As people look to the internet to help them find jobs, connect with people, and stay organized, there are several routes they can travel. Here are a few of my basic views on routes you can go.
Pro's & Cons - Personal Website + You decide how you want it to look & what information it contains. + There are many options for creating a personal website that are available for free. + You can put out what ever content you like. - You don't know who your audience will be (it's open to anyone to view your information). - Can be expensive to upgrade to more services. - Must keep the site current to be relevant. People don't want to view out-dated websites. Pro's & Con's: Plaxo + Organize ALL of your contacts (from all of your online directories) + Accessible from anywhere + Updates information automatically - If someone has your password, they could gain access to ALL of your contacts - There is a basic model, but advanced versions are pretty expensive - According to reports, there is a steep learning curve for figuring out how to use the site Pro's & Con's: LinkedIn + Potential to gain access to more people online + A site to find a new job, employees, or potential clients + Reconnect with friends & people you have worked with in the past - Spend a lot of time setting it up and maintaining it (staying current) - Does cost money to upgrade or see certain features and information - Might have people 'following' you who could possibly be harmful to your reputation When choosing to utilize different sites or apps to assist you in your life, you just have to do some research and understand what you are getting in to. You don't want to have a bunch of people 'following' you on your site who may negatively affect your customer base or chances of getting hired. You need to be careful what information you post and know who has access to the information. Make it a Great Day! DG Professional networking is vital to growth as a teacher and coach. Seeing what others are doing in their programs, debating and discussing best practices, and collaborating with each other are just some of the things we have to do in order to stay on top of the current trends. Having a network to fall back on, both locally and nationally, can be a huge benefit to that.
Many of the college football coaches who are hired across the country get those jobs because of where they have been and who they know. So instead of going out and signing up for all these resume-type websites and hoping to get yourself noticed, I would first go to the teachers, administrators and coaches that I know and have worked with during my career. Whether I am looking for assistance or ideas, or looking for a new job, I feel this is a good place to begin. Next, one has to get out and get noticed. It's tough to build a network if you never leave your school or community. Attend coaching & teaching conferences. And don't sit in the back! I know I am not the most outgoing person, so I have to force myself to sit up front, introduce myself to people, and mingle during down time. This is also a great opportunity to be a presenter. Then people will want to come talk with YOU and you can add them to your professional network! Then you want to socialize - online. Facebook and Twitter are known as social sites, but they are also a great place to interact with teachers and coaches from around the world! Many relationships have developed online, both personal and professional. There are many opportunities to be a part of webinars or web chats in your content area. While I'm not really a fan of sites such as LinkedIn, it may also be a good place to interact and grow your network. I also think it is very important to keep yourself organized. Know what paperwork you have submitted (if applying for jobs) and keep track of any workshops, trainings, or certifications you get. Update your resume and other information regularly, so if an opportunity does arise, you are ready for it. I know we've had two P.E. openings in the past four years and have had over 100 applicants for each position! Being up-to-date and ready can make a big difference. Finally, I know this may sound harsh, but I think it's important to take care of yourself. This may not directly affect your professional networking, but I think it plays an indirect role. As a physical education teacher and football coach, I believe I should look the part. I need to be the living, breathing example. How could I expect a potential employer (or student for that matter) to take me seriously if I am an overweight slob. There are many different thoughts out there when it comes to developing your professional network. These are just a few of mine. In the end, I believe the human interaction piece is still the best route to go, while using technology as a way to enhance what you are doing. So then... get out there and mingle! Make it a Great Day! DG Interesting reads about Wiki's. Again, another piece of work I've heard about but haven't paid much attention to. Back in the day the word on the street was not to trust Wikipedia! I think their story and their growth is a pretty cool one. It really shows what you can do with a great imagination!
Using Wiki's in education could be an OK thing! Students could work together on a project and not have to gather and meet. They would be able to collaborate from their own homes and know what was going on. Throw in a Facetime or Skype chat and you might as well all be gathered at the local library! I could really see that being beneficial in my wellness class, which consists of mostly freshman and sophomore students who aren't old enough to drive somewhere to meet. I think it would be a great way to collaborate as a entire staff or just a single department. With everyone coaching and participating in different committees, it can be difficult to find times to meet. This allows everyone a chance to take part during their own time. I am currently participating in one that is linked across the state of Wyoming. A coach on our staff is battling cancer and our football staff, along with others at the University of Wyoming, are collaborating together to form a statewide fundraiser to help offset medical costs. Throughout the process, it has been awesome to see it come together and watch people from several different communities work and update the information. Make it a Great Day! DG I have really enjoyed creating and updating this website. In just a few short weeks I have done some things that I have never attempted before - things like building a website, creating blog posts, and posting my first podcast. All of this is geared towards introducing us to new technologies and experimenting with different things we might find useful in our everyday lives as teachers and coaches. Hopefully we can become better teachers because of it. It never hurts to add 'tools' to your 'toolbox', right? So how can someone's personal web presence enhance their professional portfolio? I think it is a great way to showcase your online confidence, your personal voice, and your versatility.
