Social Networks--how to stay connected 24/7

Social Networks are nothing new. People have been finding ways to be and stay connected since the dawn of time.Whether we gathered around a campfire, at the matriarch's cave, on the village green, at the harvest field , at the church for communal rituals, or in hordes at the mall, humans have been ingenious in devising ways to share personal information.

The digital natives have created a new form - online social networks for communities of people to share interests and activities.

According to Wikipedia:

Most services are primarily web based and provide a collection of various ways for users to interact, such as chat, messaging, email, video, voice chat, file sharing, blogging, discussion groups, and so on. Social networking has revolutionized the way we communicate and share information with one another in today's society. Various social networking websites are being used by millions of people everyday on a regular basis and it now seems that social networking is a part of everyday life.

The main types of social networking services are those which contain directories of some categories (such as former classmates), means to connect with friends (usually with self-description pages), and recommender systems linked to trust. Popular methods now combine many of these, with MySpace and Facebook being the most widely used in North America,^[1] Bebo^[2], MySpace, Skyrock Blog , Facebook and Hi5 in parts of Europe,^[3], Orkut and Hi5 in South America and Central America,^[4] Friendster, Orkut and CyWorld in Asia and the Pacific Islands.^[5] Vkontakte.ru and LiveJournal in Russia.

Blogs vs Social Networking

I found a great wiki here which outlined some educational perspectives on uses of blogs and social networks. Of special interest is this description of why the social networking sites are so appealing---

Many parents understand the appeal of social networking sites, as they are used to the lengths that youth will go to receive attention--whether positive or negative. Our individual needs to be acknowledged, to be valued, and to be part of a group are heightened during teenage years. Social networking sites provide a fast and effective way to give and receive attention, and not all of it appropriate.

and why kids often behave inappropriately online---

Because technology often provides 1) a perceived buffer from regular consequences and 2) a real buffer from traditional social cues, people will say and do things through technology that they would not do face-to-face. (The scientific term for this is "disinhibition.") If this is apparent with email, instant messaging, and text messaging on cell phones, it seems even more glaring on social networking sites. Youth who do not have any real understanding of the dangers or consequences of certain behavior will often talk openly about sexual issues or post provocative pictures online. While this may sometimes reflect their actual behavior, it is believed that many youth are being provocative in order to gain attention--not realizing how dangerous this actually is.

I found another great resource for parents and educators on Doug Johnson's site--a series of lessons called Raising Good Citizens for a Virtual World an excellent description of the ways we model and teach ethical behaviour, calling forth the best that is in our children and youth. The optimist in me really believes that most people want to treat others the way they'd like to be treated themselves and this golden rule extends to the virtual world. When we take time to share with our children our own beliefs and values we give them something to hang onto as they navigate the tricky road of adolescence.

My favourite article echoes the Bonnie Raitt song I Jazzercized to so many years ago with the title:Let's Give Them Something to Talk About by Ashley Jones. EContent. Wilton: Mar 2008. Vol. 31, Iss. 2; pg. 10, 2 pgs.

Retrieved from Proquest, March 29, 2008, from ABI/INFORM Global database. (Document ID: 1442269341).

This one hit the high spots for me. Jones writes that "humans, by nature, are social beings. Teenagers, by nature, are social machines." She quotes a new study released by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, "Teens and Social Media," which reveals some distinct differences between the ways teens and adults use social networks. She writes:

"90% of online adults are merely lurkers, and only 10% actually contribute to the Web 2.0 movement. In contrast, according to the report's findings, 64% of online teens have participated in a content-creating activity on the internet, up from 57% of online teens in 2004...

Most of the content creation among teens today occurs on social networking websites like the aforementioned Facebook or MySpace. In fact, according to the study, 55% of online teens ages 12-17 have a profile on a social networking site. Mary Madden, a senior research specialist at Pew and one of the writers of this report says, "This survey discusses the conversational portion of social media. We found that teens want feedback, and they can get that feedback on social networking sites".

