LM May 2017 Final

Capital ... cont’d.

is also, or perhaps primarily, a measure of how much we learn through our friends, colleagues, and mentors. Social capital is all around us. Those who tap into it and use it prosper. Those who don’t are running life’s race with a major handicap” (p. 221). In his corresponding TED Talk, America’s Forgotten Working Class, Vance (2016) discussed the challenges he faced in his young life due to a lack of social capital, among other factors. He attributed his success to good mentors who helped fill his social capital gap and stressed that society needs to figure out how to provide a level playing field for students of poverty. So how can schools build social capital that will benefit students? In 21st century America, online social networks have become an integral part of daily life and modified the way society

learning, and without the benefit of social capital, intellectual capital is limited. Today, especially, when funding is limited or non-existent, it is critical that we use any means necessary to afford our students a competitive edge. The capacity to network increases our options to know and be known, giving our students both the what and the who. References Coleman, J. (1988). Social capital in the creation of human capital. The American Journal of Sociology, 94 (Supplement), S95–S120. doi:10.1086/228943 Crawford, S., & Levitt, P. (1999). Social change and civic engagement: The case of the PTA. In T. Skocpol & M. P. Fiorina (Eds.), Civic engagement in American democracy (pp. 249-296). Washington, DC: Brookings Institute.

Doster, L. (2013). Millennial teens design and redesign themselves in online social networks. Journal of Consumer Behaviour , 12, 267–279. doi: 10.1002/cb.1407 Hanifan, L. (1916). The rural school community center. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science , 67(1), 130–138. doi:10.1177/000271621606700118 Leana, C., & van Buren III, H. J. (1999). Organizational social capital. Academy of Management Review , 24, 538–555. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/ stable/259141 Leana, C., & Pil, F. (2006). Social capital and organizational performance: Evidence from urban public schools. Organization Science , 17, 353–366. doi:10.1287/orsc.1060.0191 Nahapiet, J., & Ghoshal, S. (1998). Social capital, intellectual capital, and the organizational advantage. Academy of Management Review , 23, 242–266. doi:10.2307/259373

communicates and to what degree. It is evident that new technologies are permanently tied to how social capital is acquired. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, and LinkedIn are just a few of the communication pipelines for broad cross-sections of society. These platforms create cyber communities that allow networking opportunities and connections that can increase the potential of school districts to create a brand. School leaders who tout their programs through social media and are recognized as innovators increase their social capital, thereby affording students a level of social capital through affiliation with the school.

We have all heard the old saying, ‘It’s not what you know; it’s who you know ’...turns out, the capacity to network increases our options to know and be known, giving our students both the what and the who.

School leaders should encourage educators to use social media, such as Twitter, to connect with other educators, families, and communities. These connections are now a primary building block for social capital in that they provide networks for professional learning and sharing of innovative instructional design. It is increasingly evident that limited opportunities will exist for students who are taught in the manner we were taught in the 20th century. School districts cannot be afraid to embrace and utilize social media for the purpose of establishing social capital. Failure to do so compromises the quality of education provided to students. Teachman et al. (1997) wrote that “social capital may be represented by the density and consistency of educationally- focused relationships that exist among parents, children, and schools,” (p. 1344). In education, social capital promotes

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Insights. (2016). Human capital: How what you know shapes your life . Retrieved from: http:// www.oecd.org/insights/humancapitalhowwhatyouknowshapesyourlife.htm Pinker, S. (2008, January 18). The moral instinct. New York Times . Retrieved June 27, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/13/ magazine/13Psychology-t.html Putnam, R. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community . New York, NY: Simon & Schuster. Teachman, J., Paasch, K., & Carver, K. (1997). Social capital and the generation of human capital. Social Forces, 75, 1343–1359. doi:10.2307/2580674 Vance, J. (2016). Hillbilly elegy: A memoir of a family and culture in crisis . New York, NY: HarperCollins. Virtanen, M., Ervasti, J., Oksanen, T., Kivimaki, M., & Vahtera, J. (2013). Social capital in schools. In I. Kawachi, S. Takao & S.V. Subramanian (Eds.), Global perspectives on social capital and health (pp. 65–67). New York, NY: Springer.

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