Facebook recently modified its ‘Groups’ feature to provide a range of functionality that will certainly help make it more useful to those of us using Facebook within our teaching practice, albeit with a few challenges.

There is some further description in this post by allfacebook.com.  You will see that now, everyone can post links, photos, videos and events. You can also upload and collaborate on a document. Another new feature is the ability to have live group chats. All of these could be great for student groups. BUT…

• group members can add their own friends so, even a closed group can quickly have hundreds of members, which means you will receive lots of emails unless you turn this off via ‘Edit Settings’ on the Group page. This also raises privacy issues as consequently you are sharing posts with complete strangers!
• you can be added to a group by a friend and will automatically be associated with it until you go to that group and remove yourself
• there is nowhere to add a description of the group, or to publicise events – you are only given the option to add posts, which, of course, get hidden as people post to the wall
• the discussion board has been removed

At the moment, Facebook are continuing to support old groups but, if you want to set up a new ‘old style’ group I’m afraid you’ll have to find someone who is willing to donate an unused one.