Research on social networking...

[Mr. A]

Hello to all,

My name is Mark. I've been teaching chemistry and calculus in Louisiana for the past 19 years. I decided to go back to school for my Master's in education (my BS is in chemistry). While at LSU, I am conducting research on the effectiveness of online social networks for learning chemistry. I am a noobie. I don't even have a blog, a facebook page, etc. I'm old-school. While researching, I have come across so much literature and so many sites on this topic. I'm learning much. I am playing with opening my own Ning site called Chemistry Crew at chemcrew.ning.com. I need help. I have amassed pages and pages of research articles for those interested.

Regards,
Mark

[Keri Jones]

Hi Mark-
I am just becoming acquainted with social networking in schools as well so I won't be much help but I understand how overwhelming it is! I thought it was pretty new but in my research, I have found articles that are several years old so it feels like I am playing catch up. I am very interested in what you have found and in what you discover with your chemcrew.ning. I have many articles, videos, etc. marked on delicious.com about social networking if you are interested.

Thanks for your post.
Keri

[Mr. A]

Hey Keri,

Thanks for the encouragement. I can email you those articles if you like. You're right, some of them go back quite a few years. I tried to stick to the more recent articles. There are some interesting ones. My citations are all in APA format, and I've included an abstract for each article. You have to have access to a good library for the complete article. Some can be found online if you have the reference.

Regards,
Mark

[Mary Hricko]

Hi Mark,

I just completed a chapter on the topic for a new book that should be out next year. My focus is on how we can teach w/ social netwroking sites and why so many people are reluctant. I would be interested in your bib list and I can send you mine as well.

[Mr. A]

Hi Mary,

Would email be the best way to send the list? My email is [e-mail]

Regards,
Mark

[Gretchen Rinnert]

Hi Mark,
I am a design researcher and I teach at Kent State University. I use Ning as a teaching tool in my college classes. It works really well, and gets the students to participate. I am beginning to work on a new research project: designing an educational participatory community for math and science classes. I would like to chat with you on how you use or would like to use a social networking site in the classroom. If you would like to collaborate, let me know!

Thanks,
Gretchen

[Mr. A]

Hey Gretchen,

I am in the middle of my research project: Determining the Effect of Asynchronous Online Collaborative Discussions on Learning Chemistry Concepts. When I finish this Master's program at LSU, I plan on getting back into teaching, and I definitely will be using social networking in some capacity. At LSU, they use MOODLE. Have you ever used this format?

Mark