Engaged followership in virtual learning communities

Cross-posted at Ning in Education

Recently Steve Hargadon started a fruitful discussion about the future of Classroom 2.0. Many good suggestions and ideas emerged, and some have been acted upon in hopes of making this growing community less unwieldy and more sustainable. Most of the discussion centered on the moderator, and I learned a lot about what that role entails should I ever be in the position to lead and facilitate a community.

However, vital communities need good followers too. So I would like to extend the discussion and ask this question: What are the roles/responsibilities/expectations for individual members within virtual learning communities?

Any and all comments from the old guard as well as the newbies would be greatly appreciated, as this informs my research into virtual communities and how they might be used to support mentoring of new/novice teachers in large, diverse, public school settings.

And just to be clear, I am not seeking codes of conduct, netiquette, or guidelines for appropriate use. Instead, I am thinking of the minimal expectations for participation and attitude to ensure a meaningful learning experience within the network (in addition to a safe, ethical and responsible one). Followership requires a certain amount of practice, commitment, and discipline. What are those habits and disciplines? Here are some ideas I've already gleaned: 1) If possible, create a profile and add a thumbnail photo of yourself so other members will be more inclined to connect with you. 2) Aggregate RSS feeds so you are aware of new posts and replies that might be relevant to you. 3) Use the forum as a place to post questions and engage with others with similar interests and backgrounds.

Please share your ideas based on your experiences here at Classroom 2.0 or within other networks.

Tags: pd, socialnetworking

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Permalink Reply by James Folkestad on November 12, 2007 at 4:26pm

Jennifer,

Here is another one that I learned while teaching my class.
4. Search the social network for similar posts to yours - prior to posting your question.

Again, thanks for your feedback.

James

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Permalink Reply by Nancy Bosch on November 12, 2007 at 4:43pm

I've mentioned this before--but I wonder if teachers in my district would get as much out of a social network as they could for fear of retribution. I just can't imagine them conducting a real dialog in a "public" space.

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Permalink Reply by Konrad Glogowski on November 12, 2007 at 7:25pm

Jennifer,

I believe that these professional development networks are based upon sharing and ongoing conversations.

I think that a network such as this one demands that we share our experiences and resources. In other words, a lurker is not likely to benefit from what happens here, at least not as much as an active contributor. These communities are not like books that can be perused. Rather, they are places where knowledge is co-constructed by the participants and emerges from conversations. The more we share, probe, and explore, the deeper and more meaningful the conversation becomes.

I also agree with you that creating a welcoming and interesting presence in the form of our profile page is another important aspect. I've been observing how important this is to middle school students and even documented my experiences on my blog. Ever since I became a Ning member, I've observed that having a personal space that reflects who we are is also important to adults.

http://www.teachandlearn.ca/blog/2007/07/19/21classes-and-personali...

- Konrad