Derek E. Baird, M.Ed.

Infographic: What Parents & Teachers Need to Know About Virtual Reality

Related

• Student Perspectives on Virtual Reality in the Classroom 
• How Irish Students use Oculus Rift
• The Social Life of Virtual Reality Learning Environments
• Oculus VR for Good
• Top Educational VR Google Cardboard Apps

It's Time to #EraseHate: For Blaze Berenstein. For Matthew Shepard. For Everyone

I was deeply touched by the death of Blaze Bernstein. Because it happened in my community, it seems so personal. It's shocking and still, honestly, very raw.

Nineteen years ago I stood in a park in remembrance of Matthew Shepard. Today I did it in memory of Blaze Bernstein. And while I hope I never have to do it again, if necessary, I will. I'll gather with strangers, hold a candle, place a stone to remember a life lost.

In many ways, it's felt like deja vu. So many years ago, it was Matthew. Now it's Blaze. How many more LGBTQ youth have to be murdered before it stops? I don't have the answer to that question. But in both cases, the mothers of these young men gave us a path forward: Do good. Be kind. Love each other. 

“As this began to unfold, we realized that we had an opportunity to set an example for people everywhere. To show them how even in the face of tragedy and loss, there is something better to concentrate on rather than bitterness, revenge, self-pity, and regret. We wanted people to embrace love, tolerance, and kindness, to do good. Our goal was to repair our broken world one child at a time, one kind act at a time, one day at the time.” — Jeanne Pepper-Bernstein, The Forward 

So, until the world isn't broken, go spread good and #DoGoodForBlaze!

Trend Watch: How Gen Z Use GIFs to Convey Emotion and Celebrate Shared Cultural Moments

In the last few years, there’s been an explosion in the use of GIFS – those little-looped videos that seem to be everywhere. The GIF is often misunderstood as a component of modern communication. 

Gen Z navigates their anxieties by relying on visual-centric social media platforms, like GIFs, emoji, and memes, wherein they can both create and share visual content to express their emotions. 

On social platforms, they embrace memes, visual narratives, GIFs and emoji to create fan art and provide their visual interpretations of shared cultural experiences and project their own emotions into their social media feeds. The visual narrative content posted on these platforms can largely be employed, remixed, and re-appropriated across one another and be reused for multiple purposes across multiple moments in time.

This creates a form of unity in social narratives, situating visual materials as both conversational and archival, across the platforms while also positing disunity and the breakdown of platform exclusive vernaculars.

This episode of the Australian podcast, Future Tense, host Antony Funnell talks to digital researchers and linguists about the ways that people are using GIFs, emoji, selfies and other visual communication tools as narratives to express their ideas, emotions or as visual expressions and celebrations of shared cultural moments.

 

 

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Here are all the new Animojis coming to your iPhone X (AAPL)

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Top 10 best meme generator apps Android 2018

Educator Perspectives: Virtual Reality (VR) in the Classroom

 Technologies like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), especially for Gen Z students’, provides avenues that allow them to engage in a social, collaborative, and active learning environment.

VR, especially when combined with storytelling, enable the student to participate in the story, develop empathy to experiences outside their current realm of understanding and fully immersed in their learning.

While there’s much hype around the use of VR in education, how are teachers using this emerging technology in the classroom? What do students think? Those are just some of the questions asked by research conducted by Foundry 10, a Seattle-based non-profit. 

Foundry 10: Students & VR Pilot Program

In 2015, 2015, Foundry 10 launched a pilot project to study the impact and student sentiment towards the use of virtual reality in their classroom and curriculum. Foundry 10 reached out to educators who expressed an interest in utilizing VR in their classes and provided them with headsets.

I've written a summary of the findings, for VR Pop over on Medium. You can read the entire Foundry 10 report on their website.

Related articles

Facebook opens social VR app to rival platforms (FB)

STUDY: The Role of Social Media and Technology in Peer Bullying

VR is Taking the World by Storm Over 1 Million Headsets Sold

Camp Google

Trend Watch: Augmented Reality Apps for Education

Last summer, millions of kids discovered the power of Augmented Reality (AR) while using apps like PokemonGo, Snapchat and Instagram.

In light of these socio-cultural changes, educators need to “keep abreast of change” and embrace curriculum design which integrates the authentic ways that students use AR in their “out of school” experiences as a tool that connects them with peers and content as a means to achieve, both short and long term, learning goals.

Like other technologies, AR has the potential to be a powerful tool that support the personalized learning goals of students by bringing scannable content to life in an engaging and cost effective manner.

For a generation that’s been raised on interactive technologies, bringing AR into the classroom and curriculum can also help encourage active engagement and contribute to student retention.

