The rise of social software as an outlet for social expression has been well documented. In Clay Shirky’s speech “Gin, Television, and Social Surplus”, he describes how watching television in the past was usually followed by discussion with others about the most recent plot developments, and how the social aspect of media consumption has become nearly as important as the media itself. One such example of an online community is what is commonly referred to as “fandom”; that is, the “kingdom of fans” which make up particular forms of televised, screened, or streamed content. Social software such as apps like Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook have given fans new venues for their discussion of the plot, characters, and related content that they have invested themselves in emotionally. The era of limiting media content conversation to the post-episode time is over; with the rise of live-tweeting and live-blogging, fans can engage in chat as the content plays. Along with these practical benefits, the constant connection to other like-minded people has cultivated a creative environment where fans can use online community spaces such as forums and transformative work websites (including fanfiction platforms like ArchiveOfOurOwn) to showcase and develop their own unique talents.
Danah Boyd describes some of the other benefits of online communities in her essay “Social Network Sites: Public, Private, or What?”. According to Boyd, teens and adolescents are introduced to social software at an early age, and display an understanding of how to navigate it that often concerns parents and more conservative educators who perceive the technology as a gateway to inappropriate behavior. She argues that educators are therefore a fundamental resource for youth, and that their role should be to begin conversations within the classroom about networking practices and the impact it can play on their lives. She writes, “[Educators] can posit moral conundrums, show how mediated publics differ from unmediated ones, invite youth to consider the potential consequences of their actions, and otherwise educate through conversation instead of the assertion of power.” Through acknowledgment of social software, educators open themselves up to gaining a better understanding of how youth process information, which can in turn benefit them in developing their lesson plans. I am a writing tutor at Lehman’s ACE Writing Center, and recently attended the First Annual Bronx Tutor’s Alliance Conference at Bronx Community College earlier this month. In addition to presenting on two panels, I also watched several panels on tutoring practice and theory. At one fascinating presentation, a BCC tutor described one of the most successful tutoring methods she had developed for her sessions, based on Twitter’s 140 character limit. In order to help her students think critically about the main idea of the readings they are required to summarize, she would ask them to express the most important elements of the reading as if they were doing so in a tweet. Using this method, she was able to convey the essence of what a good summary must contain to her students in a way that is relevant to how we consume media today on social platforms.