[In the Media] Online Social Networks for Educators and RezEd.org
The National Educators Association published recently an article entitled Online Social Networking for Educators highlighting how educators build community and collaboration online in educationally focused social networks beyond Facebook and MySpace.
As a jumping point from there, Akili Lee posting on MacArthur's Spotlight blog, mentions additional social network spaces online like RezEd.org that are big resources for educators. He also goes further and delves into the importance of these spaces for youth themselves.
We have to go beyond exploring social networking tools as just a way to connect with like minded teachers, but come to understand that we have a unique opportunity to create better connections with and facilitate unique and natural learning moments with our students. While these tools may be new and unfamiliar to many of us, we must recognize that for many of today’s kids, setting up a profile page, making friends online, blogging and sharing media is as natural as phone calls and trips to the movies were for previous generations. As we collectively gain better understanding of how students operate online, are we also looking for new opportunities to leverage these spaces to support their personal and academic development?
Both are a good read on the subject, so check them out below.
