What do you think of this statement on Social Networks? - Classroom 2.02024-03-28T08:41:35Zhttps://www.classroom20.com/forum/topics/649749:Topic:7964?commentId=649749%3AComment%3A34225&feed=yes&xn_auth=noIt sounds great, but when is…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-08-13:649749:Comment:417392007-08-13T13:38:46.276ZGreg Noackhttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/gnoack
It sounds great, but when is a teacher supposed to have a personal life? I love technology and love to see kids on it, but I don't want to be talking to my students after 4:00 PM. I want to have my own life.
It sounds great, but when is a teacher supposed to have a personal life? I love technology and love to see kids on it, but I don't want to be talking to my students after 4:00 PM. I want to have my own life. Compelling thread here. One q…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-08-13:649749:Comment:415742007-08-13T01:34:07.071ZPamela Livingstonhttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/plivingston
Compelling thread here. One quick observation - blogs are almost Socratic in their nature, in that people read a blog because the blogger, or teacher, says some things that are of interest and then people start regularly reading those blogs because of the "teachers"/blogger. Social networks like others said are more like cafes or maybe like "Cheers" the old TV show.
Compelling thread here. One quick observation - blogs are almost Socratic in their nature, in that people read a blog because the blogger, or teacher, says some things that are of interest and then people start regularly reading those blogs because of the "teachers"/blogger. Social networks like others said are more like cafes or maybe like "Cheers" the old TV show. Wow, what an interesting disc…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-31:649749:Comment:382922007-07-31T13:38:04.895ZJacinta Gascoignehttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/JINXIE
Wow, what an interesting discussion. So many willing to share their own experiences, learning, thoughts and ideas - all valued and appreciated. Great to see those not in the educational/learning arena (as in teaching/facilitating or whatever we wish to badge it today, providing us with their take on issues. I feel it is important to learn, share, collaborate with anyone who is interested in the nnature of the topics. If only we could get parents (who are no educators) to join in and learn,…
Wow, what an interesting discussion. So many willing to share their own experiences, learning, thoughts and ideas - all valued and appreciated. Great to see those not in the educational/learning arena (as in teaching/facilitating or whatever we wish to badge it today, providing us with their take on issues. I feel it is important to learn, share, collaborate with anyone who is interested in the nnature of the topics. If only we could get parents (who are no educators) to join in and learn, instead of being scared of all SNT and trying to block their children from using them and what about the learners themselves, I am sure they would provide us with much to think about and great ideas on how they would like to learn - learner not teacher centered learning - not a new concept but one that is struggling in the TAFE - Vocational Education Sector in Australia.<br />
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Blogs vs SNT<br />
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Blogging can be a lonely existence. Often people will read and maybe even like, reflect and adapt and adopt ideas however there is little interaction with others through blogs, apart from the odd comment or two that you will find.<br />
Despite this, I intend at this point anyway to keep my blog, only because it is a world I created for myself in many ways, a place where I can write what I think and feel, not always limited to one area, such as web 2.0, but one where I can write about anything that I feel is important to me and maybe to others. I guess in some ways a journal of my own learning, thoughts, ideas and practice that I can look back on and reflect upon. As I often state on my blog - Thoughts from my head alone at this time:)<br />
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SNT, whilst many provide a blog feature, allow for greater interaction and connection/networking with others who are interested, through, discussions, email, comments, video and much much more. The connections are made quickly, if you spend the time to build up your network (and it does take time), their is a wealth of information and contacts in a central place, one is surrounded with a supportive environment and as I have noticed recently a warm and friendly environment - a pleasant change from being on campus during the day, where you feel you should have a crash helmet on, should you utter anything to the majority of staff about anything 'e' related.<br />
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In my opinion, there is a place for many different tools and technologies. The variety provides choice and flexibility. We do not all learn in the same ways and we all have our reasons for the choices we make.<br />
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For me personally, I had been a part of the Networks/Forum on the Australian Flexible Learning Framework since 2002 - a consequence of working on projects for the Framework and being awarded a Flexible Learning Leader Scholarship in 2003 - a year of pd, a great opportunity.<br />
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I had never had any issues within the network until April of this year, when I discovered that some of my ideas were a little challenging for a few. The result, cyberbullying by others in the forum, who went to great lengths to push me out and then started messing with my life. If you google Kathy Sierra:Jacinta Gascoigne, you will be able to see what went on.<br />
