Revisiting my blog . . .

I created this blog over three years ago (January, 2011) and wrote my first entry for a graduate course on social software and networking tools. It was a class requirement then just as it is now for my current COTL5 class. My last entry was on April 15, 2011 and until now I had not ever planned on picking up where I left off. Blogging does not come naturally or easily to me so I quit when the course was over; I suspect I may quit again when this course is over. Because while I learned a lot about social software from researching and writing this blog, I also learned that I prefer reading other people’s blogs much more than writing my own. It takes a lot of planning and effort to keep up a regular blog with quality content; I admire those who are consistent about doing this.

In 2011, I did not have a Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn account. I now have all three, and have since used other social media tools including WordPress, Pinterest, and most recently Google+. Having initially been introduced to the majority of these tools through an academic course, I find that I have not kept up with using most of them on a personal basis (other than Facebook which I use mainly because my daughter allowed me to friend her!). I do feel that it is important to become familiar with these types of tools and what they have to offer, particularly when working with a population of young adult students. Therefore I would like to further explore the use of several of these tools on a professional level, for use as possible learning tools in an online class environment.

Three years ago I was asking questions about how to best use social media tools and technologies with regard to libraries. What was the intent for using these tools and how could we use them most effectively? Today I am asking these same questions not only in terms of libraries, but also as they relate to online education and the teaching of information literacy at a community college level. So for at least the next four weeks, I will use this blog to refocus my exploration of various social media tools and technologies as they relate to these areas of education in particular.