Networks presentation

transcript

Overview Concepts that work Market Opportunities Questions Resources

Online Social NetworksThree Years of "Teaching Facebook"

Fred Stutzman

School of Information and Library ScienceUNC-Chapel Hill

fred.stutzman@unc.edu

Harambee Net Workshop, July 2010

Outline

1 OverviewINLS 490 at SILS-UNC

2 Concepts that workPhilanthropyPolicy DevelopmentNovel Design

3 Market OpportunitiesJobs and Credentials

Outline

Course Overview

CoursesOnline social networks - 5 semestersRelational perspectives on computer mediatedcommunication - 1 semester

84 students70% graduate, from ILS, CS, Mass Communications30% undergraduate, from IS, Business, Psychology

Materials:http://fredstutzman.com/teaching.html (http://bit.ly/inls490)

Course Evaluation

Data CollectionTime diary of social network site use

Analyzing a Social NetworkHigh level analysis of a wide range of social network sites

Final ProjectStudents have high level of flexibility - system design andevaluation, policy documentation, original researchOriented towards areas of interest, professionaldevelopment

Outline

Philanthropy

Students are inspired by charitable aspects of social mediaE.g. Twestival, Grobanites for charity, KivaWhat are the dynamics of charitable networks? Whatworks, what doesn’t?

How can charities incorporate social media?Functional questions: What kind of tools should charitiesadopt, what policies should guide use of social media?

Personal ideas and projectsHow can students organize on behalf of the charity?What tools are most effective? How do students "message"in personal networks?

Outline

Policy Development

Organizational PolicyPrivacy policies inside and outside the organizationQuestions: Dynamics of privacy within organizationalnetworks, reach of personal disclosures.

Educational policyBest practices for use of social technology in educationQuestions: What networks work? Ning vs. Facebookgroups.

Legislative PolicyBuilding policy feedback loops, informing relevantlegislation

Outline

Novel Design

Applied ResearchContent analysis: Examining discussion threads,comparing organizational propertiesNetwork analysis: Analyzing network properties, examiningtie strength in networks, graphing networks (All can bedone by hand).

Tool DevelopmentExamples: Novel social network sites (e.g. Voicethread),building on existing API (Facebook applications, Twitterapplications).

Documentation DevelopmentStudents wish to "explain" these technologies - to newadopters, within the organization, etc.Development of videos, webpages, online tutorials, etc.

Outline

What are the emergent opportunities for undergraduatesocial media scholars?

Jobs at Facebook, Google, Microsoft? Nice, but hard tocome by.With the growth of the socio-technical phenomenon, theneed for social media professionals move down the stack.

Extant jobs"The Expert" - Organizations seeking students to informstrategy (policy analysts, consultants)"Social media outreach" - Running the Facebook page,TwitterInformation services, technical implementation,entrepreneurship

Skillsets and Credentials

Skill setsBuilding skills: API manipulation and applicationdevelopment, analytics, evaluation, etc.Organizational skills: Privacy, policy analysis anddevelopment, marketing and outreach in networks,business practice integration.

CredentialsOpportunities for CS/IS/Communications ProgramsMinor concentrations in social media API development,privacy in social media.

Downside: Loss-leading, lack of facultyCertificate Programs and Internships

Certificates open doors to students and non-students alikeIncrease opportunities for students to work withorganizations on social media

Questions Going Forward

Content-specific modules - how can we continue thediscussion and development of what motivates students ofsocial media?What supplementary courses do CS/IS students need tobecome the experts, translators, outreach coordinators?Lack of replicability of exemplars - how do we encouragestudents when they can’t replicate successes?

Resources

My courses: http://fredstutzman.com/teaching.html(http://bit.ly/inls490)Website: http://fredstutzman.comTwitter: http://twitter.com/fstutzmanEmail: fred.stutzman@unc.edu