Networking has always been a part of the human experience.  As we work and play, part of what ensures and measures our success is the extent to which we are able to develop a strong and vibrant learning network – and aren’t all networks (work, play, social) about learning?

At last week’s Laptop Institute noted edublogger Will Richardson questioned the educators in attendance if they were teaching MySpace.  I think many of them – especially the administrators in attendance – were a bit taken aback by Will’s challenge.  After all, most schools (including, evidently, the host Lausanne – Will couldn’t access MySpace during his presentation) are blocking My Space and other social networking sites.  Even my own school district – which I have the impression to be more open than most – has recently taken the initiative to filter social networking sites (even though the kids know how to easily get past the filters).

Will, like myself, is an edublogger (we blog about education). This has proven to be the most important single initiative I have taken as a life-long learner in the field of education.  I blog for two reasons;

• it allows me to reflect in a concrete manner – writing my ideas and thoughts down (even if the only dot on my ClustrMap was mine) is a tremendously powerful learning tool.
• blogging has helped me to build a personal learning network.  The many interactions and conversations I have had with other individuals (both bloggers and non-bloggers) has stimulated tremendous personal growth in terms of developing a personal vision and practical skills/understandings that help me do my job as a learning leader in the 21st century.

Let’s get back to networking.  What are kids doing when they connect through My Space, Piczo and Facebook?  Why, they are networking, of course!  They are learning how to connect, negotiate construct and communicate in a 21st century digital world.  So, why are we blocking social networking when it will be the basis for much of our students work and play in the coming years. 

Why aren’t we teaching them the skills involved in networking instead.  Create learning communities where everyone learns the skills of living in the age when the lines between what is “real” and what is “cyber” become increasingly blurred.  Simply put, instead of blocking social networking sites, we need to use these tools to teach our kids about what it means to be a citizen in the digital age.

In addition, as learning leaders, educators need to model this learning.  There is nothing that a 21st century teacher could do that would have more value for them personally than to read/write on the new web.  Building their own personal learning network – whether it’s using blogs or Facebook groups – will allow teachers to begin to understand the potential of these new learning environments.

Oh…and why not share this with your students while you are at it.  Model what it means to be a 21st century learner.  Your students will “get it!”

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