Internet Schools east 2010

Internet@Schools EastApril 12, 2010

Collaboration – That 13 Letter Dirty Word

Part I: Collaboration in the Real World

Marisa Peacock, Sr. Marketing Manager & Social Media Specialist

What is Collaboration?

• It’s a conversation• It’s not one-sided• It's sharing resources & information• It’s multi-disciplinary• It’s about making informed decisions• It’s about being curious

User-Generated Content (USG)also known as consumer-generated media, USG refers to various kinds of media content, publicly available, that are produced by end-users (Source: wikipedia).

Examples of Collaboration in the Real World

Examples of Collaboration in the Real World

• Amazon.com

Examples of Collaboration in the Real World

• Yelp.com

Examples of Collaboration in the Real World

• CNN iReport

Collaboration Helps Us:

• make decisions about where to eat, what to buy, how much to spend

• tell a story about the what's going on around us • gain perspective and insights

The Web & Collaboration

Since the 1990's the Internet has seen many iterations of communication andcollaboration.

Web 1.0 • Websites, e-mail newsletters and “Donate Now” buttons • pushing content out• one way communication

Web 2.0• Blogs, wikis, and social networking sites• publishing and re-publishing content via several distribution channels • two-way communication

The Web & Collaboration

Since the 1990's the Internet has seen many iterations of communication andcollaboration.

Web 3.0 • Mobile Websites, Text Campaigns and Smart phones• soliciting different behaviors, interactions and actions from users through

mobile, easy-to-access platforms• interactive communications

And Beyond: Changing the way people communicate and changing the ways they interactwith content

If Collaboration in the Real World is helpful tomillions of consumers, why can't Collaborationin the Classroom be just as useful to students,teachers and administrators?

IT CAN. IT IS.

No, it's true.

Teachers are already:

• using Twitter to share ideas with other educators • sharing classroom-generated media on YouTube

and Vimeo • facilitating discussions about homework on

BlackBoard • editing student lesson plans on wikis • uploading photos onto Flickr and Picasa

But collaboration isn't just about the web.

It's about:

• facilitating discussions with people • inviting others to share their perspectives, stories • asking questions • listening for answers • not knowing it all

@marisacp51@sisarinasays

marisa@sisarina.comfacebook.com/sisarina

Marisa Peacock, Sr. Marketing Manager & Social Media Specialist

Part II:Collaboration in the Academic World

Rebecca Brooks, Archivist & Head Librarian

Collaboration in theAcademic World

• Is it collaboration or really just cooperation?

• Do teachers understand that librarians can teach more than just information literacy?

• Do we give off the warm and fuzzy vibe?

Common Collaborationin School Libraries

• Teachers bringing students in to use the library resources

• Teachers asking librarians to review the resources with students teachers asking librarians to discuss the integrity of online sources

• Blocked library time with no teacher present

• If library is the only space in school with computers, it is used as a computer lab

• Others?

Why Collaboration is Difficult

• There isn't enough time to collaborate

• Librarians don't know what teachers are discussing in the classroom

• Lack of Administrative support

• Stereotypical Librarians who don't seek out collaborative endeavors

 How do we clean up

Collaboration's DIRTY image?

We use technology...

•

•

•

Google Chat >>

Google Docs

Twitter

Twitter Lists and Hashtags

Yahoo Pipes

Yahoo Pipes

Yahoo Pipes

Rebecca Brooks, Archivist & Head Librarian

@littlejunkrbrooks@madeira.org

www.madeira.org

Part III:Collaboration in the

Communications Office

Kelly Brown, eCommunications Manager

Collaboration

Main Entry: col·lab·o·rate Pronunciation: \kə-ˈla-bə-ˌrāt\

Function: intransitive verb Inflected Form(s): col·lab·o·rat·ed; col·lab·o·rat·ing

Etymology: Late Latin collaboratus, past participle of collaborare to labor together, from Latin com- + laborare to labor — more at labor

Date: 18711 : to work jointly with others or together especially in an intellectual endeavor

2 : to cooperate with or willingly assist an enemy of one's country and especially an occupying force

3 : to cooperate with an agency or instrumentality with which one is not immediately connected

(source: www.m-w.com)

Who Am I?

• Kelly Brown• eCommunications

Manager, The Madeira School

• 5 years of Development & Alumnae Relations experience

• Created Madeira’s first Facebook presence

• @madeiraschool• @madeiraalumnae• @twobraids• Kelly Larson Brown

Because I wear these hats I am act as a representative of each constituency.

The Madeira School Communications Office

• Two person office responsible for disseminating information to many constituencies

• Provide information in a variety of formats• Creative team• Marketers• Virtual office consisting of every department

Goals of the Communications Office

• We are marketers-the School is our product• “Schools aren’t a business.” But really they are.• Promote Madeira brand “Madeira Girls Have

Something to Say”– This drives all messages–Web was where we launched our brand because it

was where we were most comfortable doing so

What is Madeira Doing?

• “Eyewitness” reporting– Student and faculty reports and review on events

in and out of the classroom– Speakers, curriculum, field trips, projects– Photo stories– Sharing stories on Madeira website, Twitter and

YouTube

Buy In

• Start with faculty that are already providing information to be included online

• Encourage other faculty members to submit their interesting classroom activities

• Be an active participant in school lectures, demonstrations, activities, meetings to gleam information about what may be newsworthy

Buy In (continued)

• Could be any member of the community sharing the information not just the Communications Office

• Only as good as the information you receive

How do you engage users with content?

• Share important events with your constituents– Students earning awards– Visiting speakers, artists, guest– Use web calendar as a tool and share the story on

your homepage (iCal Sync)– Add photos of the event– Share links for additional information– Take advantage of FREE third party applications

such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo, etc.

But…

Benefits• Potential to reach an

‘untapped’ audience• Provide wider audience for

your school• Reaching people in their

comfort zones/networking circles

• Gleam information from users (alumnae, parents, students)

Challenges• Unresponsive colleagues• More important things to

be doing• “Too much in too many

places”• Constantly

changing/updating• “Letting go”-must think

strategically

Twitter Feeds

What’s Next?

• YouTube with new headmistress• Administrative & student blogging• ??? because we are curious and willing we’ll

embrace whatever comes next

Kelly Brown, eCommunications Manager

@twobraids@madeiraschool

@madeiraalumnae

kbrown@madeira.orgwww.madeira.org