Soundview Uniserv Council

Chances are, you’re on Facebook, Twitter and/or LinkedIn to share everyday updates with family, friends and colleagues. But did you know there are several social networking websites specifically for the education community?

By joining an educator-focused online community, you have the comfort of knowing you’re interacting with colleagues, as opposed to “friends” who might be students and their parents. You also can benefit from interacting with like-minded peers who understand the obstacles you encounter every day and who can communicate with you on a professional level.

Try adding a few of the following educator-centered networks to your social media collection so you can join colleagues in groups, find and share tried-and-true lesson plans and follow insightful education blogs:

• NEA edCommunities: An online collaborative tool, and part of the Raise Your Hand initiative to engage members, affiliates and community members to improve public education. edCommunities has been developed to help you connect with other educators to address common core standards and other key educational issues and provide resources designed to ensure student success.

• Classroom 2.0: This site is self-described as the social network for “those interested in Web 2.0, Social Media and Participative Technologies in the classroom.” Recent forum topics include discussions about using iPads in education, classroom management and social media tools. Free membership allows access to the forums and more than 900 groups, as well as live webinars and recordings.

• We Colloborate!: With a focus on professional development, members of this site (formerly LearnCentral) each receive a three-seat virtual meeting room and access to webinars. In addition, members can create professional blogs, participate in forums and join groups.

• Thinkfinity.org: Supported by the Verizon Foundation, this free website offers a professional development support community and online tools for educators. Resources can be searched by keyword or state standard. In the Community Hub, you can connect with peers, join discussions, and read blogs and articles.