Stanley,
Expectations, expectations, expectations! Pressure isn't a bad thing; Earth's pressure gives us diamonds. :) Students need to see us modeling the skills and dispositions we want to see in our students.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Where does an undergraduate, especially in the first semester or two, get the critical skills to identify the trustworthy in such a sea of information?
Being just a few degrees away from bad information as well as good, puts pressure on students' critical ability (Bloom's last 3 elements. How does the instructor respond to that?
Amy,
I am going to share this with my students and I hope you do too. Social networking is vital to professional development and networking. We have to educate are students about the professional aspect of the medium.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I hadn't realized the power of LinkedIn until I ran an ad looking to hire an employee. I was amazed at the response. On the one hand it was great to get so many inquiries and resumes. On the other hand, it would have been better if a geographic filter could have been added, since I received inquiries from people all over the country and we really wanted to limit the search regionally. I assume LinkedIn is working out the kinks, but in the meantime, it is a great professional tool.
Dear Hopeless Dreamer,
You are right. First the millenials believe they can say whatever they want because "we have free speech". This is problematic on so many fronts. We now make all of our freshmen take a professional development session to "professionalize" their social media. We also have all our business students create a professional LinkedIn account because of so many networking opportunities it provides.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
That's a really good question, and I'm not sure I have a definitive answer for this, however one thing I am discovering is that more and more social networkers are using the social media for professional connections, hence using their real names as opposed to pre-Facebook, when they used "handles" – made-up cute names and numbers. Now with the change in focus to a more serious format, I think that it will spell the end-days for "trolls" who hide behind fake names and cause trouble. This seems to be fading –– or am I a hopeless dreamer?
Richard,
It is true. How do we make that case to our students and have them understand that facebook can impact their professional lives.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Simply that social networking demonstrates how interconnected we all are as a society. The old adage of "it's a small world" really rings true when we see how easily we connect to others through one or two contacts. Facebook is an excellent example of this.
Heather,
Isn't it amazing how "small" the world is! We have to make sure students understand the power and the purpose of social networking.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
The six degrees of separation in social networking, means that I ask my friends and they ask their friends, and so on and then before you know it you and others know lots of people from all over that you would not have known.
Madhuchanda,
You are so right. I heard of new companies who now collect information within social media sights and give reports to employers. Much like a credit bureau. They go back about seven years on average. Isn't that scarey?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Social networking sites are here to stay. These are the most convenient ways to stay connected and ‘plugged in’ to what is happening with family, friends and acquaintances around the world! Technology is marvelous if used correctly.
Regardless of the varying views about safety, etc., social networking sites allow us to connect any time of the day and night with anyone who has access to a computer and the internet! Users just have to use common sense. Anything shared remains ‘forever’. There is no way to erase comments / thoughts once posted at these sites.
Karina,
I remind students the world can be a very small place with technology. It is amazing how many people connect to you from someone you both know. This is the power of social media for professional use.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Social Networking is a wonderful toll to connect students leaving in the different parts of the world to share their unique experiences and best practices to find solutions to number of issues discussed in the classrooms. The concept of "six degrees of separation" explains that anyone on the planet can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of people who have something in common and online learning via social networking is a great example of that concept.
Martin,
What a great post. I know others who teach in the hospitality industry and they rely heavily on the social media for a variety of things. It is so important to understand the connectiveness in the industry that can be both a opportunity and a challenge.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Within my world (the hospitality industry), the 6 degrees of separation and social media are becoming a major focus within HR. Entire social media policies have been formed in light of what team members are posting about the workplace. The 6 degrees comes in, because most don't understand that no matter what we are only separated by six people and someone that knows someone will see your post and share with the top brass. Before you know it you have been separated from your job!
Andrea,
OK, I am copying your citation and using it. I hope you will make your students read this! I know my students since I am sharing this.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
According to Assistant Director of Public Relations Lisa Chau "Frigyes Karinthy's "six degrees of separation" concept suggests that any two people are connected by six steps of connection or fewer. Mark Granovetter's "theory on the strength of weak ties" advocates focusing on weak ties—people farther out on one's networks—for greater mobility. The intersection of these two models of thought can be molded into a powerful strategy for leveraging relationships, especially when compounded with social media" US News & World Report, 2012).
I have personally utilized social media websites such as Linkedin.com to further my network to involve global contacts. While it is nice to have a strong network nationally, the world is more vast these days and it is nice to know it is easier to network to find jobs abroad.
Chau, L. (2012). Economic Intelligence. U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved March 23, 2014 from, http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/economic-intelligence/2012/07/13/networking-social-media-and-the-six-degrees-of-seperation
Shannon,
I agree with you, shouldn't we educate them where they are? There in social media. We need to help students develop their professional persona in social media. This is a way to provide real world application.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