When it comes to social networking sites, feedback comes in many forms. Wall posts, photo albums, comments, blogging, and video posts are among the most popular, and the report from Pew finds that not only are teens in general using social networking sites to interact, but the type of online interaction varies depending on gender.

Girls have always demonstrated a more aggressive adoption of online messaging in general. Prior to Web 2.0, it was instant messaging, and now it is seen in the forms of writing on friends' walls and blogging. It seems that girls are more focused on verbal expression.

In contrast, teenage boys are posting video files more readily than girls. While the study states that 57% of all online teens watch videos online, teenage boys are twice as likely as girls to post video files (19% versus 10%). "There is a fascination with visual media, especially among boys, today," says Madden.

The endless loop of feedback that teens long for, comes in the area of comments. I can vouch for the importance of this based on the amount of time my 14 year old daughter spends posting and collecting comments. According to the Pew study:

89% of teens who post photos online say that people comment at least "sometimes" about the photos they post, and 37% of those teenagers say that their audience comments on their photos "most of the time." Further, 72% of teen video posters report receiving comments "sometimes," and 24% say that people comment "most of the time."

Another article I read, by Michael Stephens (2007). Social Networking Services. Library Technology Reports, 43(5), 45-51. Retrieved March 30, 2008, from ProQuest Education Journals database. (Document ID: 1341876331), went into a detailed analysis of the strengths and weakness between MySpace.com and Facebook.com, with Facebook coming out ahead on most points, for security, ease of use, design layout, the fact that you are connected to your actual real friends, news updates and messaging. What intrigued me most is that several libraries and librarians are using Facebook in creative ways to interact with students (teens and college students).

Libraries and librarians are adding their presence here, too. Robert J. Lackie, associate professor/librarian at Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, posted at the LibraryGarden blog about his use of Facebook:As a librarian and professor, I joined Facebook last year when I found out that the students in my public speaking class were communicating with each other via that tool, instead of our university's email system. It was amazing how much more open and willing the students were to sharing information about each other and their individual and group projects in our class, via Facebook. They were thrilled that I was willing to join Facebook, and they loved that I used it to find out and celebrate their birthdays, for instance, as they came up during the semester

The author concludes with a list of suggestions for possible ways to use social networking systems for libraries:

* Investigate some library MySpace profiles and create one for your library. Follow the lead of HCPL and PLCMC and create an extension of your library in users' space.

* Create a Facebook page for yourself. Add as much personal information as you'd like. Find colleagues to "friend." Try some of the applications and features. Then, follow the advice of librarians like Brian Mathews and engage your users in a conversation.

* Create a Ning social network for your library staff (or department, branch, agency, etc) and explore the features of a do-it-yourself SNS. Create groups for your library teams. Manage projects and communication channels for library-wide initiatives.

* Create a Ning site for your library users, such as a readers' community, homework or coursework help site, or technology support clearinghouse. Promote it. Invite participation.

These suggestions are quite ambitious, and intended perhaps, more for university and public libraries. A lot of the features of the virtual libraries we explored a few weeks ago are more likely to be useful in the elementary or high school school setting, but the idea of going where the users go is sound. Facebook has only been in existence since 2004. As with any other evolving use of technology, things are bound to change!

I came across tassl.com an application that uses Facebook to keep detailed track of your classes at university, connects you with other members of your classes, and includes contact with your instructors. This makes sense to me since a new university student could feel isolated. Lots of profs are using Facebook at the college level and are delighted with their ability to connect with individual students. At the High School level, use of social network sites is usually blocked--though students are very adept at finding ways to get around this hurdle. In High School, I think that an academic focus while using school computers is most appropriate. Social networking so far, needs to happen from home, with parental interest and monitoring.

