Nings! (Thing 2)

I couldn't tell you exactly what a Ning is or how it's different from a blog. My best guess is that a Ning is a social network, similar to Facebook, but used for professional dialogue rather than personal. I belong to the English Companion Ning, which I find incredibly helpful. Basically English teachers at all levels post discussions on topics concerning, well, English (naturally). I started a profile there to post discussions about launching Harkness discussions in my Honors/AP Literature classroom. Here's the link if you care to check it out: http://www.englishcompanion.ning.com/profile/GayleBrooks

Sometimes I get "lost" in the Ning because once I search for something I'm interested in researching, I find myself clicking on all sorts of interesting topics. Next thing I know, it's an hour or two later! The Ning also forges new connections for me in the English teaching world.

I guess one thing that I still need to work out is how to use blogging or these professional social networks with students. One way that I think could work is to set up a social network for my classes. Since my students are relatively academically motivated, I can see some of them using the network for discussion and help in certain classes. Of course that might open up a whole other slew of problems with inappropriate posts, irrelevant posts, etc.