YES! I get to talk about Facebook!! Now I must admit I resisted social networking for a while when Facebook first became popular. I did not really see the point of it, but in the last few years I have been rather addicted to it. I think educators need to know how social networking works because it is a huge part of society. So many people have a Facebook or Twitter account. As teachers it is likely that we will run into Facebook posts that aren't so nice; social networking can be positive or negative depending on how it is used. I was watching a special on Facebook one time and there was a story about a teacher who got fired because of a post she put on there about some of the parents. Educators that have Facebook pages need to be careful using the site and their students may even "friend" them on Facebook. Social networking is fun to do for personal reasons, but I do not see its usefulness in the classroom or school setting. There are hundreds of applications on Facebook that can be distracting and take students away from productive website in learning. I would like to know what other people might see as a good use of social networking sites in classrooms and schools. I just don't see any!
There was not any new insights I got about Facebook since I am an avid user of this site and play around with games and such all the time. I did however learn something new from the Twitter tutorial. I had heard that Twitter was the equivalent of updating a status on Facebook (and that was all it was). After watching the tutorial I realized it is more than that. People can choose whose posts come into their feed, whereas on Facebook everyone you are friends will comes through. Even though you can hide posts on Facebook and make it so certain people's posts are rejected (or just delete them from your friends list), I like that Twitter does that. Both sites allow you to share links and thoughts on different subjects, and another awesome thing about these sites is that they can lead to reconnecting with people from your past. I think that is one of my favorite things about having a Facebook; I have been able to find and chat with people online that I haven't seen since elementary or middle school. These are the friends that moved away or ones that I moved away from and I love being able to catch up with them. I also like "friending" new people that I meet so I can see what they are up to as well. It allows you to stay connected with family, coworkers, and old friends. My closest friend at home Colleen is not a talk on the phone kind of person and neither am I. Our prime sources of communicating when I am not in MA are texting and Facebooking each other. It is a wonderful thing!!!
I cannot think of anything I dislike about either of these sites. As long as they are used carefully and not to vent your frustrations (that could get you in trouble) they are far more beneficial and enjoyable. Facebook just has more features that's all. Twitter seems pretty simple. Here is the link to my Facebook page if anyone wants to take a look. http://www.facebook.com/alexis.wylie
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