Connections

Another piece of the multimedia explorations involves revisiting some Information Literacy essentials. Creating a Voicethread is fun and can demonstrate learning, but it also means students are looking critically at the ways media can be manipulated, because that is what they are doing themselves. Lesley Farmer in I see, I do: Persuasive messages and visual literacy. MultiMedia & Internet@Schools suggests a variety of activities for students to engage in that will help them flex their critical thinking muscle. For example, students can:

• manipulate images using photo editing to present both pro and con sides of an issue
• videotape their neighbourhood and then compare the different subject matter and perspective chosen by each film-maker
• look at on-line sites and evaluate the sources by considering what perspective most benefits the creator
• download raw footage from a rally or protest and then use that footage to target a particular audience (e.g. seniors, single parents, students).

Mary Burns, in A Thousand Words: Promoting Teachers' Visual Literacy Skills, MultiMedia & Internet@Schools reminds us that:

Both still and moving images ...serve as powerful shorthand for communication. These images are concise. Images are not bound by language. Their very imprecision renders them more evocative and open to subjective interpretation...schools must begin to introduce concepts of visual literacy and methods for understanding, applying, analyzing, and synthesizing visual information.

Using multimedia applications is appealing, understanding the power of this tool is essential.

Voicethreads victory!

I really enjoyed poking around on the Voicethreads site. I saw lots of examples here of educators and students using this medium in exciting ways. Technofeeb that I am, I really appreciated the simplicity of the whole experience. Basically, if I can figure it out anyone could. I think Steve Muth and Ben Popell were thinking of me when they decided to use the amazon.com site as an example---2 or 3 clicks and you've succeeded in your quest! The site allows you to create something with layered complexity, but the new user is their guide.

What's a Voicethread anyway? offers some great examples of what kinds of things are possible with Voicethreads. Some examples:

• multiple family members' comments on a vintage family photograph
• a young artist's (age 5?) description of a drawing he'd made
• a teacher's lecture and slides,
• a school project media mash up of Catcher in the Rye,
  
• a demonstration of how to do the Hustle
• a book review by several students
• a comparison of a book and a movie exploring the strengths of each
  

This list will undoubtedly grow as more people interact with this flexible format. It is easy to see every department and curriculum area finding useful applications for Voicethread projects. Voicethreads could be used in Math, Science, Home Ec, Woodworking, P.E.-- any area where a demonstration is used either to help with instruction or to demonstrate understanding. Distance learners would also benefit. In fact, part of the reason I found this easy to use was because of the tutorials that showed exactly which button to press to carry out an action.

The One Minute Voicethread gave simple enough instructions that even I managed the set up and creation of my masterpiece Swirly Sarah. Okay, it's not a masterpiece but it is a start. For someone who has never even attempted a powerpoint presentation, not too bad!

Jumpcut Jaunt

My first question is what the heck is a jumpcut?

According to Wikipedia:

the name is derived from the jumpcut, a video artifact that results from the splicing together of two separate parts of the same shot, or similar sections from two different shots".

I still do not feel very enlightened and this does not bode well for my adventures with video. Jumpcut.com boggles me from the beginning. I am not someone with a little stockpile of movies that I'm keen to edit and re-form. I made the attempt however, because I know this is something that students do love. As kids who've grown up watching music videos, they see movie making as an accessible artform. It is also a natural format for creative expression and demonstration of learning--very suitable to the world of education.

One of the things I liked about Jumpcut.com, (a common feature of the Web 2.0 world) is the emphasis on sharing--if you make your videos and photos public, others can use them to make movies of their own or to enhance their own creations. Joining jumpcut.com is easy, and they do their best to make the instructions clear.

Alas that wasn't quite enough for me.... At this point I just explored the site and found lots of images that were unappealing and inappropriate for students. It is my understanding that there is movie-making software aplenty that would be more useful in a school setting. When I recover from my technology trauma after this course is over I will learn how to work with video---probably engaging some experienced student as my guide. Giving a student an opportunity to teach me is pedagogically sound, right?

