Social Media in the Classroom... Via Google +

So... About a week ago, I had no idea what Google + was. I don't think I ever heard it mentioned. Then, my mom (Miss Social Media USA-- *Seriously, if there was a real pageant for this, she would OWN it*) sent me an invite as one of the first groups of people to pilot this new technology. Within seconds of posting this news on Facebook, everyone I knew wanted me to add them to Google +. I got texts from people whose numbers I didn't even have. I got private Facebook messages from those I haven't seen/talked to in years. People started following me around and I had to hire security guards... I was even offered high monetary bribes for an invite. OK-- those last two/three statements were a slight exaggeration...

However, within three days of having it, I had about 30 contacts on this new site that is a lot like Facebook, except with more privacy options. The point is that this is a new technology which I and most of my contacts hadn't even heard of about a week ago, and now, everyone is begging for an invitation. In addition to showing how quickly can change in this social media world and how unpredictable it can be, this could be the beginning of a social media revolution in the classroom. In addition to the platforms it offers, Google + could change student/teacher interactions via social media websites.

Currently, many schools have policies of teachers "friending" their students on Facebook. Some solutions have been to create different websites for classroom questions, Facebook fan pages for the class, or other more complex means of synthesizing the Facebook experience outside the classroom. Google + offers privacy settings that could offer a new solution. When you add someone as a contact on Google +, there are several options. You could have them as a friend, as someone you just want to follow, family member, etc. This means that teachers could use the same Google + account and just share certain information with their students.

Personally, this could also be kind of hard to juggle. Imagine having a conversation with 50 people in one day and remember who you told what to. Although this is my main concern, I feel like it could eventually be something to get used to. Another way Google + makes this more possible is by offering a "View your profile as _______" feature right on your homepage. When in doubt, you can immediately check which information you shared with each group.

I am excited to see how platforms such as Google + will change student/teacher and employee/employer relationships outside the classroom and office these days and how teachers will be able to use these platforms to help bring learning to students when they aren't in the classroom.