Evaluating Social Networking Tools for Distance Learning

Abstract

Debates rage about the appropriateness of using social networking in teaching, with arguments ranging from waste of time and distraction from academic goals to needed to reach net generation students. This paper explores a range of current social networking choices and argues that like any tool, it should carefully evaluated in terms of affordances and course goals. Several different tools are reviewed, and questions that might be useful for evaluation are discussed. An example of using a social networking tool, Ning, in an online class is reported.