We begin to grow when we take ourselves out of our comfort zone and I believe we strengthen our online confidence when we have to create web pages and logins, and write and comment on blogs, and explore different sites like LinkedIn that are not part of our normal web traffic pattern. Not only does this allow us to explore some of the latest technologies, but we begin to build more confidence as we navigate through the processes involved. When someone is interested in you professionally they may do an online search for your name. What will come up? Hopefully you have been responsible in maintaining your web presence! If so, I believe things like a personal web site (like we created here) as well as a Twitter account and a Facebook fan page can really show your true voice and give someone an idea of who you are (more so than just looking at a LinkedIn profile). While this isn't always a good thing for some, I believe in setting a good example in that we need to be the same person all the time - in the classroom, on the field and at home. So I know that my tweets and Facebook updates are all fine if a parent , player or student were to see them. I have nothing to hide nor be embarrassed about. With so many uses, the web is THE place to enhance your portfolio. Creating a website, maintaining a blog, posting professional podcasts and understanding different apps and how to access and use them will be an ideal canvas in which to display your online versatility. Employers are looking for people who are always trying to grow and improve. Your personal web presence is the place for that to happen! Make it a Great Day! DG What is the difference between these two social networking sites? As far as I can tell, one you work on and view while wearing a suit, the other you work on and view while wearing sweats!
Both sites have you create profiles loaded with personal information that you can customize for others to view. In my mind, that is where the similarities end. Facebook is used more for socializing and finding friends. LinkedIn looks to be all business, where people connect to build business relationships. In short, I see people adjusting their ties and using LinkedIn from 8:00am-5:00pm and then coming home, changing into sweats, and getting onto Facebook. Having a profile in both programs would allow you to keep your business side and your social side separate. Do you have one of each of these accounts? Make it a Great Day! DG Oh man! There are so many apps out there! I love looking through apps - cruising over to iTunes just to look around - kind of like window shopping through the screen of my computer! They always look so shiny and cool. Apps literally take me right back to the toy isle when I was a kid. There are apps for EVERYTHING! It's awesome! In some ways I totally feel cheated! How cool would it have been to have apps when we were growing up? Create your own story online and illustrate it with your own digital drawings! Then download it to your online bookshelf! Then order your own personal hardcopy? And to think, I just had a box of crayons and some paper.
The potential I see in using apps is tremendous, especially when I look at helping my own two boys. I can't even imagine what technologies they will be using by the time they are in high school. In addition to reading nightly, we will spend some time on an iPad or iPod working on word or math games and I am constantly amazed at their level of proficiency in working the technology and learning the skills embedded in the apps. Apps are another great tool to help in the learning process and in keeping kids challenged and engaged. It is just a matter of finding the right apps for your situation. A few apps that I use consistently are from Hudl, QR Reader, and Gas Buddy. Hudl is a web-based program for coaches and players to access and work with video and data online. We use it in our football program to break down game film, edit clips for our position groups, and send email and text messages to players and coaches. The things it enables us to do to prepare for Friday nights is unreal. We have won games simply because of the preparation it allows us to do. The app lets us take that with us anywhere we go. I can pull up game film on my iPhone and start breaking down the opposing team even before I get to the meeting room! QR Readers are just cool. They allow you to upload more information about the product or services and take you deeper into what ever it is you are checking out. There are many different kinds of QR Readers to choose from. I am hoping to have my kids create QR codes in my classroom and post them around the school or community. I think that would be a neat project. Gasbuddy is an example of an app that I use in my personal life. When you punch in your zip code, it will show you the closest gas stations and where the best prices are. With gas prices as high as they are, it's always nice to have that on hand. Without that app, there is no way you would be able to know what stores have the best prices in your community. While I am enamored with apps for all they offer in convenience, fun, and learning, I still am troubled with being able to sort out the best of the best and find the specific apps that will be most beneficial to me in an educational and professional setting. I really like the idea of using Dropbox and Evernote, but once again it requires yet another login and password and it will take time to figure out how to operate the site. Sometimes I am so busy that I don't think I will have the time to sit down and figure out how to operate and utilize it to its fullest potential and I don't want to create logins on these sites and then never go back. That thought process sometimes prevents me from trying out new apps that could help improve what I do as a teacher. So while I love the potential of apps I sometimes have a hard time embracing it... I wonder if there is an app for that? Make it a great day! DG I recently checked out the list of "The Top 100 Tools for Learning 2012" (see link below) and was very surprised at how many of them I use during the week. I would venture to say that of the 100, I use 23 of them on a regular basis and most are used for education in one way or another.
I am a huge fan of Twitter and was was not surprised to see it ranked #1 in 2012, but I was somewhat surprised to see that it has been ranked #1 since 2009 as well. That speaks volumes to the value of the program, given how much change takes place in our digital world. As a single PE teacher in a small school not really close to bigger areas, I sometimes have a hard time collaborating with other PE teachers or attending state and national conferences. Through Twitter I can interact with teachers across the globe and participate in web chats on a wide range of topics. I also look for coaching information and ways to enhance and develop leadership in my students athletes, and even within my staff. I definitely feel it plays a large role in my growth as an educator. Are you an educator? Check out the list by clicking on the link below - how many do you use? Are there any tools that you use on a regular basis that you feel strongly about? Let me know... Make it a great day! DG Here are the Top 100 Tools for Learning 2012 – the results of the 6th Annual Learning Tools Survey - as voted for by 582 learning professionals worldwide, and compiled by the Centre for Learning & Performance Technologies. (Released 1 October 2012) http://c4lpt.co.uk/top100tools/ Here is the link to my first Podcast. Crackin' myself up - sounds like I'm auditioning for Mike & Mike in the morning on ESPN radio! I'll probably stick with my day job!
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