Ulster ConnectionsSocial Networking Sites/Facebook

Topics covered today

Overview of social networking Facebook/Bebo – what your students are using Introducing Ulster Connections

(UU’s own social network)

What is social networking? (1) Commoncraft video Simple explanation in

visual format

What is social networking? (2)

What is social networking? (3)

A conversation, powered by social software

People-centred technology

Popular social networking services

What your students are using

Facebook – Your profile All about you Photo of yourself Your interests Work/education history Your likes and dislikes ‘Mini-feed’ of recent

activity on your page Be aware of identity fraud

Sharing information with your network

Sending messages in Facebook Via public ‘Wall’ on your

page (see example, left) Through private messages Comment on other

people’s photos or videos

Sharing multimedia on Facebook

Upload and share your photo albums

Share your music tastes Watch YouTube videos

Facebook Applications Option to add ‘Facebook

Applications’ Free for users Designed for amusement

or educational purposes Quizzes, games, news

feeds and more

Bebo homepage

Bebo – your profile

Customising Bebo with ‘skins’

Bebo and video/music content

Video partners – CBS, MTV and more

Band pages – bands promote their music

Competing with sites like MySpace - showcases new artists before they become mainstream

Aiming for youth entertainment market

Privacy issues (1) – Public access

Privacy issues (2) – Make it private

Bebo - Make your profile public or private (one click) Public – anyone can view/search for you Private – only authorised friends see your page Comments on public pages still searchable

Facebook’s privacy settings – more complex – edit separate sliders to define privacy

Facebook ALWAYS keep a copy of your details

Privacy issues (3) - Visibility ‘Poke’ – electronic nudge Recipient gets told you

have contacted them Your profile is public to

recipient for one week (even if it’s usually private)

Intellectual property rights - Facebook

Intellectual property rights - Bebo

Bebo can reproduce your content through site

Your profile could be featured on homepage (see left)

Your video/music/content might be featured on Bebo

Make your profile private (if you don’t want others to see your content)

Introducing Ulster Connections

What is Ulster Connections? Social network Exclusive to the University Add friends Be part of a community Upload

files/photos/resources Keep a blog View aggregated media

Ulster Connections and privacy

Ulster Connections and community

Suggestions for using Connections

How will social networking influence education?

Already influencing politics, traditional media and advertising

Sheer ubiquity will compel educators to get up to speed

Educators still trying to figure out how to best use the technology

Some current educational uses Language learning social networks (Palabea,

Lingro, Livemocha Subject-specific networks – Nature Network Social network groups to support learning –

Stanford, Teaching & Learning with Facebook (need account with Facebook to view)

Pre-application information – University of Oxford Forums for groupwork/collaboration

How to use Ulster ConnectionsSee Ulster Connections> Karen Virapen> Files (in right hand menu)

Help files