I, like Tony Hurst from OUseful, was surprised to find that both the University of Bradford and the University of Wales Newport had created social networks for new students using Ning.
It will be interesting to see whether Newspace from Newport and Develop Me! from Bradford will flourish or, as AJ Cann predicts in a comment on the OUseful blog, become social networking ghettos. Michael Webb, Head of IT and Media Services at Newport, tells us that early feedback is positive as least:
“So how’s it going? So far, really, really well – in a lot of ways it’s turning out to be one of the most exciting projects I’ve been involved in. Feedback on the site is terrific, so far we’ve over 300 members (we’re only a small institution, and have only invited two schools so far), and the quality and quantity of the communication is amazing! It’s really working – students are using the site to make friends, share their excitement, create their own home pages, reassure one another and ask questions.”
And would it really matter if initial student enthusiasm for these sites does fade? Claire Gibbons, Web Manager for the University of Bradford, made the point at the Institutional Web Management Workshop that even if interest in Develop Me! fades, or users migrate to Facebook or MySpace, before Christmas it will have achieved its purpose of supporting students during that difficult transition from school to university. Moreover, as Brian Kelly points out, Bradford and Newport will have had the opportunity to gather evidence on the use of social networks in higher education at little or no cost to the institution as well.