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As I was given no support by those who managed the forum, which is part of the Edna groups - a moodle, I elected to leave a network that I was a part of and was a part of my life for sometime. I quite simply did not feel safe anymore.<br />
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I continued with the myspace's I have created and still manage, however I shyed away from any other form of networking. For a time I would email those who I knew were standing by me and they emailed back. I then chose to take blogging seriously and created a new blog.<br />
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The new blog mixed with my curiosity saw me having a play in many environments, mostly the SNT, checking out how they worked, who was using them, why they were using them and the outcomes. My playing and sharing what I was playing with via email and blog, lead me to ning and at this time ning is the vehicle I have chosen for my continued learning and I hope sharing and collaborating with others globally. I have a Xanga, Facebook and others, but for the purposes of exploring web 2.0 and beyond, myself and with others, the Ning world is an excellent fit.<br />
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Thank you for your post and to all those who have replied, most insightful and encouraging to see the honesty and differences in thinking and experience, accepted, supported and appreciated.<br />
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Jacinta I'm with you, Cathy: I don't…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-31:649749:Comment:382422007-07-31T10:10:15.757ZConnie Weberhttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/connieweber
I'm with you, Cathy: I don't think you can beat collegial conversations. CR2.0 has been a transformational, uplifting experience for me. Actually, it's one of the things I longed for during most of my three-decade long education career: some way to talk about what I'm thinking, wondering about, reading, learning, questioning. It's so great to get on and see what others are thinking, wondering about, reading, learning, and questioning. We can get out of our buildings, out into the wider world to…
I'm with you, Cathy: I don't think you can beat collegial conversations. CR2.0 has been a transformational, uplifting experience for me. Actually, it's one of the things I longed for during most of my three-decade long education career: some way to talk about what I'm thinking, wondering about, reading, learning, questioning. It's so great to get on and see what others are thinking, wondering about, reading, learning, and questioning. We can get out of our buildings, out into the wider world to gain a broader view. We can learn how to get our kids involved with innovative, connecting projects with classmates with or for children all around the world. We can keep ourselves up to date with all sorts of new technology right as it "comes in," and learn practical applications for the new technology in our teaching and in our lives. What more could an educator want?! Wow..this has certainly taken…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-31:649749:Comment:382202007-07-31T06:17:47.375ZBarbarahttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/babs2teach
Wow..this has certainly taken on a life of its own and there is a great deal here to really think about. in reading through the various perspectives represented I am struck by a couple of things.<br />
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First I really like Tom's description here- 'Networks, on the other hand, are like the coffee bar at a conference: you mingle, exchange business cards or blog addresses, then split up again for a session or workshop, where you find more people who are interested in the same things you are."<br />
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It does…
Wow..this has certainly taken on a life of its own and there is a great deal here to really think about. in reading through the various perspectives represented I am struck by a couple of things.<br />
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First I really like Tom's description here- 'Networks, on the other hand, are like the coffee bar at a conference: you mingle, exchange business cards or blog addresses, then split up again for a session or workshop, where you find more people who are interested in the same things you are."<br />
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It does encapsulate part of the beauty of SN and it points to the potential for creating connections and relationships with a much broader group than one might naturally encounter through blogging. The picture he painted also helped clarify my thinking on a second issue raised in the many comments here.<br />
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IM, Chats and forums with students is an effective way to be available ...Joyce Valenza from library 2.0 talks about wanting to be where the students need her when they need her. ..in her case it does not meaning im or chat 24 x 7 but it does mean assuring that resources are always available. What I am thinking is that the "Social" in SN is what makes us worry about using them with students. Ewan McIntosh spoke at Boston learning Communities about making explicit your public face. Part of his point was that we need to be clear and explicit about our communication. I would suggest that my "social" relationship with my students is governed by a far different set of standards of behavior than my social relationships with my peers. I want to say that I subscrib…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-30:649749:Comment:377382007-07-30T01:06:23.063ZCathy Nelsonhttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/cnelson
