Ferocious Media Teams with Local High Schools for e-Learning Program

“How can we better educate and prepare today’s high school students on how digital media can affect their lives both personally and professionally?” That is the question that several local Long Island school districts and Ferocious Media began looking to answer a little over a year ago. High schoolers are extremely active on social media, but most of them don’t understand the impact that their posts, pictures, snaps, and retweets can have on their “personal brand.”

Ferocious Media Sr. Executive Vice President, Lauren Persico, along with administrators from  Northport, Comsewogue, Westhampton Beach, Half Hollow Hills, and Bayport-Blue Point school districts embarked on developing a curriculum for an innovative class that would provide an answer to that question.

The unique learning experience, entitled “The Digital Generation,” brings together students from each school district to work collaboratively — something that has never been done before. Through the use of collaborative tools, like Google Hangouts, students communicate and learn with each other. A junior at Half Hollow Hills could be working on a project with a senior at Comsewogue, all without ever having to leave their respective classrooms.

Over the course of the last year, Lauren met with members of the eLearning committee to determine what should be covered in the course. Some of the course objectives include:

• Teaching students about their own digital footprints and how social media can impact their lives
• Using social media to stay connected to the world and current events
• How social media is used in the professional environment for both internal productivity and to reach customers

After extensive planning and coordination, “The Digital Generation” launched in September and has gotten off to a great start. Students are embracing the content and enjoying the one-of-a-kind experience of using collaborative online tools to work with other students.

After working over computer screens and microphones for a month, the students recently had a chance to meet each other face-to-face. On October 16, 2015, about 90 students, five teachers, and school administrators came together for the e-Learning Kickoff Event held at Stony Brook University’s Wang Center. They were joined by Stephen Fang, Regional Manager, Google in Education at Google via a Google Hangout, technology staff members from Stony Brook University, Eastern Suffolk BOCES, and mentors from Ferocious Media.

Director of Channel Development, Mike Coyne, gave a talk called “Personal Branding: What Does Your Social Media Say About You?”, which stressed the importance of being aware of your digital footprint and how what you post can influence how others perceive you. The students then broke into smaller groups for discussions led by Senior Social Media Analysts Cassie Olivos, Shannon O’Connor, and Brandon Berte along with Mike Coyne. The group of mentors was tasked with reviewing the social media profiles of the students and presenting their findings. Some of the students’ tweets and posts even made it to the big screen — for better or worse! Dr. Timothy Hearney, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction at Bayport-Blue Point School District, said of the event, “Overall it was a great day and [the Ferocious Media] staff played a huge role in its success”.

We at Ferocious Media look forward to the continued success of “The Digital Generation,” helping students succeed in the course, and giving them the tools they need to prepare for the challenges facing them in both college and their professional endeavors.