Creating a Professional Web Presence (blog 8)

Whether we are aware of it or not, nearly all of us have a presence on the internet. It's easy to discover what sort of presence you have by simply searching for your name in google. A search of "Keely Spence" yields the following information:
- I am a member on facebook
- I maintain a blog (this one)
Though that may not seem like much information, following up on these two pieces of information can quickly lead to more:

I am a member of the "China" network on facebook, and it's where I grew up. I attend the University of Florida, and am in the college of Education...

All this is accessible in a matter of minutes, and, due to the nature of the importance of technology in the job market today, will be seen by any future employers I may have. Because this is fairly inevitable, it makes sense to take advantage of the opportunity and share information about myself intentionally: creating my own web presence. (click here to see my page, or go to http://sites.google.com/site/keelykspence/)

Having a web presence is a good idea for any individual seeking employment, but it especially is applicable in education. Being a teacher requires a high level of professionalism, but engages an individual's personal life as well, because it involves relationships. A quality teacher establishes good rapport with students and with coworkers, relationships that are personal, but highly professional as well. For this reason, employers desire to be acquainted with multiple aspects of an individual's life, more than appears on a resume. Having a web presence allows a teacher to share personal information easily, giving background and insight into hobbies, interests, and experiences. It also allows for professional information to be be presented in the form of a resume and samples of projects and lessons. The web presence itself is a testament to the capabilities of a teacher in the realm of technological skills. All of these factors make a web presence important for any teacher, and worth teaching to older students as well as they prepare for a greater role in society as working individuals.

This site, the web presence design lab, makes designing an attractive and informative web presence easy: http://www.webpresencedesignlab.com/