Yesterday, I was incredibly surprised and flattered to see a tweet from DistanceEducation.org (@onlinecourse) alerting me that I was on their list of The Top 20 in Education on Twitter for 2012.

I immediately assumed there was an error and expected a retraction. I also felt kinda guilty for tweeting almost exclusively about my many overindulgent meals consumed during winter vacation...especially after reading the really kind explanation for why they considered me:

Education, photography, and travel are just a few of the topics that @SpecialKRB covers everyday. Offering her followers a number of really great tips, @SpecialKRB is the ideal influencer to follow for anyone who loves mixing creativity and education.

I'm still grappling with how to navigate online social spaces, even as I have the chutzpah to teach my students how to do so. I predominantly post projects I work on in school, articles that interest me, stuff I learn about at conferences, weird NYC sightings, and things I do on my travels. Contrary to how it may seem, I make attempts to filter what I share and hope to avoid oversharing or banality. Additionally, I try to balance the whole professional/personal stream of information. Clearly, I've made bad choices, but I try to learn from each mistake. My New Year's resolution is to prevent my boss, my best friend, or my mother from confronting me with something that would jeopardize my job, relationship, or inheritance. Here's hoping I can stick to that for at least the duration of 2012...

DistanceEducation.org's list includes the following educators on Twitter:

Chris Lehmann @chrislehmann, Tom Barrett @tombarrett, Kevin McLaughlin @kvnmcl, Alec Couros @courosa, Kim Cofino @mscofino, Graham Stanley @grahamstanley, Joyce Seitzinger @catspyjamasnz, Jabiz Raisdana @intrepidteacher, Larry Carver @lcarver, Colette Cassinelli @ccassinelli, Karen Blumberg @SpecialKRB, Education.com @JustAskEdu, Anita Harris @iTechSpec, Angela Maiers @AngelaMaiers, Kathleen K. Manzo @kmanzo, Carrie Schneider @lattesc, Berni Wall @rliberni, Urban Education @UrbanEducation, Dr. Steve Perry @DrStevePerry, Alexander Russo @alexanderrusso

Last week, I introducted the 6th grade to our internal social network creatively entitled, The Social Network. This is the fifth year we've used an in-house solution powered by Elgg. We archive the previous year's work, upgrade to the latest version of Elgg, and start with a new blank space every year. Not only does this free the server manager from the drudgery of importing the old stuff onto a new system, it reinforces that a social network is only as valuable as the information its users freely include and share. As Don Buckley, the Director of Innovation at The School at Columbia University, will tell you, a social network is populated with the following information: Who are you? Who are your friends? What do you do?

The 6th graders were really excited to join in, and we had a pretty great 30-minute discussion about appropriate information to include in a digital profile and how to behave online, especially in light of the fact that The Social Network is part of our academic suite of tools. I reminded them that they were too young to legally have a profile on Facebook, but I discussed in detail things I found inappropriate. I don't just judge; I tell them that I judge. I reminded them that they should carefully consider their actions in the virtual and the physical worlds, as it all goes towards building their character and their perceived character. I also gave them examples of kids and adults behaving badly online. [Usually I mention this sexting story when I talk about how everything online is public, permanent, and traceable: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/27/us/27sexting.html?_r=2]

Today, I was pretty annoyed and surprised when I found out from two different teachers that kids were creating private groups on The Social Network and personally inviting certain kids while gleefully excluding others. Or, maybe I'm just offended that they didn't include me in a group formed "for pretty and popular kids ONLY!!!" So, this afternoon, I gathered the 6th grade together and told them I was disappointed and surprised that within a week of joining this shared digital space, they were already making unfortunate choices.

I reminded them that in the real world I would never have middle school "friends" on Facebook and that shouldn't even think about trying to connect with me online until they can legally vote. But, here at The School, they should freely connect with their classmates and teachers. Outside of school, they are plenty of ways to ostracize based on gender, religion, race, ethnicity, sexuality, socio-economic status. Inside these walls, we should embrace our community and seek ways to learn, collaborate, and use the technology academically, respectfully, responsibly. I also reinforced that it is ok to have private groups, but there should be a purpose besides being solely exclusive.

The kids came up with pretty great examples of acceptable private groups - grade level groups, class groups, homeroom groups, and maybe creative writing groups where you would want to share your work with a select group of peer editors. I asked them to consult a teacher before creating a private group. I reminded them that they should actively consult a teacher for most things, just like I do with Don.

(presentation designed by Don Buckley)

This year we are saying RIP to our AUP to make room for our RUP. 

Back in 2006 when I started at The School at Columbia University (it was entering its 4th year!), the Technology Department strove to create a simple and clear Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) that was 10 items long. We review this AUP with each grade at the beginning of every school year, The kids invent a million what if? scenarios, and it's equally hilarious and exhausting to counter them all. After we review the policy point by point for 20-30 minutes, students have to sign the AUP and take it home to get a parent/guardian's signature as well. Only after they return the signed form to me are they allowed to use the machines we provide for them. We're a 1:1 school: Child in grades K-2 are assigned an iPad and children in grades 3-8 are assigned a laptop - with overlap as needed for projects.

This year, Don Buckley (@donbuckley) decided to rename our AUP, so we are now calling it our Respectable Use Policy (RUP). It's not just semantics, shemantics. We want our community to fully appreciate, internalize, support, and ultimately respect our policy and not just accept it. This is an example of how we use/reinforce a consistent vocabulary for our student body. (In my case, I reinforce this vocabulary in a very shrill and repetitive way.)

For the record, we do not filter. We use Columbia University's network, and they do not filter. This means that we ask/expect/hope/pray members of our community will make good choices. Our RUP is below:

The School's Respectable Use Policy

The School's students will use its technology facilities in the spirit of The School's code of conduct and in a responsible and legal manner, following the rules listed below:

Respect

• I will always use the computer with consideration and respect for others and myself.
• I will not eat food or drink beverages while working on the computers.
• I will be responsible for my computer's whereabouts at all times. If I am not using my computer, I will return it to a charging station

Email and Communication

• I will use electronic mail only for school-related purposes. I will never use abusive or profane language in public or private messages.
• I will not access my personal e-mail account, social networking sites, or personal instant messaging software from any school computer.
• I will not use others’ names or passwords.

Safety

• I will ask a teacher for permission before I download or install anything from the Internet.
• I will keep my network and electronic mail account passwords private.

Software/Apps

• I will use teacher-approved software and apps when given permission at appropriate times.
• I will not illegally copy or download software or media (games, MP3s, etc.).

Internet

• I will not shop online or make any purchases using a school computer.
• I will not visit inappropriate websites. Teachers and administrators will determine appropriateness.

I understand that failure to follow these rules when using The School's technology, whether at The School or off-campus, will result in suspension of my technology privileges and/or additional disciplinary action.