If you haven’t realized that education has a huge presence on Twitter and Facebook, then you should take a closer look.  Educators, advocates, parents and students are using these platforms to get their voices heard.  They are also sharing experiences, opinions and observations on what needs to change.  Jeff Pulver’s popular #140 conference has now branched into #140Edu to address the relevance of social media, technology and the powerful reach of the communication tools at our disposal.

Hundreds gathered at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan earlier today to hear from experts on the topic and Ruckus Media was glad to be a part of the audience, seeing that educating children is a major initiative for us.   It was a fascinating day, filled with passionate speakers.

Here are a few of our takeaways:

- According to @beccasara, a parent and advocate, who blogged about our apps several months back, stressed the fact that parental engagement means communication.  Once parents are involved, they can advocate.

- @tomwhitby and @web20classroom, the founders of #Edchat, a Twitter chat that brings together 500 educators weekly, stated that social media lends itself to educators, as a way to collaborate.  Twitter became a Professional Development Opportunity” w/ hashtags, like #Edchat, as well as #ptchat and gtchat.

- @InnovativeEdu says that we need to give our students the opportunity to learn through social media. Schools need to set them free and give them a voice.  Students need tools so they can change the world.  Technology is an investment in education.

-@pjhiggins talked about making reading viral.  Create a reading list and ask students to blog their readings. Let their readings go viral. Share buzz books with students and teachers.

- @Inga_Ros talked about how banning social media and outside information is similar to burning books.

-@dcburton said that the first three years of a person’t life are most important for learning.  Children who have parents who are responsive to learning are able to understand four times the number of words.

We loved hearing from impassioned trail blazers in education who share the same goals we do.  Want to hear the amazing speakers online tomorrow?  As the conference continues, you can tune in at http://t.co/8o9hgWB.