Online Perspective (04-05-09)

Back in November of last year, I joined the 21st Century. It was then, after attending the Kansas Association of Elementary School Principals conference, that I took the social networking plunge, and joined the online community, Facebook. I did this after listening to a presenter from the National Association of Elementary School Principals. He asked for any of us who were currently on Facebook, My Space, or any other social networking site to raise our hands.

I immediately felt embarrassed. I have always considered myself to be fairly tech savvy, to be knowledgeable about whatever new tech phenomena was sweeping the world. Yet, when the presenter put the challenge to me, I could not raise my hand. To my relief, I noted that few in the room could either.

The presenter was a bit shocked and surprised. He had asked his question in an off-hand way, clearly expecting that most would raise their hands. Once he realized just how behind the times we all were, he changed his talk from how sites like Facebook has changed the world, to why we, as school administrators, should join a social networking community.

“You may not want to use this technology,” he said, “but your students are using it everyday. You should know what they are doing.”

That night, in my hotel room, I joined Facebook. Instantly, I discovered what the fuss was about. Using the demographic information I entered, as well as my email contact list, Facebook put me in contact with several dozen people, many of whom I hadn’t communicated with in years. I instantly was back in contact with former students, their parents, past colleagues, and even old friends from high school. I wrote about this in my Christmas article, how through Facebook, I was able to reconnect with a friend I hadn’t seen or heard from in 15 years.

The revelations have since slowed, but haven’t stopped. I am still learning new ways to use online technology to connect with more people in important ways. This week, I discovered the world of blogging.

Now, I have known about blogging (web-logs or blogs) for years. I had just never taken the time to delve into the specifics of how to set up my own blog or how to get my blog into the public perception.

Then, another formative moment happened in my life: I joined the Hill City Writing Club, which met at the library Monday evening. I was impressed to see so many other writers in our area, and it was nice to know that others shared my love for the craft of writing.

One of the club members told me how they used Facebook to share writing. The next day I added the person to my Friends List, and discovered a feature called “Notes” where you can post writing, and people can comment on it…just like a blog. This inspired me to explore other blogging options that might allow anyone who is online to read my writing, especially to read my Principal Perspective articles.

It didn’t take me long to discover blogger.com, which has partnered with Facebook to connect Facebook users with their blogging community. It was ridiculously free and easy to set up, and within minutes I had an account, and a domain name for people to check out my articles: http://goodwinperspective.blogspot.com. (Interestingly enough, “principalperspective.blogspot.com” was already taken, in use by another elementary principal!)

I then spent several hours transferring all 125 Principal Perspective columns to my new blog. So if you are a fan of this column, and you would like to look up a old article, they are all there, listed by title and date for all to read. Also, you can now rate any of the articles and leave comments. The site even allows you to “subscribe” so that all new postings will be sent to you automatically.

Best of all, the site allowed me to include a “Facebook Stamp”, which is simply a direct link to my Facebook page. You’ll have to join Facebook in order to be able to see my page, something I would strongly recommend. It is free, easy to do, and truly life changing.

All in all, I feel I have finally joined the 21st century. This principal and his perspective is finally, on-line. Please visit my new blog at http://goodwinperspective.blogspot.com. I would love to hear what you think!