Just finished rereading Creating and Connecting by NSBA. Prior to reading the article, I didn’t realize how much time students, especially young students, are spending on social networking. Now that my own children are in their 20s, I no longer monitor their computer usage. When I asked them if they felt the numbers were accurate, they thought the percentages might even be low. My feeling is that if students are willing to spend this much time with peers networking, then as educators, we need to utilize this in our teaching. The more you practice something, the better you become. So if students are writing, reading and communicating effectively through this, then definitely utilize this tool to enhance their learning.

I found it especially interesting to read that the “nonconformists” (students earning a mix of Bs and Cs or lower) are the same students on the cutting edge of this form of technology. Sounds like social and educational networking is the way to go to actively engage this type of learner. Use the nonconformist’s expertise to promote not only his/her learning but that of their peers and educators.

I agree that we as educators (and the policy makers of our district), need to use and become familiar with the various tools available before we can make informed decisions as to how to best utilize this to promote learning and understanding. (The unknown is always a bit frightening.) The whole issue of to “block or not to block” access will also need to be addressed. Nothing is more frustrating than to have BESS pop up – an issue worth discussing at another time!