I want to say that I subscribed to the CR2.0 blog postings and forums of Ning when I realized there were feeds. I wouldn't have to keep coming back. (A time saver, or so I thought.) Now when I see posts in my reader, I skim for repetitive responses (skimming for popular topics). Once I decide there is a popular topic, I link out to the Ning so I can follow the thread. That is what I like about this SN. But I have to attribute my "liking" this feature (threaded conversations) to noticing popular…
I want to say that I subscribed to the CR2.0 blog postings and forums of Ning when I realized there were feeds. I wouldn't have to keep coming back. (A time saver, or so I thought.) Now when I see posts in my reader, I skim for repetitive responses (skimming for popular topics). Once I decide there is a popular topic, I link out to the Ning so I can follow the thread. That is what I like about this SN. But I have to attribute my "liking" this feature (threaded conversations) to noticing popular topics in my reader. Otherwise I just skim. But when something catches my interest, I do link back to respond if I feel so inclined. I want to share CR2.0 with my new school in the fall. MySpace and even Facebook have given educators who are not "in the know" a bad impression of social networking. Hopefully by seeing this, they may change their mind, and maybe even join in. In education, I don't think you can beat collegial conversations. While I see great pedigogical…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-29:649749:Comment:377012007-07-29T21:57:27.826ZDonna Heberthttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/whatsit81
While I see great pedigogical potential in social networking, I am in the outright minority in my building. The educators I know are hung up on the notion that kids are not only wasting their time of MySpace, etc., but the general concensus is that kids are irresponsible about how they use it. I teach in a middle school, and to some extent I understand the concerns. Kids need to be taught what's appropriate and what's inappropriate use of the internet. I wish I knew how to convince my…
While I see great pedigogical potential in social networking, I am in the outright minority in my building. The educators I know are hung up on the notion that kids are not only wasting their time of MySpace, etc., but the general concensus is that kids are irresponsible about how they use it. I teach in a middle school, and to some extent I understand the concerns. Kids need to be taught what's appropriate and what's inappropriate use of the internet. I wish I knew how to convince my colleagues that all social networks are not bad.<br />
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A couple of years ago, I tried to sell other teachers on the idea of using blogs in language arts. It didn't go over so well . . . What a fantastic discussion -…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-29:649749:Comment:376722007-07-29T20:04:36.999ZSharon Bettshttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/sharonbetts
What a fantastic discussion - and one reason why SN are so valuable. I believe that as technology evolves and becomes "mainstream", educators must also evolve. Last year it was blogs, last month it was wikis, now it is SN and 3D worlds. Soon we will be discussing Web 3.0 (Semantic Web). (<a href="http://sbetts.edublogs.org/">read my Blog post if interested</a>)<br />
It's not that one is more valuable than another. It is the evolution of the tools that must drive our paradigms.
What a fantastic discussion - and one reason why SN are so valuable. I believe that as technology evolves and becomes "mainstream", educators must also evolve. Last year it was blogs, last month it was wikis, now it is SN and 3D worlds. Soon we will be discussing Web 3.0 (Semantic Web). (<a href="http://sbetts.edublogs.org/">read my Blog post if interested</a>)<br />
It's not that one is more valuable than another. It is the evolution of the tools that must drive our paradigms. This is a really rich discuss…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-23:649749:Comment:352472007-07-23T14:21:49.037ZNadine Norrishttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/rinkydink
This is a really rich discussion! There seems to be a big difference between social networking and blogs, although as many people pointed out, they are connected sometimes. Recently my about-to-be-freshman-in-college daughter and I discussed the difference between Facebook and MySpace, both being pretty popular in our community. MySpace, which is more of a blog, requires more work on the owners part, which is why many people start spaces and then give them up. Facebook on the other hand, grows…
This is a really rich discussion! There seems to be a big difference between social networking and blogs, although as many people pointed out, they are connected sometimes. Recently my about-to-be-freshman-in-college daughter and I discussed the difference between Facebook and MySpace, both being pretty popular in our community. MySpace, which is more of a blog, requires more work on the owners part, which is why many people start spaces and then give them up. Facebook on the other hand, grows as a result of other's contribution to one's space, which is why it is so engaging. My daughter says that kids really prefer social networking because you can connect with people with the same interest, no matter how obscure, see what's being said and contribute to the discussion. It's very non-threatening and you don't feel as vulnerable as you do when you post a blog entry.<br />
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Here's the thing that Will doesn't really bring into the discussion. Look at the psychology of a young person. It's all about the "friends".....the more "friends" the better. The compelling part of being part of a social network is to participate in the community because "hanging out" with people their own age is part of the emotional and psychological makeup of a younger person. When kids reach their teens, their focus becomes their peers. That's part of how they are wired.<br />
