Published by michael on 03 Feb 2009 at 04:29 pm
Harnessing the Power of Social Media to Increase Community of Learning in Higher Education
I’ve been invited to present at the “Virtual Worlds and Interpretive Communities: Opportunities for Global Dialogue” international conference hosted by the Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies and the Sammy Ofer School of Communication held on February 16-17 in the Greenspun Hall Auditorium. Following is the title and description of my presentation:
Harnessing the power of social media to increase community of learning in higher education
Marketers have learned that simply publishing information about a product is no longer effective—consumers want to feel part of something; they want to belong to a community. These same concepts apply to higher education. Media tools like blogs, microblogs, folksonomies, and wikis have revolutionized the educational landscape and helped usher in an era of collaboration and camaraderie among students.
I’d like to be able to discuss how social media has the potential to increase the sense of connectedness and enjoyment that students (and faculty) feel when participating in online learning.
This train of thought comes as a direct result of my recent experiences exploring social media.
At a recent local blogging conference (WordCamp: Las Vegas), I heard blogging strategist and presenter Liz Strauss say:
“I don’t care what you know, until I know that you care.”
While I know she was speaking in reference to marketing and customer loyalty, I couldn’t help but consider the implications for education.
I was also struck by a re-tweeted quote from Shane Ginsberg, executive director of marketing agency Organic:
“Social Media is a party. Brands are the narcs in the corner taking notes.”
This makes sense to me. Social media networks seem to fill a basic need for people to connect with each other and belong to a community. Sensing a profit potential, entrepreneurs capitalize on the gathering.
But where does education fit into the equation? I had to think about that. I think I’d like to append Ginsburg’s quote:
“Social Media is a party. Brands are the narcs in the corner taking notes. Education is the quiet guy at the party…trying to figure out how to turn this experience into a learning opportunity.”
I’d love to hear your feedback on these concepts. I’m especially interested in any research that has been done on social media and its effect on education. Please feel free to comment!
Tags: education, social media
Stevie on 06 Feb 2009 at 6:10 pm #
Great post, Michael!
The collaborative nature of social media fits perfectly with the cohort Gen Y. Interesting that they are both coming of age at the same time.
About the party, the possibilities are mind blowing so maybe Education is the guy who is a little stunned! Education will catch up.
Sebastien on 10 Feb 2009 at 2:55 pm #
Very interesting post Michael. I agree that social media is a party however some people are better at partying than others.
A few quiet guys at the party seemed to have figured out how to turn the party into a learning opportunity.
There is Scholarz.net which lets academics share information and WePapers.com which is an online study group. Both these sites have social networking features which open communication between students and make learning easier.
Hope the presentation goes well, would love to hear it.