For Better or Worse? My Experience of Teaching in the “Smart Classroom”

I was my pleasure teaching in the “smart classroom” during my first quarter in The Collins College of Hospitality Management  at Cal Poly Pomona.  The classroom installs four Apple TVs, which enable professors and students to stream the same (or different) content on four different screens.  And yes, if you wonder, there is an app for this “smart classroom.”

I think this is a very “cool” classroom.  It definitely provides more flexibility for professors and students.  To name a few examples, I was able to stream class lectures using the SlideShark app on my iPad, making it easier for me to walk around to engage with different groups of students or answer students’ questions.  When we were having a guest lecture session via Skype, I was able to keep one or two screens for the guest speaker (Skype) and at the same time, showed students relevant content on other screens. 

The “smart classroom,” however, is not always working for the better.  There were also a couple of times when Apple TVs did not function well (e.g., when Apple upgraded the iOS system).  I ended up giving a lecture without any visual assistance.  There were also a few times when SlideShark dropped from AirPlay too often.  I had to download the lecture file to a desktop and teach with a mouse and keyboard in the front.  To some extent, such technology failures remind me the challenges every service worker faces in the hospitality industry.  In front of the unexpected, we have to remain calm and come up with a creative way as soon as possible to fix the problem(s).

The biggest challenge actually comes from classroom control.  Because students were sitting in groups and they were “everywhere” in the room, I had to keep my attention on every corner of a big classroom no matter where I was standing.  I also needed to pay more attention to voice projection and repeat students’ questions every time before I gave the answers.  While I could walk towards those students who were wandering to “remind” them that they were being watched, I had learned soon that I should not move too often.  Otherwise, I would be “too busy” walking around, and those paying close attention might feel “too busy” following me.

Looking forward, I will continue teaching in the “smart classroom” during the winter quarter.  I am very happy about that, but at the same time, I would like to hear your feedback and suggestions.  If you have taught in a similar setting, what works for you? What lesson(s) do you learn?  Or, if you have attended a class in a similar setting, what do you like or dislike the most?  What suggestions will you make to your professors or guest speakers to enhance your learning experience?

Relevant discussion:

Learning while Tweeting: Why Not? 

Do We Have the Rights to Talk about Work or our Boss on Social Media?

It is not new to hear people got fired because of their updates on social networking sites. In one extreme case, a man got fired even for his random thoughts posted on Facebook. So, is it legal for companies to fire employees because of their updates on social media sites?

Employees have the rights to discuss face-to-face on “protected concerted activity” as outlined by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). For example, employees can talk about their wages and work conditions with co-workers. According to The Lodging Magazine (2013), the answer to whether employees have the rights to talk about work or their boss on social media sites depends on whether the employee’s update is considered as protected concerted activity.

The article in The Lodging Magazine reported two cases with the published decisions from NLRB. One case involves in an employee’s sarcastic comments about the employer. This employee is not protected because NLRB believes that the comments were made “solely by the employee without any discussion with other employees.” In the other case, an employee responded to a co-worker’s criticisms of her job performance as well as the performance of other co-workers. This employee was fired, but NLRB ruled in favor of the terminated employee because the employee’s behavior is “a call to group action that related to their working conditions.”

Even though it is noted that the decision made by the NLRB may turn out to be invalid because the Supreme Court by the Administration is still pending on its decision on whether the NLRB “lacks a quorum and is unable to conduct business,” employers are advised to keep such decisions of NLRB in mind. In the end, the article lists six suggestions for employers’ considerations (direct quotes):

• Eliminate policies that require employees to maintain confidentiality over wages, bonuses, or commissions.
• Review social media policies for non-specific terms that need further definition or stricter language.
• Adjust overly broad language that prohibits employees from discussing company policies, schedules, safety, dress codes, work assignments, other staff, or management.
• Eliminate or change language that prohibits posting of company logos, company name, identification of employee with the company, etc.
• Where legitimate issues are involved, define information that the company considers confidential (private employee data, guest information, strategic marketing plans, financial particulars).
• Consider a disclaimer at the end of the social media policy that makes clear that the policy is not intended to restrict an employee’s Section Seven Rights under the NLRA.

My suggestion to individual users is to think before posting any negative comments about work or their boss. They may ask themselves: besides venting my feelings about work or my boss on social media sites, how does my update help solve the issue? Are there other places for me to vent my feelings? Are there other places I can seek solutions (e.g., the HR Office, the corporate HR Manager, the NLRB, etc.)?

I agree to the article that managers need to revisit their companies’ policy. Ideally, I believe that the best solution to “stop” employees from bad-mouthing the company or their supervisors is to nurture an organizational culture that value employee feedback. If employees know their employer listens to them and shows genuine interest to them, they tend to be more open to their managers about their feelings and thoughts. If their issues are solved, they will not need to vent their feelings on social media sites any more. What do you think?

References:

Ryan, Andria, & Lominack, Reybun. (2013, March). Word to the wise: the National Labor Relations Board is weighing in on social media communications and employee rights; Here’s what hoteliers need to know. The Lodging Magazine (The official magazine of The American Hotel + Lodging Association), p. 20-21.

The Challenges of Using Social Media in Teaching

Last week, I was invited to speak in a panel discussion session about using social media in teaching for the Summer Institute for Technology-Enhanced Teaching and Learning (SITETL) at SU. I was asked: what challenges do I face when using social media in teaching? I think that is a great question.

Since 2009, I have developed and taught four different courses at SU. One is on social media and the other three are hospitality management courses. Students use many more social media tools in my social media class than in others. Also, depending on the subject matter, my expectations on how students use social media tools in class are different, but in general, I think there are two big challenges.  

