The National School Boards Association in the U.S. has released a research report on the use of online social networking by students, titled Creating and Connecting (caution: it’s a pdf file).

While some of the findings are not surprising, some others are. Here’s a quick take on some of the findings.

Overall, an astonishing 96 percent of students with online access report that they ever used any social networking technologies, such as chatting, text messaging, blogging and visiting online communities…

Staggering as the 96 percent statistic is, it is intriguing to wonder what the other 4 percent is doing. Just e-mail and web surfing?

Further, students report that one of the most common topics of conversation on the social networking scene is education. Almost 60 percent of students who use social networking talk about education topics online and, surprisingly, more than 50 percent talk specifically about schoolwork.

Tempting as this statistic might sound to champions of the social-networking-for-education cause, it may be worth considering that most of the discussions that people have on education could be to do with help on homework and troublesome topics, classical problems that would otherwise get discussed in the college canteen perhaps. It may not mean a new avenue for learning something new – it is just a new medium to get problems shared and solved. That is not to say it is not a good thing, but it may not be much more than that.

Nonconformists—students who step outside of online safety and behavior rules—are on the cutting edge of social networking, with online behaviors and skills that indicate leadership among their peers.

In retrospect this may not sound surprising, but it could be a key insight for parents and teachers. Nonconformists (as defined in this report) are usually considered trouble-makers. May be social networking could be a way to curb their trouble-making tendencies and get them to become opinion leaders for the rest of the pack. This sense of responsibility could just bring them around.

There seems to be a significant difference between how district leaders and parents perceive the value of social networking. Parents seem more positive and have higher expectations, while district leaders are far more skeptical. Both demonstrate optimism, but district leaders are far more guarded.

The report offers some recommendations for school board members as well.

• Explore social networking sites. This is an important recommendation because most often we tend to condemn something without really understanding it.
• Consider social networking for staff communication and professional development. This could well help achieve the previous point as well. It will also serve to integrate students and staff in the networking space.
• Find ways of harnessing the educational value of social networking. This is a seemingly motherhood statement, but it could be worthwhile for teachers to consciously think of projects and assignments to be executed through networking approaches.
• Ensure equitable access. An obvious point, strengthen the access mechanisms for students to technology.
• Pay attention to nonconformists. This has already been touched on earlier in this post.
• Reexamine social networking policies. Another obvious point, come at social networking as an integral component of the education process, not as a diversion.

You can access the 12-page pdf report here. A detailed report is available commercially from Grunwald Associates.