Read the entire post on VR Pop on Medium.

Josh Shipp: The Grown-Up’s Guide to Teenage Humans

Josh Shipp has a pretty amazing story and is known for his really great advice for teens on, well — just about everything! MTV called his series “Hey! Josh” the Dear Abby for teens.

Full disclosure: Josh is a friend, so I know he’s too modest to list off his many accomplishments. But that doesn’t mean I can’t brag on him--here we go!

Josh has spoken at universities such as Harvard, Stanford, MIT & UCLA and to over TWO MILLION students around the country. He is a recognized teen expert for media outlets as MTV, CNN, FOX, The New York Times, 20/20, and Good Morning America. And Oprah. (Yes, that Oprah.)

“When it comes to understanding the minds of teens, there is no greater expert than Josh Shipp. I’ve witnessed firsthand the lives he’s transformed.”

// Ellen Rakieten, Emmy Award-Winning Producer of OPRAH

Josh is the author of the national bestseller “The Teen’s Guide to World Domination“ and he also was featured in the documentary TV series Teen Trouble (A&E) which followed his ground-breaking work with teens.

Growing Up Josh

Once an at-risk foster kid, he was facing down a bleak future that was likely to include prison or homelessness—until he met the grown-up who changed his life. Josh was passed around the foster care system, he was the class clown, a trouble maker.

He was written off, kicked out, and labeled every parents worst nightmare. Enter Rodney, the foster parent who refused to quit on Shipp and finally got him to believe in himself. And in doing so, changed the trajectory of his young life.

The Power of One Caring Adult

In March 2015, Harvard’s Center on the Developing Child released a study saying, “Every child who winds up doing well has had at least one stable and committed relationship with a supportive adult.”

Maybe this child is 9 and in your Boy Scout Troop. Maybe she’s your 13-year-old step-daughter. Maybe he’s 15 and lives in your neighborhood. Whoever it may be, you have the power to make a positive and significant difference in their lives.

Here's how to be that caring adult for the kid in your life.

Step 1: Find out what they’re into.

Step 2: Spend time doing what matters to them because they matter to you.

Step 3: Your investment of time will lead to influential conversations.

If you’re interested in learning more about mentoring or finding a kid who needs a mentor, Josh has pulled together some resources:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of America
• The Mentoring Project
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America

As Josh says, “Do for ONE kid — what you wish you could do for ALL kids.”

Grown-Up's Guide to Teenage Humans

On September 19th Josh's brand new book out for parents (teachers, uncles, aunts, youth leaders), “The Grown-Up’s Guide to Teenage Humans”, a practical guide for understanding teens hits bookshelves around the country. 

His goal for this book is to help parents and other caring adults be there for the kids in your life, and let them know that you see under the surface of their troubles. You see what they can be—and what they can be is amazing. 

Josh challenges adults to be that one caring adult – that person who changes a kid’s life with a simple, caring act. It starts with you, and it starts now.

Stressing the need for mutual respect, trust, and encouragement, Josh identifies three key mindsets crucial to understanding teens.

He breaks down the distinct phases of teenage life, examining the challenges at each phase, and offers revelatory stories that take us deep inside the teen brain.

"Every kid is ONE caring adult away from being a success story." // Josh Shipp

Josh’s message is simple, clear and a refreshing change from the alarmist advice that is so often the default when it comes to discussing Gen Z teens. You can learn more about “Grown-Up’s Guide” and download a free chapter over on his website or order a copy from Amazon.

Connect with Josh Shipp

Twitter/JoshShipp | JoshShipp.com | FB/JoshShipp | YouTube/JoshShipp

LOVELOUD: Imagine Dragons Step Up for Utah's LGBTQ Teens

Dan Reynolds, lead singer of Imagine Dragons, announced the 2017 LOVELOUD concert on August 26th. The festival is designed to ignite the relevant and vital conversation of what it means to unconditionally love, understand, accept, and support LGBTQ+ youth in Utah communities.

Music can save lives, and that’s exactly what Dan Reynolds, lead singer of Imagine Dragons, intends to do. All across America, LGBTQ+ youth are plagued by high statistics of suicide, risky drug use, and bullying in schools.

In Utah, teen suicide remains the leading cause of teen deaths in the state. LGBTQ+ youth are more than eight times more likely to commit suicide when compared to their straight peers, and account for as much as 40% of the current homeless youth population.

Of this 40%, almost half of the youth cite family rejection, abuse, and abandonment as the leading cause. There’s no doubt that religion plays a major factor in a family’s decision to abandon and abuse their youth.