Multimedia Today

To begin we start with Wikipedia's definition of multimedia--

media that utilizes a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun (a medium with multiple content forms) or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which only utilize traditional forms of printed or hand-produced text and still graphics. In general, multimedia includes a combination of text, audio, still images, animation, video, and interactivity content forms. Multimedia may be broadly divided into linear and non-linear categories. Linear active content progresses without any navigation control for the viewer such as a cinema presentation. Non-linear content offers user interactivity to control progress as used with a computer game or used in self-paced computer based training. Non-linear content is also known as hypermedia content.

This definition is quite a bit broader than the mixed media presentation I know from the art world where a variety of art forms are mixed together, e.g. dance performance combined with visual images and music, or an installation piece at an art gallery that might combine film or traditional paintings with soundscapes. We've known for a long time that the artist's statement has a stronger impact on the viewer as more senses come into play. So, it is too, in today's world of multimedia.

The big difference between a mixed media presentation of old, and some of today's multimedia experiences, is the addition of two powerful new tools-- interactivity and hypermedia links.
The addition of a viewer (or learner) controlled aspect to the experience moves learning into a brave new world that is self-directed.

Of particular interest is the ways that educators and students are using multimedia creations in the Web 2.0 world to create some amazing experiential documents. Document is perhaps not quite the right word, because the most interesting feature of all is the interactive aspect. Using Voicethreads or Jumpcut people can easily connect still images, sound, animation, video and allow viewers to respond with either spoken or written comments.


As Joyce Valenza reminds us in:

Top School Library Things to Think About in 2008

"The end-product of research and inquiry should be communication of knowledge. And the options for communication exploded this year. ... We can reform PowerPoint for presentation and we can explore a wealth of other creative Web-based presentation options. .... VoiceThread is just one powerful option with nearly no learning curve."


I like this introduction from the VoiceThread site:

‘Participation is not optional’

A VoiceThread allows every child in a class to record audio commentary about the ideas and experiences that are important to them. Whether it’s an event, a project, or a milestone, children can tell their story in their own voice, and then share it with the world. For teachers, a VoiceThread offers a single vessel to capture and then share all the diverse personalities of an entire class. A VoiceThread can be managed with little effort, creating an heirloom that can be shared by students, parents, and educators alike. You can hear the pride and excitement in their voices as the students “publish” and archive their work. Behind every photo, drawing, or project, is at least one story, and often many more. VoiceThreads offer a simple way to capture and share them. This act of ‘publishing’ a creation which can then be seen all the way from Cheyenne to Shanghai, strongly reinforces the message we try to send to our children everyday, that their work is great, and worthy of the world’s attention.

I listened to a podcast at the Technology Shopping Cart site where co-founders of VoiceThread , Steve Muth and Ben Popell described the intent of their creation, and further provided details of Ed.VoiceThread , their new offering for educators that includes many new safeguards put in place so that this tool can be used with accountability. They describe their idea of letting students get their ideas out into the wide world, the global village---to receive feedback and enhance learning.

"The Ed.VoiceThread network is a worldwide community where safety is built upon a foundation of accountability. All users are known users, responsible for their content and behavior. Access is restricted to K-12 educators, students and administrators, and all content is created exclusively by registered members of the community. Web services offering free accounts are blocked in many school districts because of child online protection policies, and are not eligible for federal eRate monies. For this reason, there are no free Ed.VoiceThread accounts and student email addresses are not required. Educators must pay a one time $10 verification fee to become a member of the community, with no recurring costs."

Another feature that I liked on the Ed.VoiceThread is that a student's work can be saved from year to year:

As long as a school or class remains a subscriber to the network we continue to store student work indefinitely. Because our pricing is not based on 'seats', log-ins, or users, every year you can add new student users without deleting the old ones. This is critical to the goal of building year-over-year student portfolios.

For my purposes the free version of VoiceThreads was fine, though Muth and Popell discussed the fact that Voicethreads is often blocked in schools. Both the tech folks and administration need to see the value before changes are made to the system. Ed.VoiceThread offers a secure alternative for an affordable price. For more details and comparisons check About VoiceThreads .

pb wiki-Is pb wiki easy?

Wikis in Plain English

lee lefevre's great explanation