know. I know exactly what you're thinking: how hypocritical. And it is. Social media has been a tremendous blessing in my life. Without it, I wouldn't have this platform. I wouldn't take been able to come across and hear from so many great educators and to express my support of educational issues. Still, I tin't ignore how detrimental social media tin be to a instructor, classroom, grade level, and school. Social media needs to exist used correctly and it also needs to be monitored regularly — for kids and for teachers.
Hither'southward i example of when social media + schools can be positive: anytime you tin use information technology to quickly communicate with school parents. Nosotros utilise newsletters, Facebook, websites, school apps, and mass calling systems to get the word out virtually fundraisers, theme days, athletic events, and days off. However, a variety of communication methods is primal — non every parent has a computer or smartphone, which is why we don't desire to rely solely on, say, Facebook.
Many teachers practice have Facebook pages for their classrooms, which tin exist a fantastic way to share photos and stories from the school day, but the school needs to monitor those pages closely. There's zippo wrong with a post captioned "Here was our class party" or "Here's a child who dressed up as Harriet Tubman who did such a good job on her volume study." But yous need parent permission to postal service pictures of their kids online. Also, keeping that Facebook folio means the added responsibility of monitoring comments, which may be more than responsibility than overworked teachers need.
Otherwise, anytime a parent complains on Facebook, he or she is now lament to all 25 parents. You may have ii or three leap on the bandwagon and the teacher feels admittedly horrible. A post as simple equally, "Gosh, there was a lot of homework tonight" can open the door to other complaints from parents. And as we all know, when you lot're behind a computer information technology's easy to misread statements equally negative. Information technology's kind of like driving: when you're in the machine, you're more apt to exist negative nearly other drivers than you would if you were face to face with that person. On social media, there'southward always one parent who volition chinkle in with something negative. I highly suggest if you have a social media page for your classroom that y'all shut off comments or set the folio and so comments need to exist approved earlier publishing.
I have called parents about negative Facebook posts. I'1000 careful not to dress them downward or demand that they delete their posts, but instead to say, "I'm and so sorry we've put yous in the position where you lot feel like you can't come directly to us. If yous have a business concern, please come to me." This ever works — I don't aim to brand them feel bad, but I can tell they're thinking, "Why in the world didn't I just call the school?" or, more than likely, "Why didn't I merely keep that to myself?"
There'due south always going to be that i percent who will rip you autonomously, merely the lesser line is you will never change that person. Sometimes you but need to let information technology go.
I notice that parents will say that they were frustrated with the state of affairs and didn't realize how negative it sounded. They just thought they were talking to their friends and didn't think of how the school or the teacher would take the annotate. Ninety-nine percent of our parents want positive relationships with ane another and the school because they see the demand to work together. There'due south ever going to exist that i percent who volition rip you autonomously, but the bottom line is you will never change that person. Sometimes you just need to let it get.
A major frustration with social media is when it involves parents who listened to their children and took them at their word rather than following up with the teacher when something might sound unreasonable or empty-headed. I had a parent post on Facebook, "How stupid is it that the school has a new rule that kids can't run on the playground during recess. Isn't that what recess is for?" This acquired several other jerky parents (that'south right, I said it) to chinkle in with what they considered to be stupid rules. I called the mother and asked where in the world she got that information and she explained that her daughter told her they weren't allowed to run on the playground. I explained that the students were welcome to run on the playground except in the mulch area (this is the area where we basis our playground equipment) because it's ofttimes congested with students and there are lots of poles and pieces of equipment they tin can meet if they aren't paying attending or trip over while running. The parent completely understood the need for that rule when I spoke to her, merely unfortunately, she caused a negative situation past assuming the information her child gave her was true, even though it was ridiculous.
There are times, of grade, when teachers don't think social media through well — similar when they friend parents, which gives the parents admission to their lives in a manner that might not be and then smart. Sometimes a instructor volition call in ill and and so parents see a photo of her at a concert or basketball game and ask us, "Why is she gone, yet on Facebook, we run across she's somewhere else today?" (The bigger lesson here, of course, isn't merely about teachers friending parents online, but also mutual sense and honesty.)
