Robert Pearl Starks

Kelley, I noticed you said you are unsure of whether or not Twitter will work. I would challenge you not to think of what works in terms of what tools are used but rather what strategies are used. Imagine someone saying, I'm not sure if telephones would work at a vocational school - the question isn't whether a tool will work, it's for what do you want to use the tool and how will it be used to accomplish that purpose? It may or may not make sense to use for your particular needs, goals, or population but that's why… >>>

@LeWando,

I just responded to your forum posts in the course.  I am excited that you will be using what you learned in the classroom with your students.  I think it will benefit them greatly.  You can find me here in The Lounge if you need support as you start to implement things in your classroom.  Good luck!

LeWando, Heather and Dan are great to follow about professional development. Specifically, Heather focuses on Gen Y professionals and Dan is an expert in personal branding. Jay and Brian are social media experts. Make sure you construct your PLN in a concentrated area. They all have blogs which are great reads and of course, you can follow them on Twitter. If you do, I suggest considering two separate lists so that your social media experts are on one list and your professional development experts are on another. I highly recommend Brian Solis' books - he is one of my favorite… >>>

LeWando, I have personally found that students get excited about the possibilities of social media once they begin to learn about the benefits. When I speak with students, I give real-world examples of how social media has helped people with their career and business goals. I also found that being the example myself got buy-in from students. For instance, if I knew I wanted to convince students that social media provides an opportunity to meet people they would never be able to meet, I might first connect with someone from a known business and see if I could gain an… >>>

Hello LeWando, There are so many things one could do to get students to use social media for professional development. Here are some assignment ideas for you: 1. Have students conduct research on how social media is used for professional development. Instead of writing a paper, you could ask them to write a blog or make a brief PowerPoint and upload to SlideShare.com. Instead of a PowerPoint, you can also introduce students to Prezi for those who want to learn to use a different presentation tool. My point is you can get creative in having them learn about social media… >>>