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From http://fltmag.com/parlez-vous-emoji-fostering-intercultural-discourse-via-social-media/

Parlez-vous #emoji? Fostering Intercultural Discourse via Social Media
by Trent Hoy
November 23, 2016

As language teachers, we dream of inspiring our students to practice autonomously and make human connections outside of the classroom. Using the internet to find engaging authentic resources and to connect to native speakers is nothing new. For quite some time, pioneering instructors have curated linguistic and cultural artifacts from all over the web for examination by students. They’ve networked with international contacts to launch computer-mediated-communication programs with instant messaging and video chat. It comes as no surprise then that many educators have begun turning to a now integral part of internet use – social media. Yet applying this same curation model to tweets and posts ignores the fundamentally communicative and participatory aspects of social media that have rendered it so successful. How can we as teachers harness student enthusiasm and encourage authentic discourse rather than outside observation?

The secret lies in designing activities that emulate the same types of interactions and communicative styles that natively occur on individual social media platforms. Additionally, we can use these interactions to assess learner productions. To adequately do so, the media type should naturally elicit language functions that can be tied to ACTFL standards. By establishing both a base mode of communication and method of assessment that are scalable to learner level, we open the door for a myriad of options for authentic language production.

Read the full article, which includes activities using Instagram and Twitter, at http://fltmag.com/parlez-vous-emoji-fostering-intercultural-discourse-via-social-media/