For this reason, Dan Reynolds, the lead singer of Imagine Dragons, has decided to take action by creating the LOVELOUD Fest, uniting musical artists and guest speakers in support and acceptance of LGBTQ youth.

“What can we do as a community to change these devastating statistics?”  - Dan Reynolds

“I have no power or authority to speak on how to fix this problem, but I have been lucky enough to be given a platform that can hopefully raise awareness and create respectful conversations that lead to positive change.” And that’s exactly what LOVELOUD Fest plans to do.

 

All proceeds from this concert will go to the LOVELOUD Foundation which lends support to various Utah-based charities such as Encircle and Stand4Kind, as well as national charities, such as The Trevor Project and GLAAD. Each one of these organizations are dedicated to promoting acceptance and providing much needed resources to LGBTQ youth. (HuffPost)

 

Related articles

National LGBTQ Suicide-Hotline Reports a 'Dramatic Spike' in Calls From Transgender Youth

Number of trans calls to suicide hotlines more than double after Trump's transphobic tweet

Imagine Dragons' Dan Reynolds Shares Emotional Anti-Bullying Message

Music Festival Benefitting LGBTQ Advocacy Groups Gets Surprising Endorsement from LDS Church - My Transgender Life

#YouWillBeFound: Teens, Social Media Artifacts and 'Dear Evan Hansen'

My colleague Jarrod Walczer and I have been working on a book chapter for a forthcoming publication about the upstander culture sprouting up around the hit Broadway musical, Dear Evan Hansen and the visual social media artifacts being created by teens.

 

We've spent the last few months scouring Instagram and Tumblr and reading countless numbers of Dear Evan Hansen posts, visual social media and culled data on thousands of posts.

 

It's been a pretty amazing, and, to be honest at times, a humbling experience. But mostly, it's heartbreaking to read how disconnected and alone the most connected generation in human history feels from the real world.

 

Either way, one thing has become very clear: it's hard to be a teen in the social media age. So much harder than most adults can even comprehend. 

We've learned a lot, developed a deep respect for the Fansen fandom, the Evan Hansen cast and most especially, Ben Platt.  As we delve deep into the culture of Evan Hansen, and read the personal stories of these teens, it's clear that Mr. Platt is holding the hopes and emotional fears of many young fans on his shoulders.

Yet, night after night, he continues to carry the emotional weight of the role, he continues to be gracious with his fans and greets them with a smile on his face at the stage door. 

We are putting the final touches on our book chapter and will have more details, soon!

Meet the Tweens of Gen Z

What sets Gen Z apart is an unrelenting relationship with information and technology, and their early independence, born of impatience and the confidence to act. These are the identifying traits of what will be the largest demographic in history.

And yet, their confidence and knowledge often out pace experience...which causes tension between an advanced intellect, and the reality of their actual age and emotional intelligence.

At the epicenter of this tension we find tweens—a complex subset of Gen Z. They are caught up in the turbulent transition from simply being a kid, to fending off the intricate pressures of teenage existence. They are the pivotal middle-ground of Gen Z.  

Tweens pose an interesting dilemma. Kids (5–8) are still largely influenced by and accessed through their parents.

Teens (14–18) are rapidly forming their own opinions and establishing independence from parents, and there are direct channels to reach them.

Tweens (9–13), on the contrary, are the hardest to reach, even while they are actively seeking cues and learning to form opinions. 

Because they are the least accessible, and arguably the most open to influence, tweens are an important puzzle to solve for companies marketing to Gen Z.

Gen Z is set to influence nearly $600 billion dollars of family spending and will comprise 40% of consumers by 2020. To succeed in marketing to this unique segment, any brand that wants in, has to be willing to play by their rules.

My colleague, Gregg Witt and I have co-authored a new book for Motivate Youth.

In this guide, you will learn key insights, strategies, and tactics your company can deploy to improve tween marketing efforts. You can download a copy of Meet the Tweens of Gen Z over on Scribd.

 

"Instagram Together" Showcases Mental Health

Instagram has launched an initiative called "Instagram Together" to showcase their continued commitment to developing tools that address bullying, mental health, and other topics impacting tweens, teens and young adults.

Teens and young adults are increasingly turning to social media platforms, like Instagram, to talk about their mental health struggles, so this is a much needed and welcome program.

As part of the Instagram Together campaign, several influential members of the community are showcased, sharing stories of how they use the Instagram ecosystem and hashtags (like #ItsOkayToTalk) to share their mental health journey with others to build (or find) a network of support.

Instagram is #HereForYou

As part of Mental Health Awareness month, Instagram announced a hashtag campaign called #HereForYou, which highlights how the social network has helped support its community members struggling with mental health issues.

