This document summarizes a presentation about using social media to connect, collaborate, and share for professional development purposes. It discusses how social media allows educators to develop personalized learning networks and join online communities to gain resources, ask questions, and share best practices. Specific social media platforms covered include Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Scoop.it. Strategies are provided for using each platform, along with recommendations for accounts and hashtags to follow.

1. Using the Internet to Connect,
Collaborate Share
By
Judie Haynes Karen Nemeth
ASCD, 2014

2. Judie Haynes
Judie@everythingesl.net
Karen Nemeth, Ed.M.
Karen@languagecastle.com

3. Our slant on Social Media
The examples during this workshop
will be geared toward educators who are in
the field of teaching English Language Learners,
Early childhood education and K-12 education
(ELLs/DLLs)
Our examples come from our own experiences –
Our strategies can be used by any educator.

4. Handout for this Session
— The handout for this session is a copy
of the slides. You can find it by going
to http://www.slideshare.net/judieh/
Judie@everythingesl.net Karen@languagecastle.com

5. Discussion
Other than e-mail what is your
favorite way to interact with others
using the internet? Why?

6. Becoming a Connected Educator
— Active learning is better than passive
learning for our students
— The same is true for our own professional
development
— Web 2.0 supports the active learning version
of internet professional development.

7. Linking Web 2.0 to Becoming a
Connected Educator
— U.S. teachers often work in isolation with
few opportunities and limited time for
collaboration.
— Teachers can be more effective when not left
alone to address challenges.

8. Why Social Media?

9. Social media PD can be:
— real-time or on your time
— cost-effective
— completely customizable, and
accessible around the world
— driven by practitioners, not just
consultants.

10. Social Media Supports
Learning Communities
— A learning community is a group of
people who share a common interest.
— A social media community shares the
same common interest with a wider
audience.

11. Learning Communities
— ESL and general education teachers have
much to offer each other.
— Collaboration can make all teachers more
effective.
— ESL teachers need to seek collaboration, to
give and receive information.
— With Common Core collaboration is
essential.

12. Learning Communities Have…
— shared values and vision
— supportive conditions
— shared personal practice.
— supportive and shared leadership
— collective creativity

13. Collaboration Strategies
— Use a PLN (Personalized Learning Network)
as a way to make connections and share
ideas and resources online.
— When you develop a PLN online, you can
reach and connect with educators who share
your interests from around the state,
country, and world!

14. Benefits of a PLN
— Links to resources
— Knowledge acquisition
— Networking
— Sharing of best practices
— A place where you can ask questions and
get quick answers

15. Social Media Examples
— Social bookmarking: Del.icio.us, Diigo
https://delicious.com/judie1834
— Document sharing: i.e. Google Docs
https://drive.google.com/?urp=http://www.google.com/url?sa
%3Dt%26rct%3Dj%26q%3D%26esrc%3Ds
%26soupli=1#starred
— Social networking sites: Facebook, Twitter,
LinkedIn, Google

16. Facebook for Professional
Development
— NJTESOL/NJBE –
https://www.facebook.com/NJTESOL.NJBE?ref=hl
— #ELLCHAT –
https://www.facebook.com/pages/ELLCHAT/
105656129477631?ref=hl
— Teaching Resources
https://www.facebook.com/TeachingResources

17. Facebook for Professional
Development
— ASCD -
https://www.facebook.com/ascd.org?fref=ts
— everythingESL.net –
https://www.facebook.com/everythingesl?ref=hl
— Karen Nemeth at Language Castle
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Karen-Nemeth-
at-Language-Castle-LLC/129165177124416

18. Facebook Pages to Like
— TESOL International Association - professional
group for teachers of ELLs
https://www.facebook.com/tesol.assn
— Larry Ferlazzo – “Rock Star” of online
collaboration.
https://www.facebook.com/larryferlazzo
— Colorin Colorado - Website provides materials in
Spanish English for teachers parents of
ELLs
https://www.facebook.com/ColorinColorado.org

19. Join Twitter for Professional
Development at Twitter.com

20. Administrators Social Media as
Professional Development
— Leadership from administrators is crucial to
attracting teachers to social media for professional
development purposes.
— Attracting administrators to Twitter begin with
outstanding principals such as Eric Sheninger,
Principal of New Milford HS in NJ.
(@NMHS_Principal)

22. Why Twitter?
“Educators really can’t afford to NOT be on
Twitter. Our educational landscape is
changing very rapidly.
As educators we must continually be growing
and finding new ways to learn and reach our
students.
Twitter can be a catalyst in transforming your
classroom, your school, and your teaching.”
(Todd Nesloney, 2012)
http://www.blogger.com/profile/04998414184770066999

23. Tips for Beginning Twitter Users
— Spend your early time on Twitter following
important educational hashtags
— Ask colleagues to join Twitter with you
— Engage with your staff.
— Remember that building relationships on
Twitter takes time.
— Teachers can’t understand the value of Twitter
until they actually use it.