We've besides had bug when teachers post pictures of parents that they're dating, which isn't wise in several means. It's unprofessional to date your classroom parent. Obviously, that'south your personal life, but when y'all post on social media for the world to run across that you're in a relationship with Billy'due south mom and Billy wins a scientific discipline off-white, parents will say, "Baton's getting special treatment because Mr. Smith is dating his mom."
Parents demand to exist more alert than everyone when information technology comes to technology and social media. I'm leery when kids become phones at a immature age — I see children as young every bit 2d grade texting their friends. A lot of parents feel their kids need a phone because they desire to know where their children are later on schoolhouse, but just know that when you give child a smartphone, you lot're opening him upwardly to social media. Yous may say, "My kid will never practice this or that with her phone," but children are smart, and they will do whatever they want to exercise when it comes to social media if they've got a smartphone.
Social media is a form of socialization for kids. That's how they communicate correct at present. Keep in mind that their group text, Snapchat, or Instagram is their version of hanging out at the bulldoze-in or any y'all did at their age.
However, I understand that social media is a course of socialization for kids. That's how they communicate correct now. Proceed in mind that their grouping text, Snapchat, or Instagram is their version of hanging out at the drive-in or whatever yous did at their age.
My advice? Prolong your child's phone-free life for equally long as possible. I went through this with my blood brother and sister-in-law. They were stressing because my sixth-grade nephew wanted a phone. A role of me thought, "Yes, he should have one for socialization," simply some other part of me was like, "Oh my gosh, you're opening up a real can of worms." And we saw it right away — suddenly, he's a child who'southward got his telephone at the dinner table and who'southward upstairs in his room on his telephone rather than down with the family. His parents did a great job of saying, "You can use your phone during these hours." Monitor the phone, and know what apps are on there. Yep, it'southward skilful to give kids a sense of privacy, but you lot absolutely need to know what YouTube channels they visit and what apps they use because in that location are people who use social media to prey on children — even if it'south not in a sexual way. I've had kids at school bring in their parents' credit cards and purchase swords and shields in online games, who get effectually filters to inappropriate sites. Information technology's just the nature of how intelligent children are, the things they think they tin can get away with, and the things they actually do get abroad with.
I probably understand this stuff more than well-nigh principals and parents. I've taken down more than ane video afterward realizing I'd uploaded some content that made people mad. Ane of the most popular videos I always posted was called "Teacher Bumper Numbers," which made fun of those 26.ii bumper stickers people put on their cars later they run marathons.
The video suggested bumper sticker numbers for teachers, like how many minutes we go for lunch and how many minutes we get for the bathroom. The very terminal one was 4,162, representing the number of times people have said to me, "You become your summers off."
That video got picked upwardly past a jogging influencer who has millions of viewers, and so it went through media outlets like Diply. Many comments from non-educators were rude, saying, for case, "Y'all become paid plenty," "You exercise get paid to not work over the summer," "Y'all knew what you lot were getting into," and "Teachers make a lot more than mechanics."
It didn't bother me, just it started to bother the teachers, and I didn't want that, so I took it off Facebook — and I've taken other videos down for less. People volition say, "That'south ridiculous, you took information technology down for one or two parents." Well, I know what it'due south like to be a parent and I wouldn't want to feel offended by something my principal posted — unless it'southward a humorous video near parents who never turn in a field trip class all twelvemonth. If you're offended by that, turn in your flipping field trip form.
Before I put up a video, I screen it for several people similar my all-time friend or teachers who might say, "Wow, that's not going to go over well," or "You know, you need to think about that." I'm not agape to put controversial stuff up, especially if it has to do with a lack of sup- port for teachers, but I don't want an argument between teachers and parents or teachers and non-educators. I also just don't accept fourth dimension to monitor every one of the 3,000 comments I'll get on a video, and then if they're heated, it's just non worth it. When I put a new one up, I will usually spend about an hour monitoring the content to make sure it's non as well controversial, just that's it. I don't have much time to collaborate with the commenters because if you speak with one viewer, you lot have to speak with them all.
My personal focus on social media is to put out videos, support teachers, and endeavor to be funny. It's not to monitor comments, annotate dorsum, or electronic mail. I empathize how much time I have to put in equally a principal and I don't allow social media in whatever mode, shape, or form get in the way of that job.
Want to come across Gerry in person? Register today for the 2020 TCEA Convention & Exposition. Larn more here.
Source: https://blog.tcea.org/gerry-brooks-social-media/
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