New Student Activities: Facebook?

If you haven't noticed Facebook yet, you should. Yet the latest of the ever-more-rapidly-spreading student uses of technlogy, Facebook first seems to be a significant distraction from academic work. Could it be used in some ways to encourage, support, or extend teaching, learning, scholarship, reserach, civil constructive communication and collaboration?

"Facebook is the popular college-based social network Web site. Like MySpace, people can post profiles with pictures, blogs and so forth and let friends within their networks have access to the material. Unlike MySpace, it is something of a closed community, limited to college campuses, high schools, workplaces and geographic regions."

From: "New-Media Richcraft Invites Priceless Comparisons," By Frank Ahrens, Washington Post, Sunday, September 24, 2006; F07
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content
/article/2006/09/23/AR2006092300031_pf.html

Also see "7 Things You Should Know About Facebook " (ID: ELI7017), in the Educause Resource Center at: http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ELI7017.pdf