Educational Networking Fun Ways to Communicate in the 21 st Century By: Angela Garza

Networking To start, let's broaden the definition of “networking” to simply using technology to transport information (Vietzke, 1998).

Networking Electronic communications networks are changing how people live and work in every state. Internet access is prevalent, e-commerce is growing and more government services are accessible online to the public. Networks also are playing an essential role in improving and expanding access to education (Matthews, 2004).

Networking We will discuss: – Two methods of networking –How and why they are useful –Implementation –Other Available Resources

Mary Bob Tom SallyJoe Bill YOU Reasons to Network Networking allows for insight from everyone

Two Methods of Networking 1.PBS Teachers 2.Facebook – Active Learning

Two Methods of Networking PBS Teachers ers/ ers/ Offline Activity Lesson Plan Online Professional Development Digital Service Save Resources Talk to other teachers Engage your local station Facebook – Active Learning Group group.php?gid= http:// group.php?gid= Internet and Technology Share ideas about Active Learning Discussions Photos Students use Facebook

PBS Teachers PBS Teachers allows for me, as a secondary mathematics teacher, to implement new and creative ideas in the classroom. The site allows for networking among teachers of all areas. Teachers are able to save useful resources, discuss learning activities, access professional development, engage in learning new cross- curricular lesson plans, and much more.

PBS Teachers cont. The activity link below gives a lesson plan that I can incorporate in my mathematics classroom that allows for my students to reiterate the importance of math by learning where their paycheck is going /preview/ 7343/preview/ PBS Teachers provides many useful resources such as this for various subject areas.

Facebook – Active Learning Facebook has many educational groups available. In the Active Learning group, I am able to join discussions on various ways of providing students with active learning. I am able to post photos, post on the wall, and to the discussion board. The biggest advantage to using a network such as Facebook, is that students often use Facebook for social networking. Understanding what relates to our students, helps with real-life classroom delivery.

Networking Networking is imperative to education According to Cooke (2007), we should, “Explore social networking sites. This allows… members to ‘see and try out the kinds of creative communications and collaboration tools that students are using’ so decisions can be based on real experiences.”

Networking Most of all…the importance of learning to network will help close the gap. According to Bradley (2009),The 2009 CCSSE indicate that age gaps remain for some types of technology, notably the newer social networking tools such as Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter. We have to close the gap by using many of the resources our students use.

Other Available Networking Resources There are many available networking resources. The following link provided by Educational Networking lists various networking sites for educational use. – +Networkshttp:// +Networks

References Bradley, P. (2009). CCSSE Finds Increasing Use of Social Networking Tools. Community College Week, 22(7), 5. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database. Cook, G. (2007). Study: Social networking can work for K-12 educators. American School Board Journal, 194(9), 6-7. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database. Facebook. Retrieved January 24, 2010, from Facebook Active Learning website: Mathews, J.B. (2004, April). Why statewide educational networks are important to state and educational leaders. Southern Regional Educational Board. Retrieved on November 17, 2009, from PBS Teachers. Retrieved January, 24, 2010, from PBS Teachers website: Vietzke, R. (1998). Consider educational applications then networking.. Curriculum Administrator, 33(6), 4. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.