First and for most, professors can no longer stop acquiring new knowledge if they begin using social media in teaching (nobody should stop learning anyway, right?). I believe that in the age of information explosion, new technology and school of thoughts can emerge every day. Professors need to be on top of things --- they need to know how to use different social media tools effectively, and they must know what is going on in the real world by teaching beyond the textbook knowledge. For example, Google+ was new last year; Pinterest was up-and-coming in the spring. Before I discussed these tools in my social media class, I had to study these topics and learn how to use these tools myself. For my other hospitality management courses, I must read news articles and online forums every day so that I can discuss with my students about the upcoming trends both in class and online (i.e. in this blog). My point is if I expect my students to research the industry updates and speak intelligently about the trends under a particular domain, I must set a good example by doing that very well myself.  

Second, professors need to be cognizant of their new role in classroom. In my opinions, professors are no longer the only “voice of authority” in class because there are students who adopt new technology and learn new information faster than professors. Accordingly, professors must open their minds, welcome/encourage inputs from students, and learn new knowledge with students. In today’s settings, professors should become the thought leader of the classes they teach. A thought leader is there to lead the learning process, provoke new thoughts, and facilitate discussion.  

At the end of this session, I was asked what impact I would see in my teaching if one day all the popular social media tools like Twitter and Facebook went away. I believe that social media is here to stay even though what is popular today can be replaced by newer ones. And yes, the content I teach about how to use blogs, Twitter, and Facebook Page may become outdated soon, but I argue that the transferable skills that students have learned in my class will not fade. I hope that students can learn more than just the content I teach in class. My goals are: my students will understand how to research information, think independently, be capable of serving an online community as a thought leader, know how to effectively engage with audience online, be able to measure the effectiveness of their social media presence, and hopefully more.

Do you agree (or disagree)? Do you use any social media tools in teaching? What challenges do you face? What do you do to cope with those challenges?

References:

The picture was downloaded from SmartBlogs.com.

HR Challenges Created by Social Media

Last week, I published a paper in Hotel Business Review (HBR) about the HR challenges created bysocial media. I believe that social media has made significant impact on almost every HR function, including job analysis and job design, recruitment and selection, training and development, compensation plans, performance appraisals, discipline and retention management, social responsibility, and ethics. Here, I am not going to restate my discussion in HBR. I, however, would like to hear your thoughts on this topic by asking some of the questions I raised in the paper.      

HR Challenges

• When companies are adding social media in their daily operations, what responsibilities should be added or deleted from current positions?
• What positions or departments need to be created or eliminated?
• Is it necessary to re-design a company’s organizational structure? If so, how can it be done?
• If it is necessary to create a position called social media manager, what tasks and responsibilities should be included in the job descriptions?
• To whom should a social media manager report to?
• Recruiting and selecting candidates on social media could be effective, but how can companies screen candidates without collecting their sensitive demographic information? Are companies able to defend their hiring decisions in front of EEOC (equal employment opportunity commission)?
• How much training should be provided to those who manage a company’s social media accounts?
• If some internal-communication content (e.g. benefits) needs to be shared on social media for targeted employees, how can it be done? Who should manage the content?
• How do companies design the rate structure for social media officers?
• Since the ROI (return on investment) of social media effort is not easy to measure, how do companies evaluate the performance of a social media officer?
• When every employee is “visible” for competitors on social media, what can a company do to keep its top talent?  
• What is a company’s social media policy?
• Who should manage the content about social responsibility and ethics? PR? HR? Marketing? Or a new department called Social Media or Communication?
• What can companies do to ensure that the content about social responsibility and ethics are communicated effectively and efficiently on social media?
• …

What other questions do you have? To help companies cope with these HR challenges, what suggestions will you offer?

In the end, I believe that companies must put every functional and operational department, including HR, into consideration when they are planning for a comprehensive social media strategy. Do you agree?

References:

The picture is downloaded from ArrowPartnership.com

Higher Education in the Age of Information Explosion

I shared a YouTube video in my social media class today. It shows how fast technology and our knowledge evolve in this age. There are some seem-to-be-terrifying statistics related to higher education:  

• The top 10 in-demand jobs in 2010 did not exist in 2004.
• We are currently preparing students for (future) jobs that don’t yet exist (today).
• Using technologies that haven’t been invented in order to solve problems --- we don’t even know (what) are (the) problems yet.
• For students starting a 4 year technical degree, this means that half of what they learn in their first year of study will be outdated by their third year of study.

If that is the case, what is good about high education? What should be taught in college? 

I believe that colleges and universities in general are the places to develop future leaders and that research institutes are designed to create new knowledge and innovative ideas. It is good that students can learn the latest technology and information. Accordingly, we should at least keep our students informed with the industry updates and trends even though we may not be able to constantly change textbooks. 

Considering the fact that there is always “newer” information available, however, I argue that it would be more important to teach students the core values/principles as well as the transferable skills through the process of learning, such as leadership, problem-solving, critical and independent thinking, communication skills, and the ability of learning on one’s own. Hotel and restaurant operations, for example, jobs can be re-designed; organization can be re-structured. Yet, the philosophy of taking good care of employees and customers or running an efficient business has never changed. 

In my social media class, we will for sure talk about Facebook’s and Twitter’s business implications. In my human resource management class, we will go over the legal issues, but who can guarantee that Facebook
and Twitter will continue to dominate the network or that the Congress will not pass new regulations? 

If you are an employer, what do you expect from a college graduate? If you are a student, how do you cope with information explosion? What do you expect to learn in class besides the subject itself?