Thursday, October 14, 2021

Teams, Teachers and Lockdown

This month we are showcasing Microsoft MVPs from around the world who have explored new ways of engaging their audiences – specifically by using social media and their creativity.

 

“Think that on the other side of the screen there is someone to whom you can contribute a little for their growth and learning – and that is priceless,” says Mexico City-based MVP Laura Patricia Sánchez Gutiérrez.

 

The Office Apps & Services MVP uses stories, reels, publications and carousel to engage her audience on Instagram, where she primarily shares educational content related to Microsoft products with the main focus of boosting user functionality in Teams for teachers during lockdown.

 

“During the pandemic, I realized that my fellow teachers did not know how to use Teams and other tools, so I wanted to help. I started to make tutorials on YouTube for them which allowed me to reach more and more people and generate an extraordinary learning network,” Laura says.

 

“I know that my followers are mostly teachers who work hard and do not have much time to take long courses, but who seek to update themselves by their students so my tutorials are short and applied to real educational cases,” she adds.

 

Laura fell in love with Microsoft products when she discovered Excel in her seventh semester of veterinary college. “When I started using Excel, I was self-taught. It wasn’t until I was offered the opportunity to be a teacher at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and shortly after at Colegio Nacional de Educación Profesional Técnica (CONALEP) while earning my master’s degree that I began to deepen my knowledge of teaching ICTs to support my students and give them the best educational experience,” Laura says.

 

Now, using social media, Laura has engaged with an online community interested in learning new ways to utilize technology for educational use. 

 

“I learned to generate more visually attractive material to reach more people. If you learn how to transmit your passion through your publications, you will find great benefits such as making friends with the same interests,” she says.

 

Laura sees social media as a great engagement tool and believes that any MVP who wants to create and share this kind of content should take into consideration how current generations have transformed their way of learning. 

 

Younger generations not only use social networks to meet people or have fun, she says, but also to learn. 

 

“Social media provides a great opportunity to share your knowledge and build learning and growth networks,” Laura says. “I have always lived under the idea that ‘Life is a matter of attitude,’ so when I create all my material I give the best of myself.”

 

For more on Laura, check out her Instagram and Twitter.

Posted at https://sl.advdat.com/3j5CVey