ABSTRACT
CREATIVE RESEARCH PROJECT: Edmodo Social Networking Case Study: Redefining
School Public Relations in a Digital World
STUDENT: Deborah Ross
DEGREE: Master of Arts in Public Relations
COLLEGE: College of Communication, Information, and Media
DATE: July 2014
PAGES: 106
Touch screen tablet computers and mobile devices are making their way into America’s
classroom, innovating education and redefining the teachers’ role in public relations. To help
gain a better understanding of how teachers utilize the Internet and Social Media, a qualitative
study was created to explore the teachers’ approach to strategic communications. This study
examined Edmodo to see if social networking impacts how school organizations should manage
public relations. Edmodo is a free and secure educational website application that allows
teachers and students to instantly communicate online during and after school. Data collected
from this study include teacher emails, surveys and expert interviews to help explain teacher
insight and attitude towards strategic communications and teacher public relations. The results
support James E. Grunig’s (2006) Global Public Relations Theory that modern-day public
relations is moving toward strategic communications management and shifting decision-making
power from the top-down. Findings should help educators better understand social networking
implications on schools and prove beneficial to the practice of public relations in education,
business, not-for-profit and government.