A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

We all have personal brands and most of us have already left a digital footprint, whether we like it or not. Proper social media use highlights your strengths that may not shine through in an interview or application and gives the world a broader view of who you are. Use it wisely.

Amy Jo Martin

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/amyjomarti529760.html#lWv1mEX1xo8zsWrl.99

 

I realize I've used this quote before, but I really want to emphasize this point as we complete this week's work.  After working through our standards, PLPs, and blogs, we should have an idea of the impact we are making with every click we make.  That said, I'm going to focus this week on how to create a positive digital footprint through some class discussion and a case study.  From there, we will work on our career navigation by logging into the Kuder Navigator and completing various assessments to determine how our interests, skills, and values tie into our future path.  Finally, we'll work on creating a resume that we will refine as the year goes on.  Each update we make to the resume will be saved, and the final draft will be used as we apply for jobs and college entrance.

 

Here's a breakdown of our work this week:

 

Tuesday:

We will log into the computer and open a blank Word document.  We will title the document "Online Footprint Reflection - Your Name."  We will then answer the following questions:

 

1. What  kinds  of  things  might  be  good  for   your  reputation  in  the  future  if  they     are  posted  online  now?  What  kinds  of   things  might  be  harmful?    
2. Do  you  ever  post  things  online  about     your  friends?  Do  you  comment  on  or     tag  their  posts  or  photos?  How  do  you   decide  what  is  okay?
3. What  if  your  own  judgment  about  a  post  is   different  from  a  friend’s?  For  example,   imagine  you’ve  posted  a  photo  of  a  group  of   friends.  One  friend  immediately  comments   that  she  loves  it,  but  another  complains  that   he  doesn’t  like  the  way  he  looks,  and  asks   that  you  to  take  it  down.  You  think  everyone   in  the  photo  looks  great.  What  do  you  do?

When finished with these answers (6 minutes), we will share out answers.  After this, we will read the following article together.  When finished, we will answer the following questions in small groups:

1. Do  you  think  Millersville  University  was   justified  in  disqualifying  Stacy  from   earning  her  teaching  degree  because  of  her   profile  page?  Why,  or  why  not?
2. How  would  the  situation  be  different  if  the   context  of  the  photo  were  taken  into   account?  For  instance:  What  if  the  caption   of  the  photo  was  not  “Drunken  Pirate,”  but   “Happy  Halloween”  or  “My  friend  forced   me  to  wear  this  pirate  hat”?  What  if  a  post   accompanying  the  photo  said  that  it  had   been  taken  at  a  child’s  birthday  party  and   Stacy  was  drinking  punch?
3. What  if  Stacy’s  friend  Joe  had  posted  the   picture  of  Stacy  without  her  knowing  it,   and  tagged  her  with  the  “Drunken  Pirate”   caption?  Does  the  fact  that  Joe  posted  the   picture  change  the  situation?  Why  or     why  not?
4. Does  Joe  have  a  responsibility  to  ask  Stacy   before  he  posts  (and  tags)  a  picture  of  her?   Do  other  people,  including  strangers  who   come  across  the  photo  online,  have  the   responsibility  to  check  with  Stacy  before   they  tag  or  repost  the  photo?  Why,  or     why  not?

This should take us to the end of the period.  Wednesday we will continue our analysis of this case.

 

Wednesday:

When we reconvene, we will answer the following questions on our Online Footprint Reflection file:

1. Do  you  ever  post  things  online  about     your  friends?  Do  you  comment  on  or     tag  their  posts  or  photos?  How  do  you   decide  what  is  okay?
2. What  if  your  own  judgment  about  a  post  is   different  from  a  friend’s?  For  example,   imagine  you’ve  posted  a  photo  of  a  group  of   friends.  One  friend  immediately  comments   that  she  loves  it,  but  another  complains  that   he  doesn’t  like  the  way  he  looks,  and  asks   that  you  to  take  it  down.  You  think  everyone   in  the  photo  looks  great.  What  do  you  do?  

Again we will share out answers when finished (6 minutes) and dedicate the remainder of our class period to contributing a solid blog post about how we can create a positive digital footprint.  You will analyze your answers to the aforementioned questions and share out about what you learned from this case study.  You may use portions of your answers to guide your writing or discuss your newly formulated understanding of the implications of online interactions.  Please share your posts with me or email me the link.  I look forward to what you write.

Thursday:

Hopefully by today I have received activation codes for us to complete an analysis of our desired career paths.  Our goals for Thursday are:

1. Log into Kuder Navigator
2. Complete:
1. Career Interests Assessment
2. Skills Confidence Assessment
3. Work Values Assessment
3. Share our results

By completing these assessments, we'll have a foundation for our knowledge, skills and abilities which we will highlight in our resumes we create on Friday.

Friday: 

Today we will create a functional resume, which will highlight our knowledge, skills, and abilities as they relate to our desired career path.  I will provide resources that will help you formulate a resume that contains:

1. Objective/Summary
2. Relevant Experience
3. Education
4. Awards
5. References

Student resumes from my Virtual Enterprise class, along with online search results will provide models for how to format and present our resumes.  Please feel free to utilize our VE students in class (Josh, Andrew, and Will) as mentors in completing your work.

That's pretty much it for this week.  I know it looks like a lot, but I know you'll do very well in completing these assignments.  See you in class!