Introduction to Ning

An article by Darin Wagner

My introduction to Ning was over a year ago when I was asked to build a social networking site for an upcoming technology conference. Since then, in addition to the conference site, I have created a Ning site for graduate students to explore in a class I teach. There are a lot of things I like about Ning. For example, I can…

adjust the appearance of my network and customize it to my liking
control the membership of my network
choose to make the network public or private
broadcast messages to all members
require approval before member blog posts are published
edit or remove any user content (I have found this very useful especially when trying to organize a site. Sometimes members just put things in the wrong place.)
manage (add or remove) network features such as discussion boards, blogs, photos, videos, and chats easily and quickly
allow members to create their own groups
request an ad-free network for education (such as the graduate class I mentioned previously)
track what happens on the site easily through RSS feeds

If you haven’t yet explored this social networking tool, check it out. You might find that it can be a valuable resource for your classroom or professional learning.

For more information, see these resources published in the Feburary 2008 issue of Tech&Learning.com

Social Networking Resources

Ning | Flexible platform for building your own social network.

How to request ad removal from an Ning education network

Resources for Social Network Safety

Classroom 2.0 | Social networking site focused on Web 2.0 technologies in education.

digizen | Superb online safety site from the UK.

Media Awareness Network | Excellent media literacy study from Canada.

NetSmartz | Comprehensive online safety site, great for children.