Who knew that bookmarking could be more than for your own personal use? More than a feature on your web browser for organizing and storing links to information? Not I. But through my “first steps” in exploring social bookmarking sites, I have come to realize that bookmarking can be so much more.
As illustrated in Wikipedia, “social bookmarking is a method for Internet users to organize, store, manage and search for bookmarks of resources online”. As a creature of habit, I have always been inclined to reach for the “favourites” tab on my web browser to store important websites. I am now slowly (but surely) realizing that this needs to change. Last week, when attempting to do some research online at work (because I was unable to access the internet at home due to poor weather), I came to a standstill when I needed to retrieve a bookmark... that I had saved on my computer at home. Not only did I have to relocate but now I wasn’t able to carry on with the research as I had hoped. Very frustrating to say the least. With the online capability of a social bookmarking site, I would be able to access this information anytime, anywhere (as long as I can get internet access). And what about their other capabilities? A closer look at two social bookmarking sites has shed some light here as well.
This past summer when taking an online course, we were encouraged to try using either Diigo or Evernote as a means to collecting links for resources. Having had heard Diigo mentioned in passing, I decided to check it out. From what I recall, the initial set up process was relatively easy and had video tutorials for getting started. With a simple download of the Diigo toolbar (including the Diigolet), I was ready to begin. Features such as highlighting and adding sticky notes to bookmarks were intriguing. I also liked that I could “tag” sites with keywords that would help in organizing and searching for specific information. But what else could Diigo offer? What about the “social” aspect of the site? Time to dig a little deeper.
The thought of sharing my bookmarks with others and accessing theirs in return had never occurred to me. But as Will Richardson explains, “what these services do that’s social is take all of the entries that are tagged the same way and connect them, and then connect all of the people who posted those links in the first place.” He carries on to say, in essence, “you’re creating your own community of researchers that is gathering relevant information for you.” Wow. Tagging has suddenly taken on new meaning! Through thoughtful labeling of the content of the resources, I am able to reach out to others that have identified similar tags.. and vice versa.
In a more controlled setting, the “Groups” feature seemed appealing in that I could share bookmarks with a specific group of people that I could invite personally. As a trial, I created a group whereby fellow teachers are invited to join and help in developing a collection of resources common to our needs and interests.
We often find ourselves wishing that we had media literacy resources to work with. Well, Media Literacy Week is in November... why not put Diigo to the test and work together to find some ideas for meeting educational aims.
And then there is Evernote. Although I was initially skeptical as to how helpful Evernote may be (due to comments made in my summer course), I wanted to find out for myself just what it was all about. From initial browsing, it seemed that downloading the program was a recommended option. Although it did take some time, and I was not able to access the bookmarking “clipper” feature, I “noted” that the main page seemed fairly easy to navigate. The notebook feature appeared elaborate (unlike Diigo that was quite basic) in that you could create lists, change font type, size, colour and more. Search options, including tagging, also seemed quite extensive. When I figured out how to bookmark sites (through a Windows 7 feature), I was pleasantly surprised to find that the actual link could be viewed to the side of the link itself. In my mind, this visual feature is a bonus. And speaking of bonuses, I also like that I am able to retrieve my information on Evernote, even if I do not have internet access (which does happen occasionally). But other than sharing information through direct email, I was not able to find a way of linking to the greater community.
So where to go from here?
With the increase in the need to find a tool that will help in the searching, organizing and managing of information, particularly for my professional learning, I firmly believe that social bookmarking tools are the answer. With the combined elements of bookmarking, note taking, and sharing, all located in one space, accessible from any computer with online access, I will be one step closer to accessing information more readily. This also leads me to think that those with mobile devices such as iPads and iPhones must find tools such as these a wonderful asset. Seeing we do not have such devices, the personal benefits may not be as significant (yet). In the meantime, I will continue to "play" with both Diigo and Evernote to see where they will take me.
As a teacher, I can see this being a valuable tool, not only for managing my own professional research and notes, but as a means to reaching out to other teachers both in my immediate surroundings and beyond. Working in a Grade 5/6 classroom, the students too may benefit from having access to a Diigo account. When researching, they may store all of their bookmarks in one place, again that may be accessed from any computer. Group accounts may also be created where they share their findings with one another. Here’s an example of two students reinforcing their benefits...
Another tool which may prove to be valuable in the classroom (both for myself and the students), is called Shelfari. Will Richardson defines it as a social bookmarking tool, " ...that allows you to create an online catalog of all of the books in your physical library, and then lets you add notes, descriptions, and, you guessed it, tags that describe what they are about.” In essence, the students may write book reviews and are able to find recommended books that suit their interests.
As with many of the other tools I have explored, privacy is an issue of concern. Atlhough the social bookmarking tools I investigated have the option of private viewing, opening the doors beyond our small community would help us gain insight and perspective, and help us learn from others... in my mind, the true meaning behind bookmarking “socially”.
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