Social+Networking

=Social Networking: Engaging in Our Online Learning Community=

Overview
Face-to-face workshops and institutes like this one provide invaluable opportunities to connect with colleagues you may not have the opportunity to communicate and/or collaborate with during the normal course of your day. These face-to-face encounters can help to build connections for a strong online knowledge-sharing community. Online communities can then be used to continue conversations and collaborations initiated in person. The NC 1:1 Ning provides an online community structure but the real potential of the community grows and deepens as members develop their own vision for what they want the community to be, identify the types of knowledge that will be useful for members, and determine what roles members of the community will play. During this session, you will have an opportunity to talk with colleagues at your table about the ways in which you can build a vibrant online community that will provide ongoing support and inspiration as you move forward in planning for and implementing a learning technology program at your school.

Objectives

 * Develop a vision for an active 1:1 knowledge sharing community that will serve your needs as ITFs or MCs who are implementing learning technology programs.
 * Identify the kinds of knowledge the community would like to share, develop and/or document.
 * Determine what formal and informal roles people will play in the community.
 * Investigate the practice of blogging.
 * Identify the characteristics of an effective, interesting, and informative blog.

Part 1: Building a Foundation for Our Online Community (45 minutes)
Converse with colleagues at your table about what is needed to create an online community that will serve your needs as ITFs or MCs who are implementing 1:1 programs. Use the discussion prompts below as starting points for your conversations. There are three discussion prompts: (1) Defining our Domain; (2) Specific Knowledge Needs; and (3) Member Roles. Take about 15 minutes to discuss each prompt. Each prompt below corresponds to a discussion post in the TLI 2010 group on the NC 1:1 Ning. //**Have someone at your table reply to each of the three discussion posts during the time alloted for this activity.**//

**Discussion Post #1: //Defining Our Domain//**
With the group at your table, define the domain of knowledge you care about as Instructional Technology Facilitators or Media Coordinators. Consider the following questions in your discussion:


 * What topics and issues do we really care about?
 * How are these topics and issues connected to our schools' 1:1 implementation strategy?
 * What are the open questions and the leading edge of our domain?

Have one person from your table go to the TLI 2010 group on the NC 1:1 Ning and post a reply to the //Defining our Domain //discussion thread that addresses the questions above. "dp1" and "tli2010"

**Discussion Post #2: //Specific Knowledge Needs//**
With the group at your table, identify the specific knowledge you, as members of this online community, would like to develop, share, and maintain. Consider the following questions in your discussion:
 * What kinds of knowledge can we share, develop, and/or document in this online community that would support or inspire us in our work?
 * How should we organize the knowledge to reflect the practice of members?

Have one person from your table go to the TLI 2010 group on the NC 1:1 Ning and post a reply to the //Specific Knowledge Needs//discussion thread that addresses the questions above. "dp2" and "tli2010"

Discussion Post #3: //Member Roles//
With the group at your table, determine what roles people will play in the community. Consider the following questions in your discussion:
 * What roles will people play in this community? Roles might include moderating the ITF or MC group within the NC 1:1 Ning for a specified time period (TBD by the group); blogging for the community about issues of importance to the group; being a pot-stirrer by raising provocative questions for community members to consider or being a behind-the-scenes linker -- someone who links members to resources and/or other members who share concerns or offer complementary expertise.
 * Knowing the members of a community makes it easier to ask for help or support. How can we develop interpersonal relationships with members of our community?

Have one person from yourtable go to the TLI 2010 group on the NC 1:1 Ning and post a reply to the //Member Roles //discussion thread that addresses the questions above. "dp3" and "tli2010"

**What are others saying?**
After you have replied to the three discussion threads, take a few minutes to read what other groups have posted under: Defining Our Domain; Specific Knowledge Needs; and Member Roles. In what ways do the ideas posted by other groups converge or diverge from the ideas posted by your group?

Continue the conversation
Based on conversations generated from the three threads, what new questions have emerged? Individually or as a group, continue the conversations with replies to questions that have been raised, by adding or asking for clarification, providing information, and/or offering additional thoughts to the conversation.

Part 2: Blogging as a Form of Social Networking (30 minutes)
Among the many opportunities that online communities afford is the opportunity to blog. Blogging gives members of a community new ways to discover what they have in common, to learn about other members' areas of expertise, and to share experiences and resources. In Part 2 of this session we will explore the ways in which blogging can provide opportunities for ongoing professional learning and peer support and we will identify the characteristics of effective blogs.


 * Introduction to social networking by Bethany Smith**


 * Video**


 * Q & A**

What is a Blog?
//A blog (an abridgment of the term web log) is a website, usually maintained by an individual, with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse chronological order.// via Wikipedia There are two main ways that we discuss blogging: 1) Blogging as a personal reflective experience for teachers 2) Blogging with your students Today, we will be focusing on the art of blogging as teachers, and how using blogging as a reflective practice can not only increase your own internal awareness of issues, but also act as a way to connect with others within a community

Creating a Community
One of the advantages of blogging within a Ning community is that you are already surrounded by other like-minded individuals. In our NC 1:1 Ning there are users that have been implementing 1:1 for a few years and those that have just started. There is no need to "re-invent the wheel," but it can be hard to communicate what has worked and why, and that is where blogging can be a huge asset. It is a great place to start sharing your success and triumphs, as well as learn from others experience.

What Makes a Good Blog Post?
We value good writing in our students, and we should value it in ourselves. Blog posts should be more than a regurgitation of facts. They should be insightful and meaningful reflections on the subject matter. A good blog post should not only be reflective of an activity or a decision, but should also provide background information surrounding the post. This can be done by adding multimedia or hyperlinks within the text that expands upon the original content of the post. Rubrics are a great way to break down the parts of a good blog post.

Blog Time! (optional)
Ready to try your hand at blogging within the NC 1:1 online community? There are two ways to create a blog post: (1) Click on the "My Page" tab in the horizontal bar running along the top of the community site. Once you are on your page, click on "Blog Posts" in the column on the left hand side of the page. This will take you to a page entitled "My Blog." Click on "Add a Blog Post" to create a new blog post. (2) You can also get to "My Blog" by clicking on the "Blogs" tab in the horizontal bar running along the top of the community. Then click on "My Blog" and followed by "Add a Blog Post." (3) Consider blogging about...
 * your "ah-ha's" from today's experience;
 * lingering questions or concerns about classroom management or Internet safety;
 * ways in which you plan to alter your support for teachers based on your experiences today;
 * a success story from your school;
 * a ITF or MC "horror story" from your school (and how it was resolved); or
 * the top three things other members can ask you about (related to 1:1!)

Be sure to give your blog post a catchy title that entices readers to check it out and gives them a hint of the content. (4) Please be sure to tag your blog posts with "tliblog" and "tli2010." "tliblog" and "tli2010".

Homework

 * 1) Read discussion posts and blog posts created by fellow participants from the Technology Leaders Institute.
 * 2) Choose at least one blog post to comment on. Create a thoughtful and reflective reply to the blog post ("I agree." is not a thoughtful or reflective reply!)
 * 3) If you have not already done so, update your "My Page" on the NC 1:1 Ning. You can upload a photo, edit your profile, and/or change the appearance of your page to better reflect your unique personality. There is a video on the main page of the community that provides instructions for uploading a photo to your page.
 * 4) Friend one or more participants that you met today at the Institute. In the Members section of the community you can search for members by name. Click on a member's name to go to their page. Below their picture you can click on "Add as Friend" to send them a friend request. Feel free to friend FI staff and DPI staff as well!


 * Content for Part 1 is based in part on the work of [|Etienne Wenger, Nancy White, and John Smith].