Social Networks

I can remember when Facebook first came out. I remember sitting in one of my French classes at Saginaw Valley State University in the language lab. I was talking to one of my friends in class about this new Facebook thing and what all the fuss was about. We were both very curious, so in class we both set up an account, just to see what was so exciting about this new technology. I would have never thought it would have grown to what it is today when I first signed up all those years ago.

Up until this point, the only social network that I have been a member of has been Facebook. It is not something that I regularly use. Originally, I only signed up to see what it was about. However, it has been a great way to connect to people that I don't see on a regular basis and to re-connect with people that I have not kept in contact with. I also had the opportunity to connect with a foreign exchange student that I hosted at our high school and who hosted me when I travelled abroad. I use it sparingly to connect with friends and send messages to people I know who regularly use the social network. I am not one to post every single thing that is going on in my life at every waking moment.

Despite all the great things Facebook has to offer, Facebook has been quite the topic with regards to educators, if not other professionals. I remember all the warnings given about Facebook while finishing my education courses. They warned us how students could get a lot of personal information from us and how employers were using it as part of the hiring process and keeping tabs on their staff. After that, I continued to have my account, but took all my pictures and personal information off. I also set the settings to private for everything. I still use it today minimally.

My students and peers are all over the social networking scene. They use Facebook and My Space the most frequently. They use these social networks to post pictures, send messages, write journals, among many other things. It is a true glimpse into their daily lives. In a way, it is a digital document that tells the story of their daily life. On the other hand, these social networks have also led to students being bullied and harassed via the internet.

Through this lab I have gained some basic insight into some of the social networking tools available. I hope to continue my exploration into some of these social networking sites. There are many positive ways that these tools can be integrated into the classroom and I am looking forward to finding out which ones will work for my classes and my students. As schools begin to embrace more technology, students will have a greater opportunity for learning and these social networking tools will allow for more access to learning tools and collaboration across the globe.