1. Using Social Networking in School Psychology
Robyn B. Sullivan
Lauren E. Sproull
Linda A. May
Burlington School District

2. Overview of Presentation
History and background of social networking services
NASP communities
Using socially based sites professionally
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn: The social networking service for professionals

3. Social Networking Services
Online service, platform, or site
Focus on building social networks and relations
Shared interests
Shared activities
Real-life connections

4. History of Social Networking Services
Early to mid 1990s
Chat rooms
User created websites
“Modern” social networking sites
Began late 1990s
Allow users to create individualized profiles and find “friends”

5. NASP Communities Social networking sites exclusively for NASP members
Based on interests/professional level
Documents become searchable materials
Able to get updates
Unlikely to be blocked by school-district servers

6. Facebook Developed in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg
Largest social networking service
150 million users in the United States
900 million users worldwide
Features
User profile and “wall/timeline”
“Friends”
Share photos/videos/links/articles
Events
News-feed
Groups
Fan pages

7. Facebook: Benefits and Challenges
Networking opportunities
Easy to find users
Professional fan pages
Facilitates communication
Challenges
Students/parents also use facebook
May be difficult to separate social from professional
May be viewed as more impersonal/informal
Generally blocked on school district servers

8. Twitter
Social networking service that provides opportunity for micro-blogging
140 millions users
Publicly introduced in 2006
Can “follow” the tweets of others

9. Twitter: Benefits and Challenges
Receive updates from professional organizations
“Retweet”
Easy way for School Psychologists to communicate information quickly
Challenges
Limited scope/features

10. Using Social Sites Professionally: Facebook and Twitter “Netiquette”
Set your privacy settings
Check frequently
Be mindful of posts
Appropriateness
Confidentiality
Misrepresentation
Use features appropriately (chat, “pokes”)
Beware of photos

11. LinkedIn Professional networking site Launched in 2003
Worldwide 150 million users
Features
Resume
Picture
Recommendations
Groups
Follow companies
Search for/post jobs

12. LinkedIn: Benefits and Challenges
Professionally focused
Easy to request recommendations
Can post pictures, resume, skills and experience
Can join groups and follow companies
Facilitates communication with professionals
Provides centralized portfolio of business contacts
Can find information for potential employers/employees
Challenges
Less personal
Not as many users as Facebook
Cannot directly post comments (need to connect through Twitter)

13. For more information: Information from NASP on Social Networking:
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NASP Communications (includes tips to starting your own webpage):
NASP Communities:
Facebook:
Twitter:
LinkedIn: