Social Networking

Social networking seems to have become the glue that keeps everyone closely tied even though they may be far away geographically!  I have been using Facebook for several years and use it for both personal and professional connections.  Professionally, it has become an important part of my Personal Learning Network (PLN).  I've connected with professional organizations, other teachers, and other technology coordinators and use Facebook to share resources and suggestions.  It is a good way to keep these resources in one handy location, one that I visit daily as I connect personally with those on my "friend list".

I've not used Linkedin before.  I have looked at it, but haven't invested the time in really exploring it too much.  I guess for me it was just the "one site too many" that I really didn't have the time to commit to!  Students today are using Facebook less and Twitter more.  I do use Twitter, much in the same way that I use Facebook, but I don't comment as much on Twitter, but instead, use the resources shared by those I follow.  I can see why students, especially high school age and beyond, are using Twitter.  They can quickly type or tweet from their smart phones and those tweets pop up like texts.  In using the 140 character limit of Twitter, they've started to develop their own shortcuts for language and find acronyms for many things.

Sites like Ning are interesting to me as well.  I've had several teachers create Ning environments in which their students became someone and carried on interactions as this persona throughout the unit.  Our junior high history teacher has students join a Ning about the Constitutional Convention and they each become founding fathers of the country.  They participate as if they are the person and react as that person in history would have reacted.  Our science teacher had students participate in a Ning environment as well.  Students worked as a particular scientist and created an online museum displaying their findings.  It was a huge hit with the kids as they got to create their own Ning page.  The downside is that the Ning site is no longer free and the teachers have to pay to continue their projects.

Social networking does just what the title implies, it allows a place (or places) where people can share words, videos, photos, etc. with whom they choose!  David Warlick compares social networking to an ecosystem of sorts.  He says "we are working an information ecosystem in which we cultivate the information, we become information gardeners" (2 Cents Blog).  I think I can really identify with that comparison.  Those who cultivate their social network will see it grow and those who let it go or ignore it, will see that their personal learning network "withers" and doesn't thrive.

These are important tools that teachers can use to their advantage.  As with all social networking, responsible use is important to maintain credibility as a professional.  There are certainly negative drawbacks to using social media and I'm not sure at the elementary level, sites like Facebook are appropriate for students.  Students at the elementary level still need much guidance on what is acceptable and how something typed can sound differently then when you say it in person.  The ISTE standards of digital citizenship can be explored if you are interested in using social media with your students. 

For Diigo, the group that I chose to join is "Classroom 2.0".  I chose this particular group because I am very interested in how Web 2.0 applications are and can be used in the classroom.   I still haven't become used to going to Diigo to check in on a regular basis as many of the sites that I follow I have in my Google Reader and get new RSS feeds through that application.

The biggest drawback to any use of social networking to me is the time involved.  Sites that I can use on my phone are of the most interest to me.  I can check my Facebook, send tweets, and check emails to stay connected to my personal learning network!