social networking for professional development marian thacher
TRANSCRIPT
Social Networking for Professional Development
Marian Thacher
How has the Web changed our professional relationships?• Easy to create a variety of Web sites
• Anyone can have an online presence, post content, have conversations
• “Watch” what other people are doing, thinking, reading, talking about
• Your network now includes “strangers”! (and strangers are not so strange)
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What is a Social Networking Site?
• A Web site that allows users to connect, communicate and/or share information with each other
By Moonjazz, http://www.flickr.com/photos/moonjazz/651498439/
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Examples of Social Networking
• Email Lists
• Blogs
• Social Bookmarking
• Facebook, LinkedIn
• Ning, Wiggio
From premiardeigo, http://www.flickr.com/photos/9119028@N05/591163479/
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Your Personal Learning Network
• How do you learn new things?
– ?
– ?
• How did you learn new things 10 yrs ago?
– ?
– ?
• Any differences?
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Your Personal Learning Network
• 2.5 billion searches per day on Google, in 40 languages
• 75% of the time people go to information directly from their search results, NOT from the home page of a site
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Your Personal Learning Network• Example of Stephen Downes
www.downes.ca
– Saw references several years ago
– Followed him on Twitter and Facebook
– Received interesting links and references
– Went to his blog and signed up for his newsletter
– Posted on my blog about him and he responded
– Now he is in my PLN, and he notes that he actually came up with the concept!
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Your Personal Learning Network
“Information has always been a conversation, it’s just that most of us weren’t part of it, until the Internet.”
--Steve Hargadon
www.stevehargadon.com
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My PLN 10 Years ago
TeacherCoordinator
PresenterMom
Lesson Plans
Reports
Work-shops
Articles
Class Activities
Parenting
StudentsSupervisors
FriendsColleagues
Prof. Groups
JournalsBooksWeb Pages
ConferencesClassesSite Workshops
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My PLN Now
Web site
ReportsWork-shops
ArticlesBlogs Grand-
parenting
Supervisors
Friends
ColleaguesProf. Groups
JournalsBooksWeb PagesConferencesClassesSite Workshops
AdministratorPresenterBlogger
Grandma
BlogsSocial NetworksListservsPodcastsAggregatorsTwitter
Online Network
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Viral Professional Development
• We learn on our own with support from each other
• Build a network!
• Share everything – tape it, blog it, tag it, post it
• Celebrate and get the word out up and down the food chain
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Menu
• Email Lists
• Blogs
• Wikis
• Social Networking
• Social Bookmarking
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EMAIL LISTS
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Email Lists, or Listservs
PROs
• Easy to access
• Comes to you (push)
• Access to a wider community
• Get answers to your questions
CONs
• Too much email
• Not all of interest
• Public in ways you might not realize
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Email Lists, or Listservs
• LINCS lists (ESL, Math, Tech, Assessment, etc.)
• Adult Numeracy Network
• National Literacy Advocacy
• CA Tech Mentor Network
• CA Distance Learning
• Start your own!
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Email Lists, or Listservs
• When to create your own list
– Large group, geographically dispersed
– Need to share information and/or keep in touch
– Can be one-way or discussion
– To moderate, or not to moderate
• When NOT to create your own list
– No one to be responsible for keeping it going
– Can communicate a different way (shared doc, wiki)17
BLOGS
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Blogs
• How are you using blogs?
• What do you want to learn?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of blogging?
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Blogs
PROs
• Easy to create, fast
• Easy to add links, photos, video
• Can be used to create community (followers, commenters, shared editing)
CONs
• Generally one author
• Used for personal opinions and reflection
• Some constraints on organization
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Blogging for Prof. Dev.
• Provide information to staff
– Jefferson Adult School
• Create an online community
– TIMAC Blog
– Newport Mesa Blog
• Reflect on practice
– Jan, Marian
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WIKIS
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Wikis
• What is a wiki?
• Go to the wiki
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cogdog/19490596/
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Wikis
• How are you using wikis?
• What do you want to learn?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of wikis?
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Wikis
PROs
• Easy to create, fast
• Good for frequent updating
• Many can contribute
• Can be public or private
• Basic service is free
CONs
• Sometimes a clunky interface
• Have to pay to get rid of ads
• Hard to make it graphically pleasing
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Examples
• Adult Literacy Education Wiki
• California Budget Cuts
• mLearning wiki
• Lots more examples
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SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES
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Ning
• Tool for creating online communities
• No longer free, but affordable for education
• Many features – groups, blogs, discussions…
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Ning Examples
• California ABE Initiative
• CALPRO Multilevel ESL e-PLC
• Educator’s PLN
• Classroom 2.0
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Wiggio
• Similar to Ning, but free
• Easy to set up group
• Use to create an email list
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PROs
• Everybody is already here!
• Variety of page types – group, business page, personal
• Wide access for discussions and sharing
CONs
• Privacy issues
• Confusing re types of pages
• Need to have a separate professional account
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Facebook Examples
• CA Adult Schools on Facebook
– Torrance
– Downey
– Milpitas
• OTAN on Facebook
From mattkeefe - http://www.flickr.com/photos/fil/3151423/34
SOCIAL BOOKMARKING
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Bookmarking and Tagging
• How you save sites now
• Bookmarking
• Tagging
• Tag clouds
• Go to the wiki
(my Delicious account) (my diigo account)36
Education: the path from cocky ignorance to miserable uncertainty. --Mark Twain
GO FORTH AND CONNECT!