Social Networking
Social networking sites are a place where individuals can meet together online to have conversation about everyday issues. Many social networking sites, such as Myspace, allow individuals to set up a profile and select the individuals who are allowed to visit their site. They can also open it up to anyone who wants to view the material. In my opinion this type of networking site should not be allowed in a school setting. These kind of sites could open students up to individuals who may not have their best interest in mind. In addition, students may use this tool to bully or harass other students.
I do believe that when social networking sites are properly used they are beneficial to a school setting. The idea situation for students is to set up class social networking sites. On this website students could post projects and also pose questions to other students concerning assignments. In addition, information could be posted on the website concerning what the class is presently doing. There could be an area where parents could also pose question or comments to the teacher. The Blogmeister website (http://classblogmeister.com/) is an excellent tool that teachers could use to set up a class website. This site allows teachers to view students comments before they are posted on the website, therefore issues with students posting inappropriate material will be taken care of.
Social networking websites could also help teachers collaborate. The website could be set up by grade levels and teachers could give ideas on ways to teach assignments. The media specialist could use social networking website to inform teachers of the different uses of technology. The media specialist could create a blog on the media center’s website, on this page a separate area could be created for each idea and linked to a useful website. Teachers could leave comments on how this tool helped them or suggestion on other tools they want to learn about.
Social networking tools have gotten a bad rap. However if they are used properly they can be effective in a school setting. My only concern is that teachers have busy schedules and this is an addition thing that they would have to do. It takes times to keep a web site up to date and also interact with students and parents on the social networking site.
3 comments:
There are some good social networking websites out there for students and educators to explore. Social networking is a great why for students to collaborate back and forth with each other for class assignments or projects. This technique is very helpful and beneficial to enhance student's technology skills. In a school setting, an adult such as the media specialist or teacher should always monitor student's activity while they are using social networking websites. You would not want them to be a exposed to anonymous predators out there. Social networking gives students the opportunity to create their own blogs or wikis, but; however, an adult must review their responses at all times. I believe social networking is a plus for this generation of children.
The Blogmeister site is an excellent resource. It is very important that student work be reviewed prior to posting. While you would hope that all posts would be appropriate, that is not always the case. In the beginning, I think that social networking should be introduced to the staff prior to the students. Many staff members haven't had any exposure to this type of technology. After the media specialist familarizes staff members, they can move onto class projects.
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Alecia, I agree with your opinion of social networking using class sites. It’s a cool idea. I wonder how one would go about setting that up. There are some sites that are created specifically for use in schools. I don’t know how they safeguard against intruders. My guess is that you must apply to a gatekeeper for membership. My friends from UU Church camp have a site called biffbiffbambam. It is a social networking site that you must apply to be let in. Paul
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