Social Networking Sites

LinkedIn is a business oriented social networking site launched in 2003, with membership in excess of 75 million registered users. The purpose of this SNS is for maintaining and expanding trusted business contacts (individually and corporately). Competitors in this niche include Viadeo (30 million registered users) and Xing (9 million registered users), with LinkedIn leading the pack. LinkedIn offers many attractive features and at some point I may open an account to connect with several of my colleagues who have repeatedly invited me to join the SNS.

Refelctions on Hargadon's Classroom 2.0 Article

In response to Steve Hargadon’s Classroom 2.0 article, I’m impressed with several aspects of this article and will comment on tow in particular. Specifically, engagement trumps topic with topic potentially promoting student engagement with WEB 2.0 providing more opportunities for sharing and discussion. Obviously, we are obliged to present course content, but content can only be assimilated through active student engagement in the learning process. Opportunities for student engagement should be interesting and varied in approach in order to maximize learning. Another topic of interest is that a network must fulfill some compelling need. Moreover, there needs to be a sound rationale to utilize a social network for learning. Along this line, implementation of a social network for learning should solve a problem in ways not otherwise possible. Social networks for learning purposes potentially provides an interesting approach for student involvement in the learning process.

Utilizing the Class Wiki

Effective utilization of the course wiki is essential to our learning, so take some time to familiarize yourself with this dynamic tool. We'll be using the course wiki to disseminate lecture notes and encourage you, an all of your classmates, to elaborate on these notes to enhance your learning. You're encouraged to refine these class notes from our lectures, discussion, readings, and related life experiences. These class notes serve as a vital resource, which you'll be allowed to refer to during each of the examinations. Additionally, we'll be utilizing our course wiki for group projects and your reflective journal.