---
title: "Teaching in the Social Media Age"
artifact: "summary"
resource_person: "Joseph Cossette"
resource_person_role: "Physics and physical-science teacher, Minnetonka High School"
vertical: "technology"
module: "Digital Platforms for Teaching"
lesson: "Teaching in the Social Media Age"
lesson_key: "teaching-in-the-social-media-age"
source: "curated"
source_channel: "TEDx Talks"
---
# Teaching in the Social Media Age

**Resource person:** Joseph Cossette - Physics and physical-science teacher, Minnetonka High School

**Curated from:** TEDx Talks

## Summary

Cossette begins with the steady turnover of classroom technology: chalkboards, projectors, smartboards, flash drives, shared documents and constant internet access. These tools change quickly, while the teacher’s purpose remains helping students understand, practise and grow.

He identifies two pressures created by networked life. Information is always available, which shifts some of the teacher’s work towards selecting trustworthy material, supplying context and helping students use what they find. Social platforms also turn approval into visible numbers. Likes, streaks and notifications compete for attention and make classroom work feel slow by comparison.

His response is experiential. He creates memorable science demonstrations, lets students document selected moments and uses online networks to connect the class with a wider community. Discussion and interpretation then turn the event into learning.

The talk closes with the teacher as curator and guide. Students can retrieve information quickly; they still need help judging it, connecting it with other ideas and creating something meaningful. Before making a classroom activity public, check its effect on attention, consent, privacy, misinformation and unequal access.