A selection of Facebook Pages providing resources and dialogue focused on education and instructional technologies.
Like most Facebook users, many educators use Facebook to connect with friends new and old, but the Internet's most popular site can also be a great learning (and teaching) tool. There are many Facebook pages that have been created as a resource to collect, share, and disseminate information about education and education technologies. Here's 10 of our favorites.
Facebook In Education
Facebook in Education examines ways in which Facebook is being used in an educational context. Based on our search for pages focused on education, this is by far the most widely recognized page in the category, with over 350,000 “likes” (unfortunately, that level of popularity also means that many discussions are somewhat polluted with inane input). There are some interesting topics discussed here, and some worthwhile input from educators.
National Education Association
A popular and active page. “The National Education Association represents 3.2 million members committed to ensuring a great public education for all students. Use this page to learn more about NEA and to engage in discussion on how we can work together to improve public education.”
The ISTE is the International Society for Technology in Education and their goal is to provide “leadership and service to improve teaching and learning by advancing the effective use of technology in education.”
NAEYC – National Association for the Education of Young Children
Founded in 1926, “NAEYC's mission is to serve and act on behalf of the needs, rights and well-being of all young children with primary focus on the provision of educational and developmental services and resources.” This popular Page lets users post on their wall, and there are a wide variety of topics there for consideration and discussion.
“ASCD is a membership organization that develops programs, products, and services essential to the way educators learn, teach, and lead.” This is an active page, and we were impressed with the content and types of dialogues under way there.
This is a different type of group – #Edchat is Twitter based. In their own words, “#Edchat is a hashtag discussion among educators from all over the world on education related topics. It happens every Tuesday at Noon EDT and 7PM EDT. To join us simply follow the #Edchat hashtag on Twitter!” The Facebook Page keeps users up on discussion topics, and provides additional resources.
Another popular page, supporting a non-profit organization. “Edutopia is where The George Lucas Educational Foundation’s vision to highlight what works in education comes to life. Edutopia provides stories integrating creative uses of technology with effective teaching and learning. Edutopia’s audience includes educators, parents, school board members, university faculty, community-based organizations, and the business community — all groups working to create better schools for the twenty-first century.”
“Education Week is American education's newspaper of record. Our reporters, researchers, and bloggers cover local, state, and national education news and issues from preschool through the high school transition to college and career.”
Free Technology For Teachers
The Facebook Page for Richard Byrne's popular web site and blog, providing a constant stream of new free instructional technology resources for the classroom.
Connect A Million Minds
“Connect a Million Minds is Time Warner Cable's $100 million community commitment to connect youth to ideas, people and opportunities that will inspire them to become the problem solvers of tomorrow.” These folks are doing great stuff.
[Bonus Page!] EmergingEdTech
(Well you didn't think we'd overlook our own Page did you? :)) The EmergingEdTech Facebo0k Page is certainly a worthwhile resource, where we share blog posts, video blog entries, free upcoming web events, contests, and more. Be sure to stop by and check it out today!
Do you have favorite Facebook Pages that you think other educators would like to know about? Please share them in a comment. Thanks!
This blog post was written in collaboration with Daniel Offer. Daniel is the Managing Director of the Facebook software Chit Chat for Facebook.
Related Posts (if the above topic is of interest, you might want to check these out):
Facebook in the Classroom. Seriously.
4 Great Twitter Applications for Teachers Using Twitter In The Classroom
10 Excellent iPad Applications for Teachers