Week1-Post#2_Twitter/Social Networking in Education

Blogging and Social Networking have become in creditably popular in our society. Once thought its usage was primarily a young person’s past time, now is not limited to any one particular group. It’s wide spread usage and increased number of Social Network sites have drawn people from all walks of life, ages, businesses and organizations. Thus creating a global trend that has shaped the 21^st century.

Educating educators, about these new technical trends, has become necessary since the instructional methods of the past no longer engage the learner. Educators not willing to seek out new ways to engage their learners, risk loosing the brightest, most creative honor role students in their classrooms.

I agree whole heartily with Stephan Dowes (2006), who believes that “Web 2.0 is not a technical revolution but a social revolution”. This statement could also hold true for the social networking systems, which provide community, delivery of information, acceptability, validation, challenges and inquiry. As time progresses, the quality and rate of information shared in the social networking communities has increased at alarming rates, compared to the old print media sources. Social networking is directly connected to the rapid increase of shared information. The more numbers of people sharing information, collaborating ideas, sharing interests and cultures, the more this form of information increases in its quality and validation.

Educators have seen this rapid increase of information as a great resource for learners to broaden their education beyond the classrooms four walls. Social networking tools such as www.twitter.com or www.edublogs.org  have become increasingly accepted among educators who have incorporated innovative usages for social networking to be highly effective in their classrooms. There are two videos at one site, which show how Twitter can be applied in the classroom. http://www.fsoblogs.com/emdtms/2009/7/24/tweet-tweet.html  the site for edublog is specifically an educational blogging platform for teachers, students and others in the educational community. This site is an international blogging community written in the English language. I post blogs on this site to share unique educational stories about the extremes in Alaska. All are welcomed to follow me at http://www.alaskateacherusa.edublogs.org/  My blog is entitled Teaching Extremes in Alaska.