Blake: Work Priorities

Web 2.0 and MySpace have changed the way people communicate online.

Fear of MySpace has, in part, to do with the way the media portrays MySpace: as a website predominately used by teenagers who are at the mercy of dangerous online predators.

First, teenagers are smarter online than the media gives them credit for.

Second, 85% of all MySpace user are over age 18. These are potential future members. Third, in my humble opinion, MySpace is one of the best online democratic tools our civilization has ever experienced. Compared to most other Web 2.0 websites [including Facebook], it is mostly uncensored, open, and primarily controlled by the masses. MySpace is a microcosm of our global society.

Informative videos:

MSN Interview
The Hour

Hawaii State Teachers Association today committed to including and branding GEM in their new Web site design.

They've been added to GEM's database which will allow anyone from Hawaii who visits the site to see HSTA's logo. If they're not a member, then they'll see why they should be!

GenYers—that oh-so-threatening mob that’s invading the work force—are “inherently conservative.”
[excerpt from Penelope Trunk’s blog]

Conservative? Here are four reasons (thanks Penelope!) :

1. They love their parents. Not only do they love their parents, but they want their parents to help them figure out adult life. There is no rebellion. Instead there is helicopter parenting. And there is a near-perfect implementation by GenY of the values their parents told them were important. GenY are hard workers, achievers and rule followers. ...
2. They operate in teams. This is not a generation of mavericks. This is not about self-reliance, it’s about teamwork. But teamwork is inherently conservative because there’s consensus. For example, prom is a group event. And there is not infighting—GenY hates conflict. ...
3. They are not complainers. Baby boomers got their start as people who bucked the system to protect their own interests by protesting Vietnam. Who was fighting the war? Baby boomers. But they hated the war. So they argued against it. Who is fighting today’s war? GenY. And they hate it. But they almost never complain in a large, public way.
4. They are not asking for anything crazy. GenY are really hard workers. They have been working harder in school than any preceding generation. And the pace that they sift and synthesize information puts the skills of their elders to shame. So why complain about the demands of this generation? They are great at work and they want to have work that is meaningful and challenging. …

What’s New?

Another record breaking month for the Gateway with almost 2.5 million hits, lots of new members that are preparing to enter the world of education and a brand new affiliate member!

Welcome Hawaii State Teachers Association! HSTA is another leader in bringing the benefits of the Gateway to educators in their great state.

We at the Gateway thank you and welcome all of our new members from Hawaii!

Future educators are joining the Gateway in droves. The word is out that the Gateway is a powerful tool for finding exemplary lesson plans, a digitized view of state academic standards and at great collaborative tool to share information about what works in education. Check our Who’s Joining the Gateway section for a small sample of the many new members in preparation for a career in education. And, for you that have joined, thanks for helping us spread the word. The Gateway gets better with every new member and the contributions they bring. Remember that as a member of the Gateway you can choose whether your comments on the learning resources you find here are for public view or if you want to keep them for your personal use only. Of course, we encourage you to share but you do have options. It is your Gateway to 21st Century Learning courtesy of your local NEA affiliate organizations!

Campaign involvement continues to pick up momentum—specifically, student and affiliate program coordinators’ requests for hosting CAC events.

After NEA's Student Program Connections conference, we added nearly 200 additional supporters across our two social network campaign sites.

Facebook hosts some 2,508 members while MySpace hosts 88 members. MySpace numbers represent unsolicited joiners or those who have heard about this network via NEA conferences and CAC campus events. I have not had time to solicit membership but this is in the works.

