Schools and Social Networking

There is no denying it, students are text messaging, social networking, listening to i-pods, and 'YouTube-ing' videos.

My students are digital natives.

Many educators see this new wave of technology as a threat to "the essentials" being taught in the classroom. Most districts have taken a very conservative position on what websites are deemed educational and appropriate for a school setting.

I use social networking for the purpose of staying in touch with my friends and family members outside of school via Facebook and MySpace, but what about staying in touch with my students and colleagues while IN school?

During this workshop I really found the educational value of social networking for the purpose of knowledge sharing using websites like Diigo and Delicious. These websites allow teachers, students, colleagues, parents, etc... to share and annotate (even highlight and sticky note) worthwhile websites. I can now create a list of websites I want my students to use in an easy-to-manage, organized process. Diigo also offers educator accounts so my students do not need e-mails to use the service.

So why not enable effective collaborative research and allow students to discover new information they are interested in? Well the reality of the Internet is that the content readily available is not always suitable for students. I know most students do not have extensive filters like our district on their home computers, so how do I educate them on the realities of what is really out there and how to get past the garbage?

That I don't have an answer for yet.

I do know that we can't live in denial as educators. Our students NEED technology as part of a repertoire of 21st century skills and for pure engagement. It is our (hard) job as educators to create the perfect balance of technology integration in our curriculum.

Last.fm

I finally found a Web 2.o application that doesn't seem tedious and "overdone". This was the last Web 2.0 application I signed up for from the list we were given at our workshop, and I LOVE IT!

I love making playlists, sampling songs, and creating libraries of my favorite artists.

If you are into music I highly recommend checking out this website because the recommendations are pretty accurate for my music tastes.

Web 2.0 Overload

So today I am feeling completely overwhelmed by all of the applications I am exploring. I just don't understand how full-time teachers who aren't technology specialists, will ever be able to keep up with all of this?

I am signed up with all of these additional social networking sites (Myspace, Bebo, Diigo, Twitter) but don't really see the advantages they have over Facebook.

The real issue is time management. I am looking at the list of tasks required of our Web 2.0 class and have decided that I am either
A) a slow learner or
B) not skimming these topics and spending too much time soaking up articles and bookmarked pages

I have a feeling I will always be someone that wants to read the "whole article", though. I started getting RSS feeds about Web 2.0 and had to go back and change my settings so that I wouldn't get them everyday. All it makes me feel is BEHIND!

Diigo

I picked Diigo to use for my Web 2.0 application presentation. The website seems really useful for highlighting the web and sharing web resources with my friends, colleagues, and students.

I signed up for Diigo almost a year ago, but never saw real applications for my students. Now they have Diigo educator accounts so you can use it safely in your classroom. I saw it more for social networking, but after playing with it for a few hours, I like the collaborative sharing piece. I often come across articles/websites that are really cool, but don't want to add anymore clutter to my "Bookmarks" on my desktop at school.

I am still trying to figure out if this will be a website I frequent after my Web 2.0 class is over.