Monday, July 13, 2015

The Transformational Power of Social Media

We live in a connected world. No longer can we hide behind face-to-face conferences, paper newsletters, and handwritten notes. Families want to be connected to schools. Parents send schools their precious gems. They want to know what is happening. They want to be involved. How do we capatilize on this desire to be connected? 

The book, Why Social Media Matters, written by Kitty Porterfield and Meg Carnes, provides examples of how different schools make connections using technology. On page forty-one, Porterfield provides seven strategies for improving communication using technology. The strategies are: listen first, employees are first customers, segment your audiences, customer services is important, repeat important messages, give permission to fail, and use all available tools. All of these strategies seem simple, yet they combine to create a powerful approach to making connections.

I plan to use the seven strategies as a framework to build connections in my school. Modeling the strategies will also be important. When working with families, students, and staff I will need to remember to process interactions through the lens of the strategies.

This is a book I see myself coming back to and referencing as I continue down the path of educational leadership,

How do you use social media to connect to with your school community?

12 comments:

  1. I really like how you listed out the seven strategies for connecting through technology and how you followed that up with the fact that these are all simple and powerful. It is important for us to help educators see past the newness and the scary thoughts of technology and into how it can benefit students. Great post

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  2. Yours will be a fun journey to follow! Your aura has made a turn for the better! Keep in touch whileon the journey.

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    1. I am glad my aura is better. Thanks for a great two weeks.

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  3. I liked the list of the seven strategies too! I think repeat messages are important!! I get so many emails from my kid's schools, teachers and the office both and it gets hard to keep trac, so I love the many reminders about the important things! You are going to do great!

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    1. A day in the classroom can be very overwhelming. I agree, reminds can be very helpful.

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  4. I see my self also coming back and using this book as a reference until something new comes along. We have to stay tune and see!!

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    1. I hope we use the book to help remind us about great things we can do in our schools.

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  5. I see my self also coming back and using this book as a reference until something new comes along. We have to stay tune and see!!

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  6. Along with my peers, I, too, like the reference to the seven strategies. If we can keep them in mind as we begin our journey into digital leadership, I think that we will be on the right track.

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  7. This should be an interesting journey. I am glad we get to travel parts of it together.

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  8. I felt the same way about this text. It was filled with useful applications and examples. Excellent post!

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