23 January 2013

Social Media As The Means, Not The End in Teaching and Learning

Considering the positive role that social media can play in contemporary education, should academics be automatically encorporating the technology into their own teaching practices?

The answer, in my view, is a resounding ‘no’. Unless a clearly pre-defined learning outcome has been determined, I think any such adoption is a mistake. Yet such is the desire among many to follow the latest trends, this critical assessment of potential benefits (or the lack thereof) doesn’t always occur. Indeed, there have been several instances where academics have adopted social media technologies such as Google or Google Hangouts, but haven’t really known why they’ve adopted it. While it’s true that both tools are potentially good for assisting group collaborations, it’s nonetheless important to proactively ask the questions: Why are we using social media in an educational setting? What benefits will these particular tools entail? What will they enable that conventional teaching methodologies will not?

The emergence of social media has ushered in a widespread belief that traditional teaching and learning methods have suddenly become outdated or obsolete. But this certainly isn’t the case. We need to remember that social media is not an end in itself, but merely a tool that enables us to facilitate or improve traditionally desirable teaching outcomes. I believe that the ultimate aim should be blended learning, where traditional notions of teaching are complemented by social media technology. This involves asking questions like: what forms of social media should we adopt, and to what end? Will it increase students’ ability to think critically? Will it enhance their group work? If no discernable benefit is evident, then encorporation is pointless. Remember: the adoption of technology needs to be proactive, not reactive.

For academics resistant to the idea of social media, a better effort to proactively understand new technologies is required. They need to understand that for children as young as four, this type of technology is a way of life rather than something that’s been learned at a later stage in life. As such, teaching professionals need to be open to adopting it in a proactive strategic manner. They need to strike that crucial balance.

Author: Dr Ranjit Voola – Senior Lecturer, Discipline of Marketing. University of Sydney Business School

9 January 2013

The Business of Taking Babysitting Online


It’s safe to say that I never expected my 10-plus years as a babysitter to inspire a business idea that would win the Genesis Entrepreneurship Challenge.

But that's exactly what happened. It all started the day I woke up and realised that I’d inadvertently created a great informal business. I’d built my network up to be so huge I was frequently acting as a mediator between parents and other babysitters. Recognising a really big gap in the market, I came up with WeSit.com – a babysitting App or online booking system and referral network that connects parents with their trusted networks of babysitters. Parents no longer need to waste time texting forwards, backwards and around trying to find an available sitter they can trust, as my App simplifies and automates the whole process. Basically, it allows parents to mimic the long and painful offline process via an online space.

Being accepted to take part in this year’s Genesis competition on the basis of WeSit was an invaluable opportunity. Crucially, my participation allowed me to workshop the idea via some invaluable one-on-one mentoring and was instrumental in helping me really perfect my product. It taught me more about business than I’d learnt in my previous two-year corporate career. Genesis was something I really wanted to win, and I’m so happy that all my hard work paid off.

Despite the well-documented barriers to startup success, I’m now really excited by what the future holds. And while I know that many challenges lie ahead, I know that my interest and passion for the project will see me through. Meanwhile, all the parents I speak to love the idea of WeSit and can’t wait for it to be available. If all goes to plan, they’ll be able to use it for the first time at the end of this week when the very first version goes live to our private Beta. Follow the App on the WeSit Facebook Page or @tweetWeSit.



Author: Georgia Kia
CEO of WeSit; Graduate Certificate in Innovation and Enterprise student
Winner of the Genesis Entrepreneurship Challenge Best Business / Technology Startup Category