Learning Module Two

Skill Building

The Content Generation Academy logo which is a simple outlined illustration of a building with a traingle roof and three pillars.

Step One

Read the Lesson

Whether your content creation team is comprised exclusively of faculty and staff, primarily of students, or a combination of both, there are critical skills your content creators will need in order to execute a successful social media strategy.

A Safe Learning Environment

With the exception of marketing teachers and public relations professionals, it is highly likely none of your faculty and staff have received any direct training in social media marketing or even in content creation. So, although most of your content creation team will be well acquainted with the major social media platforms on a personal level, most will have lots to learn when it comes to creating polished, professional content for your school social media accounts. This presents everyone involved with lots of skill building opportunities!

When schools use Class Intercom for collaborative content creation, they empower users to develop these critical skills in a safe and constructive way. Class Intercom’s moderation functions and tiered user access permissions allow novice contributors to submit content for review and feedback before it is ever approved for publishing on any public-facing social media channel. This feedback loop allows for the kind of “failure” that helps students and staff learn in real-time while also developing a growth mindset.

Content creators become well-versed in copywriting, the basic principles of visual design, and the tools used to create eye-catching and consistent social media images. Depending on how involved students are in the process, content creators may even learn the basics of branding and marketing strategy. 

College & Career Readiness

With the ever-growing push for schools to ensure college and career readiness, creating opportunities for students to solve real-world business problems using real-world business tools is a critical piece of twenty-first century education. This might include such challenges as: building, maintaining, or evolving a brand or creating and executing a multi-channel digital marketing strategy. Solutions to these real and pressing problems include tools such as Class Intercom, Canva, Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop), and Google Workspace. Ideally, students are learning and developing these skills alongside and with the guidance of their teachers as they participate directly in school social media programming. While teachers can certainly create learning opportunities based on their own content creation experiences, we know that the more authentic the learning experience, the deeper the learning impact. As recommended by ISTE Standards for Education Leaders, educators should “design authentic learning activities that align with content area standards and use digital tools and resources to maximize active, deep learning” (5b).

Beyond the Classroom

Most jobs our students will perform have not yet been created, so learning about new and emerging channels, workflows, and technologies simply isn’t enough for their college and career preparation. Students must learn, understand, and put into practice skills that will serve them in all fields and professions – both known and yet-to-be-known. This includes “soft” skills like audience awareness, collaboration, communication, judgment, decision-making, and professionalism. When skills like these are taught only in the hypothetical, a student’s understanding of the concept can only be theoretical. It’s not until students are allowed to participate in authentic learning situations that their understanding and mastery of these skills can transcend the hypothetical and become practical. This is why Class Intercom is fundamentally structured to facilitate collaborative user experiences and real-world learning opportunities.

Women sitting outside holding a phone in her hands

Step Two

Explore Additional Resources

Dive deeper on this module’s materials by exploring the additional resources below. 

CGTV Season 4 Episode 3: Design Principles 101

Workshop presentation; 30 minutes

An overview of good design habits and practices, including recommendations and key technical considerations.

*Use the Design Principles 101 guided practice questions with CGTV Season 4: Episode 3.

Rural School District Launches Innovative Digital Media Class with Unique Approach to Social Media

Blog; 11 minutes

For a small school district in rural Nebraska, its digital media class puts students at the helm when it comes to capturing, curating, and sharing student stories. The approach has brought the school’s social media to life in a unique way.

CGTV S6 Episode 05 I Uncovering Unexpected Stories

Video; 20 minutes

In this episode of CGTV, entrepreneur and business leader Ben Pankonin discusses innovative ways to think about and create stories and content by sourcing them from unexpected places and looking at things in unexpected ways.

Better Photos & Videos for School Social Media

Webinar; 54 minutes

In this webinar, learn tips for getting great photos and videos for social posts, plus insights on creating systems that help you empower students, teachers, and staff to collect and submit that content.

Step Three

Reflection Questions

Use these self-guided reflection questions to consider the preceding material in the context of your school or district’s current or planned school social media program. Considering these questions in the context of this learning module will also prepare you for the authentic assessment at the end of this module.

1

Review the ISTE Standards for Education Leaders and the objectives checklist on page 14 of the Class Intercom How-To Guide for Building a Team of Content Creators.

As you identify which objectives pertain to your district, make a note of the initiatives you’ve already put into place. (For additional insight, review the ISTE Standards for Students.)
2

Now consider what, if any, goals you have to improve the social media strategy for your school district.

Write down at least two objectives you want to achieve in the coming year.
3

Revisit the lists of hard and soft skills identified in the Explore Additional Resources section of this module.

Take a moment to reflect on which skills are actively being targeted and taught in your district. Write down one or two examples of where you see these skills being displayed or cultivated in your school’s curriculum or other initiatives.
4

Write down two or three skills you would like to learn or you would like your content creators to learn.

Are any of the new objectives you listed in the previous question going to help fill these gaps? If not, write down at least one more new objective for the year that will address the gaps you’ve identified in your personal skillset or the skillsets of your content creators.

Step Four

Authentic Assessment

It’s time to put your new skills and knowledge into practice. Choose one of the following prompts below, then use Class Intercom to execute the task.

Go to Class Intercom
1

Option 1

  • Get Certified. Take what you’ve learned about skill building a step further to sharpen your technical prowess. Class Intercom offers two certifications (level one and level two), each requiring approximately 30 minutes to work through the lesson and take a brief online quiz. Complete your certifications by logging into the Class Intercom and clicking the question mark icon in the bottom right corner. Then click “Class Intercom Certification.” Once you’ve completed level one, feel free to scroll to the bottom to find level II.

  • Celebrate Your Success! When complete, be sure to print and post your certificate and hang it on your locker or other  appropriate place in your school.

2

Option 2

  • Publish a post announcing your certification and showing your CI Certified badge on your personal social media. Be sure to tag Class Intercom! Draft a post in CI highlighting everyone in your school/district who is CI Certified.

3

Option 3

  • Create a shot list for an upcoming event to help you plan to capture the content you need. Utilize this resource to access a sample shot list as well as a template to guide you in this process. Pro Tip: If you haven’t already done so, take the time to watch this webinar: Better Photos & Videos for School Social Media

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