Arguments In Social Media
(IconicBestiary, 2020)
If you are an educator and scrolling through social media, you might find a funny meme that someone created about times they were in school or a person's opinion about education. In this blog, I will analyze a post and the comments posted under it. On the social media platform "X," also known as the former Twitter. An X user posted his opinion about the opportunities students need more at school. For example, "To read and write about something that interests them," "To create what they love, not what they're told," "To solve a problem that's not from a math worksheet," and "To articulate their thinking instead of taking a quiz or test." Several users reposted and agreed, but one other user quoted and argued that students need balance and that people should consider the purpose of a lesson/task; she states that student voice and choice are required to foster engagement. The user then asked, "What other opportunities can you think of that school systems need?
According to the text Argument in the Real World by Troy Hicks, readers, and writers should be MINDFUL in social media spaces (Hicks,2017). On the table of Being a Mindful Reader and Writer of Social Media Arguments, being a reader of this post, I can identify some components of being MINDFUL.
M- Monitoring: I can identify the purpose of reading this message. The author is expressing his opinions on what opportunities a student may need in school.
I- Identifying(the claim): The post's claim is also evident. The user claims that students need opportunities to be more creative in school.
N-Note(evidence): This post does not provide any evidence to support his claims. He did not use images, quotes, or statistics to make his statements factual.
D-Determine(mindset): The creator's post made me feel differently because I agree with some of his claims on his post. I do believe students should have more creative freedom in some of the tasks they have to do
F-Facts: The creator of this post presents opinions, and they did not present any evidence behind the post.
U-Understand (counter-argument): This post could be confrontational because some readers may not agree with his opinions on what schools need more. For example, another user quoted the tweet and stated that schools must be balanced. People should consider the lesson's purpose or task and constantly ask why.
L—Leverage(my response): If I had engaged with this post, I would have shown facts against claims to support my reasoning for posting the message.
To create a compelling argument, "An author must think about the question and plan their approach to constructing a message. Then, they must write the text featured in the media. The author should build the argument by cementing and elaborating on the purpose and how they communicate their message effectively. Then, the author must create the object"(Lawrence, 2022, pg.36).
If a creator starts an argument on social media, they should understand what they are trying to achieve and not get off track. They should also have evidence to support their claim. You will also need logic, facts, and sense to win an argument. Asking the opposing person to provide facts can help you win an argument(Vivian, 2015). " Providing facts that prove the statement or explaining their feelings behind an opinion. By making them think more about it, they’ll often see that they are wrong without you needing to prove that they were wrong"(Vivian, 2015).
Lawrence, D. (2022). Digital writing : a guide to writing for social media and the web. Broadview Press.
Kristen Hawley Turner, & Hicks, T. (2017). Argument in the real world : teaching adolescents to read and write digital texts. Heinemann.
https://plus.google.com/u/0/+ZhiYuanTan91. (2015). How To Win Every Argument On Social Media – The Art Of Arguing. Seopressor.com. https://seopressor.com/blog/win-social-media-argument-the-art-of-arguing/
Angry men, women send aggressive chat messages & argue on social... (n.d.). IStock. https://www.istockphoto.com/vector/angry-men-women-send-aggressive-chat-messages-argue-on-social-media-indignant-gm1261664299-369260853
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ReplyDeleteThat's a very good point about arguments through social media. If we don't know what we are trying to accomplish, then it is likely we are just arguing for the sake of arguing. The book talks about not understanding the weight of arguments being dangerous "That's a very good point about arguments through social media. If we don't know what we are trying to accomplish, then it is likely we are just arguing for the sake of arguing." (pg. 5). This is true when using Social media as well.
ReplyDeleteReferences:
Lawrence, D. (2022). Digital writing: a guide to writing for social media and the web. Broadview Press.
Being mindful and aware on social media is so important. Turner and Hicks say, "At the heart of this work, we believe, is the ability to deconstruct and compose arguments in these socially- networked spaces.(2017, p 104)" It is so important that we teach our students how to respond to comments as well as teaching them how to stay professional at all times.
ReplyDeleteReferences:
Turner, Kristen Hawley, and Troy Hicks. Argument in the Real World: Teaching Adolescents to Read and Write Digital Texts. Heinemann, 2017.