Teachers and Students Friends Online

So, summer is just about over.  Many hours have been spent getting my classroom together.  Last night I met several of my students and their families at Open House and I'm gearing up for a new year.  In fact, I'm looking quite forward to the 2010-2011 school year.

Tuesday morning, before I leave for my first day of school with students, I'll post a status update wishing all of my Facebook friends, who are beginning high school and college, well.  Yes, you read that correctly, I have accepted "friend requests" on Facebook from former students.  I NEVER ask to be "a friend", but if a FORMER student does request my friendship on Facebook, I accept it.

There is a big debate out there as to whether or not this is appropriate behavior.  I recently read an article, (Should students 'friend' teachers online?) published in the August 10, 2010 issue of the Chicago Tribune, regarding this very issue.  It raises some very interesting questions and does a fine job of establishing both sides of the argument.  As a fan of technology, including all the hardware, software, and Web 2.0 tools, I support the "friending" of students, because ultimately I'm looking to extend the school day past the final bell.  If I can accomplish that goal by embracing technology/social networking, I'm going to do just that.

I hate to sound like a broken record, but I'm entrusted to teach 100+ students each day for 180+ days - I'd like to think I can make good decisions when it comes to using these new tools in a safe,  appropriate, and instructional way.

I leave you with this final thought - a teacher could close the door to his/her classroom everyday of the school year, and I, you, we the public, would have no idea what was going on in there, and most likely we wouldn't question it, either.  However, today we live in a day and age where our teaching and learning can be transparent, we finally have a window into the classrooms.

Where do you want your son/daughter to be - a closed classroom door each day, or a room with a view?

Schools Embrace Social Networking

I'm enjoying a relaxing and fun-filled summer. I'm looking forward to spending more time with family and friends. I've been able to catch up on my work-outs as I look to compete in my third triathlon in early August. My reading list is getting smaller, but at the same time is growing. I keep finding books I want to read - I guess that's a good thing. As I was going through some end of the year emails, I came across several of the NCTE Inbox issues. I caught up on some light reading and came across the following article entitled:

Social Networking Goes to School from the June 14, 2010 publication of Education Week-Digital Directions.  Boy did the article get me thinking.  I guess the first question I have is, how can we make this happen for my students?  I'll admit it - I love my "geek time", and I resisted Facebook, Twitter, Ning, etc. for as long as I could.  However, social networking has tickled my fancy and I've finally jumped into the social networking pool.  I've seen and/or read about the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to social networking.  I understand the apprehension school districts, and educators have with it, but what powerful teaching tools these sites can be.  There is potential for the social networking sites to expand our educational walls and our instructional time.  What school district, or teacher would not want to see learning continue outside the 8:05AM-3:05PM school day?

The "Social Networking Goes to School" article proves it can be done - these sites can be unlocked and school districts can survive. I know it's a great deal to ask, but let's open up the lines of communication and make this happen. I know "with great power - comes great responsibility", but I'm entrusted to teach 100 students a day - year in and year out, trust me with some open access and help me do the job of a 21st Century teacher.