Recent and upcoming product development and CAC events include:

1. Design and print new version of Campaign brochure. Expected to receive new version from printer in two weeks.
2. Reordered stickers
3. Included in CAC materials a summary of the College Cost Reduction and Access Act Summary
4. Shipped or planning to ship CAC kits to four events across US (Alabama, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Colorado).
5. Expand social networks to support event planning—e.g., above CAC Kit requests came from Facebook. This practice will facilitate high-visibility of student involvement and should encourage others to mirror events and learn from one another as questions and ideas for events and goods are posted publicly for all to see. I also post follow-up on shipments, etc. to these networks so others can see follow-up. Rob Bindewald, IL, is working with me to facilitate this process.
6. Continue Anthony’s monthly Vodcast (latest, posted last week prior to Thanksgiving break).
7. Plan CAC video contest. We need to discuss appropriate “contest prize” for winner of this promo. Anthony is thinking scholarship monies. I am unsure about how we would distribute but do believe this is a worthwhile effort to look into.
8. Distribute remaining CAC T-shirts. I don not believe selling these is a good idea. Anthony would like to find a cheaper vendor and reprint shirts for give-a-ways. I’m still researching the cost effectiveness for this. Shirts seem to be popular. But not popular enough for cost recovery.
9. Meeting is set for Dec. 11 at NEA with various external groups to engage them in CAC content and message development.
10. Continue to discern what needs Student program has around creating a CAC video. I believe there is value in continuing to chronicle CAC events over the next six months that can serve as a “how-to” tool for future collective action events.
11. As part of a meeting with GEM principals in early December, strategize methods for leveraging The Gateway to attract new members and commitment to the campaign.
12. Continue efforts to keep CAC Blog updated with content but am still not pleased with this effort. It is not a "blog" as the only content that exists is "repurposed" content. It would be helpful to have a dedicated writer/voice who could post pros weekly. I am planning a redesign of the graphic elements on the blog. I have received some comments from folks that the content is sometimes difficult to read.
13. Coordinate with PR to include monthly CAC updates in State Editors email blast

[online @ Ragans' eNews Stand]

by Shel Holtz

Many companies have opposing views on the usage of social networking sites at work. Thus, some companies are blocking sites all together and others are promoting their use. Read on to find out which side Shel is on…

There seems to be a case of split personality going on in a lot of companies. On the one hand, the blocking of social media sites continues apace. On the other hand, the adoption of social media in the enterprise is also on a growth spurt.

McAfee, the security company, is out with a study that concludes that one-third of bosses block employee access to music downloading sites like iTunes, to dating sites. One quarter block access to sites like YouTube. More than half wish they could block access to social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, but only 20% have taken the step. McAfee suggests the rest have resisted because the sites are actually used for work-related communication. Kudos to McAfee Avert Labs Security Strategist Toralv Dirro, who tossed off this wonderful quote:

“The lines between work and play are blurring … but putting fair-usage policies in place and educating people on how to be safe on these sites is the most realistic option.”

That’s pretty enlightened for a security software company. It’ll be a cold day in hell before we hear similar quotes from the fear mongers at Websense.

According to surveys from Barracuda Networks, two-thirds of companies plan to restrict access to the Net over the next year, an increase of nearly 23% over this year. About half of the company’s customers already block access to social networking sites (25% block just MySpace, 6.3% block just Facebook, and 19.3% block both).

Meanwhile, the prospects for adoption of social media behind the firewall as part of a company’s intranet seem to be gaining momentum. SocialText secured $9.5 million in venture capital from its existing investors concurrent with the arrival of former Adobe and Cisco exec Eugene Lee as the company’s new CEO. (Founder Ross Mayfield is sticking around as president and chairman.) Ferris Research analyst David Ferris told InternetNews “There is a strong interest in wikis in corporate environments, and most tools don’t give you the features Socialtext offers, like access controls, which are really important in the corporate space.”

There’s more: The Radicati Group has projected the market for “business social software” at $920 million this year, growing to $3 billion in four short years.

At some point, companies are going to have to come to terms with the fact that networks cross organizational boundaries and that open access—governed by clearly-communicated policies—will produce benefits that far outweigh the costs and risks. Companies that understand this sooner—like Serena Software, which has embraced Facebook as a resource for employees—are likely to gain a competitive edge over those businesses too busy quaking in their boots over the bogus issue of lost productivity.