tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8318734518772387227.post3885824153917239636..comments2024-03-29T01:46:51.442-04:00Comments on Lisa Nielsen: The Innovative Educator: Death of Freemiums at Ning Could Mean Better Opportunities for SchoolsLisa Nielsenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07759123507185453030noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8318734518772387227.post-16369557399073719392010-08-28T09:48:38.760-04:002010-08-28T09:48:38.760-04:00Check out what the International Baccalaureate has...Check out what the International Baccalaureate has done to create a safe, powerful learning network for their worldwide schools. They are unveiling Aug. 30 for all IB teachers and for students in MYP and DP (middle and high school). The safety equation was important, as was having powerful tools for creation and connection. The IB paid to create this for their schools, which can use it for free. See at: http://ibo.epals.com<br /><br />If anyone reading this is from an IB school, contact your district IB coordinator about when and how your school can get involved. They spent a year developing this with ePals, which already had the largest learning network, with more than 600,000 classrooms in 200 countries. This makes Ning look like a soda cracker compared to a seven-course meal.<br />Rita Oates, formerly ed tech director, Miami-Dade (FL) Public Schools<br />VP, Education Markets, ePals Inc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8318734518772387227.post-73022480285216291312010-04-21T13:29:18.294-04:002010-04-21T13:29:18.294-04:00Great article, it's nice to see that people ar...Great article, it's nice to see that people are doing their homework. I'd like to pipe in on behalf of Saywire. My name is Josh Hoover, I'm the Chief Technology Officer and creator of Saywire. I've been working with educators and administrators for over 5 years to create an environment that is safe for students and teachers to interact.<br /><br />When I first started building Saywire, I worked very closely with a lawyer who was well versed in COPA (this was before it was dissolved). My intent was to insure that what we were doing would provide schools with the best possible experience we could deliver while keeping the safety of *both* students and teachers at the forefront of what we were developing. Ironically, when I first laid out my plans, she told me it wasn't possible to build the type of online environment I had envisioned and stay within the confines of COPA's ambiguous restrictions.<br /><br />What I'm trying to say is that Saywire is not a technology company that built a social network and decided to target the education community as an afterthought. Instead, we're a company who continues to work closely with teachers and students to establish a social/learning network to suit the needs and demands of today's classroom(s).<br /><br />I personally invite you to contact me for an opportunity to walk you through Saywire and continue this discussion.<br /><br />Thanks for the mention, I hope to hear from you.<br /><br />Josh Hoover<br />Chief Technology Officer<br />SaywireJosh Hooverhttp://www.saywire.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8318734518772387227.post-2222511204379234492010-04-17T03:23:13.336-04:002010-04-17T03:23:13.336-04:00Does the online learning platform at http://www.th...Does the online learning platform at http://www.thinkquest.org/en/ count? Safe environment, no photos...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8318734518772387227.post-15914072421644944712010-04-16T23:06:23.945-04:002010-04-16T23:06:23.945-04:00"For over-13, I recommend we start helping st..."For over-13, I recommend we start helping students establish an appropriate digital footprint that represents an identity of which they are proud." In Youth Voices (youthvoices.net) where I work with my high school students, a quick search on a user name shows a list of all activity, posts, comments to posts, What's Up (twitter-like posts) and is sobering to students to see how easily their activity is tracked. <br /><br />Another wonderful exercise is to have students "Google" the person sitting next to them or maybe it's better to let everyone choose a partner to avoid the sometimes uncomfortable reality of what is public. I have had many a student find full first and last names online via sports teams on which they play. I have also had a number of embarrassing moments as they come across, all too easily, information about uncles and aunts and cousins while searching on their own names.<br /><br />The children who grow up in NYC have experienced hardship, cultural diversity, poverty, injustice and have learned how to cross busy streets safely. We certainly owe it to them to help them learn to do the same online.Susan Ettenheimhttp://www.teachersteachingteachers.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8318734518772387227.post-26219015466183421352010-04-16T19:55:32.107-04:002010-04-16T19:55:32.107-04:00The under 13 problem is why we use WordPress with ...The under 13 problem is why we use WordPress with BuddyPress for social networking and are looking status.net for a Twitter clone.Mr. RCollinshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05288741291797400249noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8318734518772387227.post-61991417653411239542010-04-16T14:16:46.943-04:002010-04-16T14:16:46.943-04:00Great great post! I am part of a social media team...Great great post! I am part of a social media team at K12 and our students under 13 are definitely a challenge to address. You want to engage them because the reality is they are growing up in the digital world but you have to protect them as well.. it's a slippery slope!Steph Hhttp://blog.k12.com/noreply@blogger.com