Ive talked a lot on this blog about the ways various social media tools can be used for student collaboration and knowledge production, most of the time as a neutral observer. This week, though, I found myself thrown into the...

Its that time of year again - the winners of the annual Edublog Awards have been announced. And despite the name having the word blog in it, the awards cover a whole range of educational projects, Social Networking, including wikis, social networks...

This afternoon, a federal grand jury indicted Lori Drew, the woman at the heart of the Megan Meier tragedy. The indictment is a major turning point in the cyberbullying suicide case that shocked the nation....

In a June 14 article for CNET News, Stephanie Olsen examines whether online social networks like MySpace are here to stay or are a passing d. The article, which looks at the issue mostly from a business perspective, suggests the...

We all know that Internet filtering policies have the best interest of students in mind. But what are we sacrificing when we dont allow educators to override filters at their own professional discretion? Its something Ive asked myself over the...

For those of you who have just started hearing a lot of press about MySpace, it turns out theres more catching up to do, according to the Wichita Eagle news: [T]he biggest social-networking spot may not stay on top for...

MediaWiki, the wiki tool used by Wikipedia and thousands of other wiki sites around the world, just got a lot more powerful. The for-profit companion project to Wikipedia announced this week that they were releasing free tools that will allow...

A Canadian student learned yesterday that he wont be expelled after all. What egregious crime did he commit on campus? He coordinated an online study group using Facebook....

The National School Boards Association has released a new report on student use of social media tools. The report contains a multitude of findings that have already started an online debate about the role of social networking in the classroom....

A drama unfolded on the messaging service Twitter last week after a bipolar woman posted a note that she intended as a joke, but was perceived by some people as a threat against her child. Soon, police were at her...

In the first major Supreme Court decision on student free speech in almost a generation, the Court ruled against a student who was suspended for displaying a banner with drug-related messaging just off the school campus. What does the ruling...

Its been just four days since word got out about the Digital Online Predators Act of 2006 (DOPA), the legislation that would require all schools and libraries receiving federal Internet subsidies to filter online social networks and other interactive websites....

Its that time of year, kids - were going back to school. (Okay, Im not going back to school, but millions of educators and students are, so theres a good chance this applies to you.) In honor of the start...

Tonight on PBS, the investigative documentary series Frontline will take a close look at the behavior of young people online. If youre expecting yet another sensationalized news piece about the dangers of online predators, you wont find it here. What...

A new report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project examines the percentage of teens that have received unwanted contacts from strangers over the Internet. And I cant say Im surprised by their finding that certain behaviors - such...

In recent months, theres been a surge in interest regarding the social networking site Facebook. Much of the attention is due to Facebooks decision to allow any user to create their own software applications that can run inside the social...

This Friday - March 30th - has been declared Stop Cyberbullying Day - by me. Im hoping to get as many people, bloggers and nonbloggers alike,new york asian escorts talking about cyberbullying, because its spinning out of control. Just ask blogger Kathy Sierra....

The end of 2006 also marks the end of the current congressional session in the House and Senate, closing the door on the Deleting Online Predators Act. Lets take a look at why this legislation, which passed overwhelmingly in the...

Just when you thought you could avoid yet another educational controversy breaking out on MySpace, a teacher in suburban Washington DC is finding herself in hot water for comments she wrote on her MySpace blog, and the online discussion with...

With all the bad press that MySpace has gotten over the last year, its easy to overlook how its rival social network Facebook has become a staple communications tool in higher education. The Christian Science Monitor took notice earlier this...

Yesterday, the US House of Representatives unexpectedly moved forward in voting on the Deleting Online Predators Act, or DOPA. This legislation, proposed on May 9 of this year, would require all schools and libraries receiving federal Internet subsidies known as...

A recent study suggests that many young people who use MySpace are more responsible online than conventional wisdom might suggest. Lets take a peak at what teens are doing - or arent doing - with their MySpace pages....

A new report on parents attitudes towards their childrens media consumption suggests that parents are doing more than ever to promote online safety. Is that actually the case, or do we just feel like were doing a better job?...

This week, noted Internet safety experts Larry Magid and Anne Collier launched BlogSafety.com. The website is intended to be an online social network about online social networks - and how to ensure that teens use them safely....

This week, the USC Annenberg School published a major study on the impact of the Internet on American society. Their research suggests that the online world is becoming equally important to people as the offline world - and its affecting...

A New Jersey lawsuit between an HMO and a mily whose daughter was denied insurance coverage for her anorexia may not sound like the kind of thing youd read about on this here blog. But the legal tactics being used...

Even though MySpace seems to be on every politician and parents hit-list, a growing number of educators are staking their own claim on the online social network. We already know how those politicians and parents would react, but what about...

Last week, the U.S. Senate held a committee hearing regarding childrens online safety and what steps need to be taken to prevent predatory behavior. Interestingly, much of the testimony emphasized the importance of online safety education over the use of...

Just when you thought the media circus around MySpace had peaked comes this whopper of a story: members of Congress have proposed new legislation that would require schools and libraries to block access to online social networks. As reported by...

A new study out this week suggests that todays college students are more self-centered than ever before. The question I keep asking myself, though, is why so many people are blaming MySpace and oSocial Networking PBS Teachersther social media tools for this apparent...

The official text of the bill to replace the Deleting Online Predators Act has been published, and it goes beyond the scope of the original legislation, addressing child ography, cyberbullying and childrens privacy. Lets take a look under the hood...

Visitors to the PBS Teachers website will see something new today. Its called PBS Teachers Connect, and its the first step in bringing social networking to the website....

Every teacher and parent should read the article in todays Washington Post about the California high school student whos become an online celebrity, from MySpace to YouTube. Who she is and how she got in this predicament, however, probably isnt...

A pre-service teacher has been denied obtaining her teaching degree because her MySpace profile featured a photo of her with an alcoholic beverage in hand, including the caption Drunken Pirate. Pirate or not, shes suing the university, and generating a...

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