Fighting Back the Chaos

Today's world is full of information overload.  Perhaps it would be accurate to say application overload in some cases.  As we move from device to device or application to application, maintaining some semblance of organization is critical.  Yes, critical.  I'm not an organization freak as those around me will attest, but having some idea of how to organize information and resources is important.  We constantly run across websites we want to refer back to later.  We identify resources that are useful to share with others.  We also access certain information from different browsers or applications.  For example, I have about 3 different applications for twitter just on my laptop which I use interchangeably.  Then we move from our laptops to our iPhones to iPads etc.

CC Information Overload by Jorge Franganillo (Flickr)

We are not always on the same device so how do we make the "cloud" (internet based applications and storage of resources) work for us?  If we do not have a plan, chaos will take over and we will just miss out on resources buried in an overwhelming pile of stuff.  We need to help students with this skill too. I'll outline some of my own personal strategy to fight back the chaos.

I am always surprised how many people don't use bookmarks (see my previous post for more on bookmarking).  I have all my common sites in my toolbar.  This makes them easy to access anywhere.  I use Xmarks to sync all my bookmarks across all my devices.  This also makes them accessible by logging into the Xmarks site when on a public computer.  Although Xmarks can do other things like sync passwords and such, I use it solely for syncing bookmarks across devices and browsers.  It has an install plugin for almost any browser on any platform.  I have upgraded to the premium and find it worth every penny but a free version is available.

I also use Dropbox.  Lots of different applications allow you to use Dropbox to access information across devices (see more info here).  I find this is a valuable tool for having files and information easily synced across multiple devices.  It also makes a backup always available in case a device is lost or stolen.

I like Instapaper for reading articles later.

For example, I typically check my twitter network on my phone which regularly gives me useful links and information.  I have several methods to deal with this information.

1. I have created a free account with Instapaper.  I have added this bookmark applet to my toolbar on my browser which allows me to just click on "Read Later" and it is saved to my account.  Instapaper can be accessed on my iPhone or laptop easily.  It tracks what I have read and I just archive after I have finished.  I always know what articles are yet to be read.  
2. I often just skim my Twitter and don't do extensive reading.  So I email myself a tweet at my gmail account.  I have setup a filter that automatically removes it from the inbox and labels it so I can review it later.  Filters are powerful and often underused email feature.  This also makes it easy to search tweets I want to find later.
3. I can use my Diigo account to bookmark certain links right in my phone.
4. Xmarks makes a lot of this simply because it syncs my bookmark applet for Diigo and Instapaper across browsers and my phone.

Lastly, I also highly recommend RSS feeds.  I use Google Reader to keep up with blogs that I follow.  It is easy and accessible on my phone or laptop.  

How do you keep your life organized between browsers, applications, and devices?  Do you have other recommendations to share?

Being Facebook Friends

Should teachers friend students on Facebook? For some reason, since I work with technology, people seem to think I'm a good person to ask. And since I mentioned Facebook in my last post, perhaps it is relevant to address it here. My answer...it depends.

Let's ask a different question. Should teachers/educators be on social media? Yes. No question. If we want to connect with students and meet students where they are, social media is the way to go. Educational research tells us that we need to be relevant to engage students effectively. It also tells us that if we can extend our time spent on learning and our curriculum, then achievement goes up. Now put those two together. If we engage students with relevant questions/topics and use a medium that they are using outside of school for socializing, we are likely to extend school related discussions that promote learning, inquiry and authentic application of concepts in the real world. Many have unpacked this much more than I am here. This is only 1 aspect of leveraging social media to benefit learning.

I think the "friends" on Facebook is a bit more complex. Some people advocate 2 accounts...1 professional and 1 personal. I think you have to think about how you use social media. I have some accounts that are personal and my friends/links reflect that. I have other accounts that are solely professional. Based on our roles, this can be easier for some than others. For me, Facebook is personal. There is nothing on there I'm ashamed of. Actually, I don't post much. Rather, I use it to keep up with friends across the world. I also don't have a class of students that I work directly with right now with my given role. Twitter is my professional account. Don't get me wrong. The personal nature of who you are bleeds over into the professional as well it should. It is reasonable to keep the two separate. Bottom line, if you are posting things that students should not see or might be better left to their imagination, don't friend them on Facebook.

No matter what medium you use for social media and connections, your life is more transparent than it has ever been. We know more about each other. Modeling and making good choices is paramount. So is self-control. You can't post confidential or "soon to be public" info before it actually is public. Many people have had some heavy consequences for mistakes in this area and it deserves due caution. All said, social media is a place to extend learning and leverage for the good of both student learning and professional learning. Don't be scared. Jump in but do so with some thought and foresight.

Twitter Followup

At the beginning of May this year, I posted about Twitter. At the time, I was debating whether or not to sign up. Over the summer, I decided to sign up for both Facebook and Twitter. If you really want to evaluate something, you have to give it a try. I have very few followers, barely double digits and I follow about 20 people.

After using it for nearly 2 months, I have found it useful for getting links to other resources. I follow key people and have gotten some great tips for good links and resources. After a month or so of use, I found that I didn't like following people that post too much. It becomes too much to filter through for the casual user. So I edited who I was following as a result. I also protected my profile. Although being a fan of open use and transparency, I had a few sketchy people start following me. I will say that Twitter quickly disabled some of these questionable accounts before I could even view who they were.

I'm still not an avid Twitter user but I check it a few times a week and post blog updates and an occasional thought to share there. Overall, the jury is still out for me but I do see some definite benefits of Twitter for professional growth and links. I also see how it can be a grand waste of time if you don't filter your lists and keep its uses intentional and focused.

It is similar to many of the tools that our students use. It's not about the tool, but how it can be leveraged to benefit our learning.