24. Joining Twitter
— Write a short (3 short sentences) bio about
yourself.
— Get a picture of yourself or an icon to put
on your account.
— Sign up for a Twitter Account
— Follow the discussion on #ELLCHAT
— Look for #EDCHAT – then branch off to your
specialized interests

25. Who to Follow
— List of must-follow administrators educators on
Twitter
— https://twitter.com/tomwhitby/my-twitter-
stalwarts/members
— Cybrary Man Educational Websites
http://www.cybraryman.com/edhashtags.html
There are dozens of chats just for administrators.

29. Twitter for Teachers
— Twitter hashtags allow teachers to hold
discussions on Twitter with educators from
all over the world.
— #ELLCHAT – is a Twitter discussion group
dedicated to discuss ELL education
issues Monday nights at 9 PM EST.
— Follow @judiehaynes
@KarenNemethEdM

31. Three Reasons Educators Should
Read Blogs
— Blogs are at the heart of learning and
sharing
— Blogs are a real world and real-time
experience - instantaneous
— Blogs will make you reflect on your
educational practices
— Blogs can be interactive

32. Blogs to Follow
— Colorin Colorado’s Blog on the Common
Core
http://blog.colorincolorado.org/2013/09/16/
mooc-for-educators-on-ccss-and-ells/
— Judie Haynes’ blog on ASCD Edge
http://edge.ascd.org/_5-Key-Strategies-for-
Teaching-Beginning-ELLs/blog/
6394145/127586.html

33. Blogs to Follow
— Larry Ferlazzohttp://larryferlazzo.edublogs.org/
— Diane Ravitch http://dianeravitch.net/
— Bridging Differences
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/Bridging-
Differences/

34. Blogs for Teachers of ELLs
— Karen Nemeth’s Blog on DLLs –
http://www.languagecastle.com/blog/
— Lesli Maxwell’s ELL blog on Education Week –
http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-
language/2013/01/
ell_teachers_connect_and_learn.html

35. — ASCD Edge home - http://ascdedge.ascd.org/
— ASCD Edge blogs
http://edge.ascd.org/service/searchEverything.kickAction?
as=127586mediaType=blogsortType=ratingincludeBlog=
onadminTags=pb1
— EdWorld’s Top 25 Blogs for Educators
http://community.educationworld.com/content/education-
world%E2%80%99s-top-25-blogs-educators
— EducationWeek’s blogs
http://www.edweek.org/ew/section/blogs/index.html?
intc=intst

36. Pinterest for Education
— Judie Haynes
http://www.pinterest.com/judiehaynes/
educational-books-worth-reading/
— Larry Ferlazzo
http://pinterest.com/larryferlazzo/useful-
classroom-images/
— Teaching Resources
http://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?
q=teaching%20resourcesrs=aclen=18

37. Scoop.it
— Scoop.it Education is a website where educators
can save articles on 5 different topics for free and
share with others.
— To sign up go to www.scoop.it
— http://www.scoop.it/t/ipads-in-the-k-12-classroom

38. Information in your email!
— Professional development sources that
send information via email
— Click RSS feed icon on a blog to have
posts sent to you directly via email
— Sign up for an email list, listserv or
newsletter
— Join groups on Linked In, Diigo or
Delicious to arrange daily or weekly
updates sent to your email.

42. Karen’s Linked-In Discussions
ELLs/DLLs
in
Early
Childhood
h1p://www.linkedin.com/groups?
gid=3690982trk=groups_most_recent-­‐h-­‐
dscgoback=%2Egmr_3690982
Early Childhood Staff Development Professionals
h1p://www.linkedin.com/groups?
gid=4217378trk=groups_members-­‐h-­‐dscgoback=
%2Eanp_4217378_1393650156363_1

43. Linked In Groups for ELL
Educators
— ELLs/DLLs in Early Childhood
— Dual Language Teacher Connection
— ESL Bilingual Teacher Professionals
— TESOL International Association
— Follow groups followed by people you
admire

46. Pinterest
— Pinterest for Education -
http://pinterest.com/judiehaynes/educational-
books-worth-reading/
— Larry Ferlazzo -
http://pinterest.com/larryferlazzo/useful-
classroom-images/

47. Scoop.it
— Scoop.it Education is a website where educators
can save articles on 5 different topics and share
with others.
— Great way to share information about ELLs with
colleagues.
— To sign up go to www.scoop.it
— http://www.scoop.it/t/common-core-and-english-
language-learners

48. http://www.scoop.it/t/common-core-and-english-
language-learners

49. Judie Haynes
The Essential Guide for Educating Beginning English
Learners
http://www.corwin.com/books/Book237736?
siteId=corwin-
presssubject=C00qsupld=falseq=Judie
+HaynessurfUrl=http%3A%2F
%2Fwww.corwin.compageTitle=productsSearch

50. ASCD Books by Judie Haynes
— Teaching English Language Learners Across the Content Areas
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/109032.aspx
— Getting Started with English Language Learners
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/106048.aspx

51. Books by Karen Nemeth
— From www.gryphonhouse.com

52. http://bit.ly/1jtbasy45 Experts
Caslon Publishing – April 2014

53. Handout for this Session
— The handout for this session is a copy
of the slides. You can find it by going
to http://www.slideshare.net/judieh/
Judie@everythingesl.net Karen@languagecastle.com