 

Reporting Self-Harm on Instagram

Members of the community can also anonymously report others who they feel may be in need of mental health support.

The Self Harm Reporting feature allows users to report a mental health concern to Instagram and send the user a message with mental health resources in their country.  

These resources also display when someone visits a hashtag for a sensitive topic, like hashtags associated with self-harm, eating disorders, and suicide. 

This feature is very similar to the Facebook feature that allows people to report expressions of self-harm.

It's great to see Instagram taking active steps towards creating and fostering a safer, kinder experience by addressing the mental health, safety and well-being of their community. 

 

Related: How Texting Can Save Teen Lives

 

• If you want to talk to someone or are experiencing suicidal thoughts, text the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

#StatusOfMind: Social Media and Mental Health

The Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) and the Young Health Movement have published a new report, #StatusOfMind, examining the positive and negative effects of social media on young people’s health.

The report includes a league table of social media platforms according to their impact on young people’s mental health.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Be Authentic! Immersive Youth & Youthvine Joins Motivate

Our startup, Immersive Youth, along with our Youthvine platform, have been acquired by Motivate ROI and together we are launching Motivate Youth!

Motivate — the leading specialized insights and media partner for reaching Multicultural, Youth and LGBTQ segments — announced today its acquisition of Immersive Youth, an insights-driven agency that connects brands with tweens, teens, and young adults.

The acquisition supports Motivate’s strategy for aggressive expansion into its targeted growth markets: Multicultural, Youth and LGBTQ.

By adding Immersive Youth’s expertise, and dynamic team and leadership, Motivate reinforces its culturally-focused service to world-class brands and agency partners. Post-acquisition, Immersive Youth will be rebranded as Motivate Youth.

“Gen Z is the most ethnically diverse generation in U.S. history, being 47 percent multicultural,” said Trevor Hansen, CEO of Motivate. “Bringing on Immersive Youth is in response to the demand from brands to reach the largest demographic group today.

Immersive Youth’s approach to connecting brands with Gen Z is rooted in firsthand audience dialogue and analytic decisions that inform not only the strategies, but also the visuals, messaging and activation experience.

The team’s rigorous insights-to-activation process comprises a set of guiding principles that are proven to drive results. We are excited about the possibilities that will arise from this union.”

Tether Ball: A Survival Story

Over on my Medium page, I've shared the story of my kidnapping from the playground in 4th grade while playing tether ball with my friends.

Yes, seriously. 

As the police officer carried me up the hill, I started to look back at the kidnapper and the police. I’m amazed that he had the foresight to turn my head away from the scuffle with the kidnapper and tell me “Don’t look at his face.”

I’m forever thankful that I don’t have a clear image of this mans face burned into my memory.

The Men Who Rattled Pop Music's Gender Rules

David Bowie, Prince and George Michael are all pop icons who died this year.

But something else connects them: They all helped to redefine the concept of masculinity.

Cultural critic Wesley Morris has been thinking about how these artists performed gender and sexuality. He recently wrote in The New York Times that in today's climate, "The Princes and the George Michael's seem as radical as ever." 
 

AMAZE.org: Sex Ed YouTube Videos for Teens, Parents and Teachers.

You know that talking with your kids about sex and growing up is important, but it’s tempting to put it off. The reality is that these conversations can’t wait. AMAZE.org takes the awkward out of sex ed. Real info in fun, animated videos that give you all the answers teens actually want to know about sex, your body and relationships.

Fun, Factual & Less Weird Sex Ed

AMAZE.org  is creating fun, factual and age appropriate online sex education videos for young adolescents. AMAZE has collaborated with a group of incredible young animators who are enthusiastic about their mission to create edgy, innovative and compelling videos to help young people learn about reproductive health.

The series of sex ed videos are being produced in conjunction with youth health organizations Advocates for Youth, Answer, and Youth Tech Health and animation studio, The Moving Company, to help break the ice and start these critical conversations so that kids get the accurate information they need. 

Accurate & Non Judgmental Sex Education

In a time where "fake news" fills our kids social feeds, AMAZE.or provides provides kids, parents and teachers a happy medium between accessible, engaging sex ed materials that don't deviate from the purpose of sex ed in the first place: To provide accurate, non-judgmental answers to curious questions.

I was fortunate to work with the AMAZE.org team as a youth and social media analyst during the early phases of this project and I was was really impressed with all the different stakeholders and educators involved to bring AMAZE.org to life.

AMAZE is providing a critical resource for parents and teens and these videos will really help make talking about sex ed, sexual orientation and puberty much less weird and help shift these discussions into a more open, healthy and normalized.

Be sure to check out all the videos on YouTube!