Instagram and Vine in the classroom? Something to post home about!

Ok, before I go and endorse using these for the classroom, please let me take a moment about privacy. When you can post to Facebook, question your privacy. When the app wants to post for you, you know what to question.  Please read the privacy policy, your district's acceptable use policy and let us all do our due diligence to inform our students about their privacy rights. 

Both Instagram and Vine require mobile devices. Vine requires more high tech devices than Instagram.  I have an older android and Vine would not allow me to film even though the phone takes decent video. It was easy to use Instagram.

I can see this going both ways right now with districts buying iPads and other tablets and/or considering chromebooks. I have not explored the use of chromebooks but I am looking at one right now for purchase. I will blog more on this as the experience presents itself.  With the mobil devices and tablets, using apps like Instagram and Vine become more possible. For this blog, this is what I am going to explore. 

Instagram allows for pictures to be taken, edited, formatted and shared as quickly as the user can do so. This would be a great way to collect data in science, create stories in writing and appreciate academic applications. You can have all photos go to specific tags like #myschoollibrary and all photos that carry that hashtag would be viewable.  This is a teaching point because many students do not fully understand that any one who looks for that #________ will find their photos.  To have the ability to view each other's photos, there has to be public settings in place to allow access. This also offers a teaching point about who students follow and who follows them. Many students are already using this program to post photos to their social media so it would not be far reaching to use Instagram but I would make sure that all your i's are dotted and your t's crossed with your administration and technology. It would not hurt to include parents as well and I encourage such collaboration. This might seem daunting but it is worth the creativity that students will add to their projects when they can bring in visuals they have created instead of just relying on creative commons. 

Here is a photo from Instagram of my tree in my backyard. It keeps holding onto this branch from last fall and it strikes me odd how much people and trees can be alike. 












Vine allows for videos to be made. 6 second videos. The cool thing is that the program is responsive to touch and is an in-web camera so it does not utilize your storage on your mobile device. How the touch works is that the Vine app will film if you are touching and stop if you are not. What came to mind was a few things, setting up classroom or library rules and having the students make a Vine and then put them together or even trying to tell a story through this. Vine is was acquired through Twitter and operates as the video version. Privacy concerns are present. I am also concerned with some of the videos posted because there is not a filter for sexual content and while 6 seconds does not sound long enough for anything, one might be surprised by what has popped up on the homepage. Same argument with Instagram, many students already have the accounts. It would take clear expectations on how to utilize this service while on a school wifi or district devices.

Seriously consider the pros and cons of both services and find out what you students already use. I feel that sometimes the only person really concerned with privacy is the librarian but I fear the day that there is no one. Not going to happen as long as we care and continue to educate! 

Thanks for coming along on the journey! Shine on friend!