ARGs in Education

I’ve recently joined Facebook, after being sent a link to see something funny someone had posted on it about three weeks ago.

Since, then I have been hooked. The pleasure is not *really* gained from presenting yourself, like MySpace or a blog, but rather getting in contact with old friends, and networking with other, like-minded people (in my case, people who enjoy Bear Grylls and Labyrinth) and letting the world know what you’re up to now, and in the future. I’ve noticed that there is an element of competition in getting friends – indeed, a colleague and I compare numbers every morning.

It is a very public way of communicating, and a function known as the wall displays public conversations, which left unchecked could cause problems, say for example, if a prospective employer want to find out more about you. I don’t know if this is an urban myth or not, but I know its something I would do, if I was in that position.

So, Facebook and educational resources…I’m not sure. It would be good to use some of the functionality in a controlled setting for a relevant subject, but using the software as it stands throws up issues of ownership and control. While it’s fun, I don’t think it would necessarily add any more value a blog would. It doesn’t mean it isn’t good fun, and doesn’t have a place in education at all. It would be quite interesting if each school had a site, but what would be different to a specialised VLE? Not much.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 30th, 2007 at 4:33 pm and is filed under Educational resources, Web 2.0. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.