Social Networking for Educators

Social networks are a great way to find valuable resources for your classroom, your teaching, and yourself. Below are several social networks that can be used as personal learning networks (PLNs) for educators.

Image courtesy of http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/06/simple-comprehensive-guide-on-use-of.html

 

Facebook - I joined Facebook in 2006, and I have only used it for personal reasons. I do not really use Facebook a lot either. I never thought of it as a PLN until I really looked into the possibilities it holds for professional development. I am currently working on finding and following educational resources, educators, and products.

Pinterest - Let me just start by saying my husband hates when I am on Pinterest because I will sit for hours just looking through pins! I love it, and I spend a lot of time pinning ideas for home décor, babies, clothing, and recipes. I also spend a lot of time pinning educational resources. I got all of my bulletin board ideas from Pinterest last year, and I used it to find resources for The Outsiders and The Giver. I also use it get ideas for behavior management, classroom discipline, and the needs of my students. I have yet to create my own pins for ideas that I find online, but I know that I need to start doing it because I am not playing my part in this PLN. Click here for a board for gifted and talented students. Click here for a board for ESL activities.

 

edWeb - edWeb is an online learning community for educators. This is might first week using edWeb. Once you have joined, you can join a variety of communities that are all centered around education. I joined several communities around technology:  Tech Tools for the Classroom: Easy Ideas to Engage Students; Technology in Schools: What, Why and How; and Blended Learning: Extending Classes Online. There are a variety of communities about the needs of our diverse student population. For example, you can join Autism and Visual Learning, Deaf and Hard of Hearing, or Gifted and Talented Education.  The communities offer a variety of resources such as blogs, wikis, discussion boards, handouts, and webinars. You can also create your own community to share with others. This is a great way to communicate with educators from all over the world.

 

Nings - Nings are very similar to edWeb in my eyes because it is the same concept. You can sign up for a variety of different Nings. A Ning is a community that is centered around an educational topic. On the page, you can find a variety of different resources for that topic such as discussion boards, webinars, blogs, and videos. Some Nings worth checking out are  Classroom 2.0 and EFL Classroom 2.0 (for ELL students).