Social networking is a hot topic for many students.  Five years ago, email was the top way for students to keep in touch with each other.  Up to a year ago, Skype and MSN messenger (or AIM, America Online's version) were the popular ways to network.  Now  Orkut, Myspace and Facebook lead the way.  Facebook is regularly in the top five of the world's most-accessed web sites.



I teach students from Asia, Europe and South America (ages 15 to 45) and I try to keep in touch with students after class and after they leave our school.  Many of them are in the USA for three or four months and they often want to keep in touch with the teacher on weekends for a variety of reasons:
a)  Some students find themselves in Orlando or Key West and they want some tips on "what to see and do"
b)  Some students like to stay in touch with the classes after their stint in our school
c)  Diligent students want feedback on their writing, so I urge them to write to me.  I can mark their essays while I watch TV (and my typing is easier to read than my handwriting).

I noticed about a year ago that many students from Brazil use Orkut (a social networking system developed by Google), students from Korea prefer Cyworld.com and most students from Europe use Facebook.com. I opened an account on Facebook and I developed the following observations and tips for my colleagues about the use of Facebook in the classroom.

Tips
1.  Facebook is easier than email.  Students and teachers find it engaging way to interact.  Why not participate?   I might have six students named "Jin," but each has a different profile photo – so it's easier than email to identify a way to contact them.  It's not an effort for most students to look at my messages.

2.  Facebook can encourage the practice of writing.  The short messages that I write to my students stimulate them to write short replies. 

3.  Facebook is more reliable than email.  Students might check their email three times a week.  They'll check their facebook page three or four times a day.

4.  Facebook gets through (and my email might be called spam).  When I send a bulk message by email to fifteen students, my message is treated as junk mail by many programs.  Facebook allows me to send my message quickly to groups of my students on Facebook.

5.  Facebook encourages interactions.  When a new students join a class, I can quickly get the students integrated with the rest of our class by link the new students with other students on Facebook.  By becoming Facebook "friends," the real-life friendships actually grow more quickly. 

6.  Facebook can be used for language practice.  If the student switches the web site's language into English, then the user can practice reading English.  Too often students prefer to communicate in their native language.  I encourage them to make the switch while they are in school.

7.    Facebook's "applications" are more than games.   Applications are ways to enhance skills of presentation and persuasion.  I ask each student to create a "fan group"  (facebook.com/groups/create.php) for their favorite applications or for their favorite musicians.  I ask them to find a fun application and then teach us how to master it (Knighthood, Yagura, Green Patch and Blue Cove are some of my favorites).
8.    Facebook has competition.  Since there are other forms of social networking, the students in my classes have an opportunity to compare the different versions.  Many Brazilian students prefer Orkut.com (the network developed by Google), Thai students like hi5.com and Koreans use cyworld.com.  In a mixed classroom, students can make presentations about their favorite networking software and then compare the pros and cons of each.



Warnings
1.  The games look like games!  Without guidance and structure, the use of these applications can quickly turn into a party.  It helps to have a list of target vocabulary and a list of steps and goals for each session with an application.

2.    Many applications are repetitive and annoying.   The idea behind many applications on Facebook is to encourage interactions:  give a present and receive one, or invite more friends to participate in the activity.  The repeated requests for participation disturbs many "friends" and encourages discussion groups to collect "friends" only for racing virtual cars (Eco Racer) or keeping fish (in an activity called "Blue Cove").  These applications may distract from language learning.
3.    Facebook is addictive.  Look out:  Once students know that you like Facebook, you might find dozens of messages.  You might find it easier to keep in touch with students through Facebook than through email.  You might find it fun to assign homework via Facebook. 
4.    Some students don't want to get on Facebook.  My Brazilian students prefer Orkut.com, so I used to end up doubling the time I spent uploading photos and videos to my accounts.  To avoid this, I reserve time in the media lab of our school and pair European and Brazilian students.  The Brazilians show the Europeans some movies that I posted on my Orkut account, and then students with Facebook show movies that I posted on my Facebook account.   
5.  Facebook's movies must be shorter than two minutes.  At first, this limitation appeared to be a liability (since many of my teaching "video moments" on youtube.com are between three and five minutes).  But it turned out to be a godsend, since most of my students have a short attention span.  Our school chose to block youtube.com (because it was a distraction to learning), so anything I put on my Facebook account gets looked at by most of my students who have a Facebook account.

To close this article, here's an example of a handout that I use when I want to introduce new vocabulary through a Facebook activity called Yagura.

Handout:  Yagura
Hello, Student.   This activity begins in your FACEBOOK account.  If you don't have a facebook account, you can register or you can work with a student who has a FACEBOOK account.
1.    Click on FRIENDS tab
2.    Scroll down to Find People
3.    Type your teacher's email address (connected to a facebook account) and click "Search"   
4.    Click on "Add as Friend"
Then tell the teacher that your invitation has been sent.  (The teacher needs to accept you as a friend). 

Next, look for the reply from the teacher.   You will receive an invitation to join Yagura.  You will need to accept the activity ("allow access"). 
[If you are impatient, you can SEARCH for "Yagura" in the Search box on your Facebook account.  Select the first "Yagura" in the list and ACTIVATE the activity.]

Read the instructions (HOW TO PLAY)
Click on the first game (how to cook tempura shrimp). 

VOCABULARY practice  (do you know all of these words?)
 
Gift coupon
flour
clicking the "rearrange food" tag
live prawn tempura
dragging it
according to the number of finished dishes
slice
dice
grill
grind
mash
smash
chop
cube
scramble
boil
broil
roast
pour
sprinkle
blend
pot
wok
pan
a hot pad
a trivet
a spatula
a blender
a ladle
 

When you are finished with the first game, send food to your facebook friends, including the teacher.
If you still have time before the end of the class, you can try a second activity (preparing noodle soup).
How many points do you get when you send food to a friend?   _________

Work with your partner and correct the errors in these sentences:
============== 
You have cook the shrimp AFTER you put it in the flour
You must to type your password there.
He tell us to sent him the food after we finish one game.
Which score is more worse, the noodles or the shrimp?





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Steve McCrea teaches in a language school in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.  His articles on technology and ESOL instruction are available by contacting him at freeenglishlessons@gmail.com.