Topico - Share the news-App-Product-Image

Topico - Share the news

Share and curate news articles on social network with classroom features

Learning rating

Community rating

Not yet reviewed
Based on 0 review

Privacy rating

Not yet rated
Expert evaluation by Common Sense

Grades

9–12

Subjects & Skills

Critical Thinking, Social Studies

Great for

Media Literacy, Social Media

Price: Free
Platforms: Android, iPad, iPhone, Mac

Pros: The intentional design that eliminates comments encourages a focus on exploring different perspectives without the influence of others' opinions.

Cons: Since Newsrooms are user-curated and engagement focuses on recommendations, it's important to address how confirmation bias can influence news consumption and sharing.

Bottom Line: Curated, topic-specific Newsrooms help students focus on topics from various sources on one timeline.

How Can I Teach with This Tool?

Teachers can use Topico to enhance reading, comprehension, and critical thinking skills. This tool easily lends itself to main idea and supporting detail assignments using high-interest articles on current events. Use articles from an array of sources representing the same topic tag to explore how information is presented across news media -- digging into the following questions: What makes a news source trustworthy? Why is the same event or news covered differently by different outlets? Discussion that promotes an analytical look at news media can help students develop their own opinions and become critical consumers of news.

Teachers can also use Topico to engage students in collective inquiry. Create and curate a Newsroom with articles for the class to explore. Invite students to add articles to the class Newsroom as well. Organizing recommended news articles in one space streamlines access and peer recommendations. Newsrooms tracking a specific tag also simplify following a timeline and tracking how information and public opinion evolves. Topico encourages users to engage with each other by recommending articles, keeping the focus on noteworthy news without the "noise" of user comments and personal opinions. More multilingual and accessibility features would help all students use it, and integrations with other platforms would allow for easier classroom use.

Learning Rating

Overall Rating
Engagement

Students can read and share articles from a wide range of sources, track articles on a topic or event of interest, and engage with other users by recommending articles.

Pedagogy

Self-directed exploration coupled with a variety of news sources promotes curiosity, perspective, and critical thinking.

Support

Topico Tips explain the social networking app's features plus how to share articles and connect with other users.

Common Sense reviewer

Community Rating

No one has reviewed this tool yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.

Write a review

Privacy Rating

This tool has not yet been rated by our privacy team. Learn more about our privacy ratings