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A middle-aged teacher like myself, with a husband, three kids, a dog, and a full time job....the motivation to participate in social networking would have to be pretty compelling. I might be going out on a limb here, but I'm guessing that when you get to a certain point (or age) in your life, you stop caring about the opinion of your peers to the point where you have to go on line and check your social networking site 5 times a day (like my kids do).<br />
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I have a great deal of respect for Will and his work. I read his books and his blog. I read a lot of blogs for that matter. I just think that he needs to take a step back and reflect on the underlying reasons why kids do something and grownups do not.<br />
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As with many of the posts in this thread, I do think teachers need to capitalize on the way their students use the internet. Teachers are really missing the boat when they don't use the web 2.0 to extend the classroom and engage the students using their own medium for communication. Dave and Jared,
I may be an…tag:www.classroom20.com,2007-07-20:649749:Comment:346472007-07-20T09:17:39.781ZConnie Weberhttps://www.classroom20.com/profile/connieweber
Dave and Jared,<br />
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I may be an exception to the mainstream in this, but I have few boundaries about students' communications after (and within) school hours. Students write to me on Moodle, they participate in Moodle Chats (and I often join), they react to threads in forums in later afternoons and evenings. Students have email accounts outside of Moodle as well, and send notes often. I have a 4th/5th grade class. After leaving my class, students continue to stay in touch with me via email and the…
Dave and Jared,<br />
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I may be an exception to the mainstream in this, but I have few boundaries about students' communications after (and within) school hours. Students write to me on Moodle, they participate in Moodle Chats (and I often join), they react to threads in forums in later afternoons and evenings. Students have email accounts outside of Moodle as well, and send notes often. I have a 4th/5th grade class. After leaving my class, students continue to stay in touch with me via email and the social networks, yes, after hours.<br />
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We do study internet safety quite a bit; I feel I'm teaching the students something by providing them with a safe space for learning networking skills. (I've talked in another forum about the very strong skills growth I've seen in writing due to Moodle--there are big benefits, arising directly from the need to get your point across to a group.)<br />
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Moodle Chats, at least as we have it set, are recorded, so you'd have evidence if someone wondered what you were discussing with the kids. We actually sometimes do themed "learning session" chats, on particular topics.<br />
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It may be that I can do out-of-school social networking with kids with parent support because I'm perceived of as "motherly," and we work within a rather small and progressive school community, so this would not likely to apply to everyone.<br />
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Students see Classroom 2.0 up on the SmartBoard often; I leave postings up and sometimes talk with the students about what "my teacher network" is thinking about. I ask their opinions about things we're discussing. They see the power of sharing ideas and knowledge; I get so excited when someone sends along a new technological tool or site, and often share the demo with the kids immediately.<br />
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The latest thing I'm doing is participating on Facebook. I thought about it a lot, and interviewed about 15 high school and college students about the various considerations in doing this. The younger kids (early HS) are more uncomfortable with it; the older kids (later HS, college, and beyond) seem to enjoy having "their old teacher" on the network. Actually, I'm beginning to provide a connecting point for an alumni association for our school by doing this. After 30 years of teaching, I have a lot of students who would like to stay connected with each other, with their schoolmates, and with me.<br />
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The Facebook world is quite fascinating. You get bits of news about your friends in a stream across the front page, stuff they've posted or done. You get updates, pictures, notes. I try to sort of "stay in my place" and let the kids contact me, initiate the conversation. But I'm also experimenting with starting questions or suggestions on my wall, or in my notes (like forums) to see what avenues there are are for group expressions.<br />
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Some of my latest questions have been about whether there are some former students who would like to jump over to CR2.0 to comment on educational issues. Some of the older students (college/grad school, post college), especially the ones who are considering education, psychology, or social sciences, are very enthusiastic, and seem pleased that they have been asked to voice their views.<br />
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So here I am using a variety of networks, and even trying to link them together in some ways. I'm working against social separation. Might as well get some multi-generational stuff going... By the way, CR2.0 colleagues, if you are on Facebook, contact me there, ok?