I just watched this fabulous ISTE Ignite Presentation by the fabulous Will Richardson and one of the points he makes is to stop asking Google for all the answers.  He says,

Probably one of the most transformative things that happened to me over the last five years is that I don’t go to Google to ask questions anymore, I got to Twitter. I go to a network of people who are really interested in the types of things that I am and can answer my questions better than Google can.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I actually love Google, but I can not agree with Will more. It is so important that we as educators build a Personal Learning Network where we can learn from each other in ways that make use better at what we do.  But I want to add to Will’s advice and say that while Twitter is an awesome place to go to ask questions, there are other fantastic places as well:

Edmodo – Edmodo is full of communities where teachers can connect with other teachers and exchange ideas and recommend content.  In some cases, I’ve found I get answers to some of my questions faster with using Edmodo than I have when asking on twitter.

Nings – A ning is social website that brings like minded people together.  I belong to a couple of nings I find very helpful:

• Classroom 2.0 is a social network for those interested in Web 2.0, social media, and participative technologies in the classroom.  Yup…that’s me.
• Flipped Learning Network – an online community of practice for the flipped classroom educator
• The Educator’s PLN – a ning dedicated to the support of Personal Learning Networks for Educators

Facebook Groups – I belong to an excellent Facebook group called iPad Education Dreams.  My colleague and friend, Lynne Horiuchi, recommended it to me and I’ve found it to be a great resource and a place to ask questions to connected educators.

While it’s important for us to learn where we can find answers to our own questions, we need to teach these skills to our students as well.  Where are they going for their answers?