I am on Facebook, and while it started as strictly personal, I've noticed that it has been morphing recently. I am starting to "like" more professional pages, and I'm not sure whether it's because there are simply more of them, or I'm becoming more familiar with using them. I still limit my "friends" on Facebook to people with whom I am actually friendly: I do not just add anyone and everyone. Also, anyone I "friend" on Facebook has to be someone with whom I am comfortable sharing my non-professional side. As such, I would never, ever, "friend" a parent of any student, a student, or an administrator. It can get sticky, and I don't want to go there.
I do think, however, that Google+ has a distinct advantage in this area. I LOVE that people can be categorized into circles for two reasons. 1) Sometimes I have something to say that is for my library and teacher friends, and my other friends could care less and 2) I don't particularly care to know every detail of everyone's life, either. Does that sound mean? I'm just trying to de-clutter! :)
I am really not interested in LinkedIn. Maybe if I have to search for a new job someday? For now I don't really see the purpose. The other networks listed were pretty interesting, although some were a bit cumbersome. One network not mentioned that I absolutely LOVE is the TeacherLibrarian Ning. It is a really helpful resource for almost any question you might have. During the school year, the groups are fairly active as well.
Overall, I think the potential for awesomeness with online networks is pretty high, but sometimes they just fall short of my (perhaps too lofty?) expectations. My ideal professional network would allow me to connect with both my teacher and librarian colleagues - on a micro (building or district-level) as well as a macro (region, state, national, international level). I am thinking the Google+ circles could work really well here! It would encourage, generate, and facilitate discussion on a variety of current educational topics, including those related to the library field. I know I'm kind of asking for a lot here, but I just decided to have a bit of fun with it. :)
I really, really like Google+ circles too. The Google folks really took time to see what was lacking on FB and fill the niche. I use lists over at FB, but they don't work the same way for sharing (though they do make it much easier to catch up with a group's posts). I have friended a few parents (those that I work closely with as volunteers have made the leap from pure parent to parent/friend), though I don't friend students at all. I'm off to check out Teacher Libraian Ning. Thanks for sharing!
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