Social Networking Can Be Professional Too

This week I want to introduce you to the concept of Professional Learning Networks (PLN). Of course, I am surrounded by colleagues who can support my work, answer questions, etc. But due to the miracle of social networking and tools like Ning, Twitter, and others, I can now reach beyond the resources of my classroom, school, or district to connect with other like-mined teachers. I have only taken baby-steps myself in contributing to PLNs, but when I do, I find the results amazing. As mentioned above, one way to network professionally is through a Ning. We'll focus on what a Ning is this week.

 A Ning is essentially a social network (like Facebook or MySpace) with a particular focus. Anyone can "build" a Ning (which costs money now) using the Ning platform, then others can join it as members. Some Nings have 9 members, others have 380,000 members. Think of it this way--Facebook is for EVERYONE. A particular Ning is only for people who share a common interest like the Twilight Saga, or teaching about 9/11. I belong to the Classroom 2.0 Ning. It's targeted to people who have jobs like mine and teachers who are interested in educational technology, in particular the use of Web 2.0 tools. In fact, I just took advantage of the expertise that lies beyond my office walls by posting a discussion topic to the forum of the Classroom 2.0 Ning. Over the past two days I've received lots of information about my question and learned more than I could have had I just done the research myself.

So, this week's "assignment" is to do some poking around on Ning. Go to their website, then type in a topic of interest to you in the upper right hand corner. See what you find. Think about joining. (You don't have to join, you just have to think about it.) Joining a Ning generally doesn't cost a thing. When choosing one to join, look for how many members the Ning boasts. Generally, those with greater numbers have a more active membership, but that's not always the case. Maybe there really are only 120 people who share your interest in llama breeding and raising, and those 120 people are probably pretty passionate about it. You can also tell how active a Ning is by just poking around. When was the last forum question posted? Did anyone respond? If the question was posted more than a few weeks ago, and nobody has responded, you're probably looking at a fairly lifeless Ning. The immediate connection to other members is one of the major benefits of a Ning to me--I can post my question on a Wednesday morning, and by Thursday afternoon there have been nearly 30 replies. I don't have to wait until I see these people at the next tech conference. I can network virtually. It's awesome.

You can start with a topic that is of interest to you (wine tasting, perhaps) or you can just go to the Classroom 2.0 Ning and visit their forum page. You won't be able to reply to a discussion unless you become a member, but you might learn a thing or two while you're there.

When you're done, come back here and just tell us about your experience. Do you think finding and joining a PLN or personal interest Ning might be in your future? Or maybe you're on the cutting edge already--do you already use a social networking tool (like a Ning or Twitter) for this purpose? Tell us about it!  (Don't forget, if you want to earn clock hours, make sure to include your first and last name AND (CH) after your name so we give you credit.)