Social Networking and Interactivity

Ok, here I am.  Late again on my online journal post.   This time I'm really late.  Dang it. I promise I will not let my social networks distract me from my school work anymore.

Speaking of social networks...that was the topic of our 2nd week's readings.  I promise I did the readings on time and really did get a lot out of them! :)

While many traditional educators are focusing on teaching students how to be safe and be ethical participants in social networks, as a children's museum director, I am focused on how to use social networks to increase attendance and involve museum patrons in our programs.  The potential for museums to use social networks to connect with patrons is amazing. Social networks can be used for more than simply advertising; they can be used to engage museums patrons and encourage ownership in the museum (Vogel, 2011).  The company I work for has official Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube presences and keeps all three updated with happenings in each of the three museum locations.  While the marketing department does control these social network channels, each museum contributes the content that is disseminated online.  Currently we are working on finding better ways to engage patrons and potential patrons.  Social networks are a great way to allow people to participate in their experience in the museums.  Interactivity is a big buzz word among museums.  The idea is that there should be two way communication between the museum and the public and that this communication should definitely steer the direction that museums take when planning exhibits and programming. Social networks provide the perfect venue for this interactivity to take place.

So as I wrap up this "better late than never" post, I just have to say that it feels very weird to move away from the teacher librarian position of teaching my students about how to best use social networks and move into a position that focuses on actually using social networks to engage the young and the old.  For years I have preached to kids about not sharing their full names and other personal information, cyberbullying, and using our school system approved networks for educational purposes.  Then I would try to camouflage lessons and assignments within the school social network and cross my fingers that kids would be motivated and engaged.  Now I'm actually networking and using social networks for authentic purposes and it feels great! Let's not forget, that I'm still using them for personal reasons as well which continuously distracts me from my "real" school work!

Reference
Vogel, C. (2011, March 16). The spirit of sharing. The New York TImes. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/17/arts/design/museums-pursue-engagement-with-social-media.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0