Educational Uses for Twitter

Educational Uses for Twitter

Twitter.com can be seen as another digital manifestation of prosperity in a post-modern culture; another mindless endeavor in the social/recreational sort with no redeeming value.  Yet, the enterprising and crafty minds of the age have directed this technical diversion to become a useful tool for learning.  Empirical data to prove has not yet been gathered, but there is clear reason to consider Twitter a learning tool.

Twitter has redeeming value due to several features that make it unique.  It is an asynchronous medium of computer-mediated communication.  It has a personal dynamic as well as the capacity for educational and professional interaction that create a defined network.  Following individuals in a particular field of study can give you insight into the profession as well as recent developments in research in the area.  Twitter’s accessibility is a wonderful feature; be it via internet or cellular device.   An individual may follow or set up entities that can be followed; in this context, it would be a class.  Widgets can be attached to Web pages so Twitter can be linked to a site and notifications can appear there.

 

http://www.cooper-taylor.com/blog/2008/08/50-ideas-on-using-twitter-for-education/

This blog site reflects some of the basic twitter etiquette as well as protocol for the maximizing results in the social aspect of developing community.   A college instructor in the medical field, she provides a very practical guide for getting things started for a teacher who is desiring but reluctant to use digital tools in their lessons or classroom.   Easy to read and down-to-earth, the tips and instructions offered give a clear rationale for how each step helps in developing twitter aptitude and a productive response from others. Her insight is validated by her professional development in conjunction with the parallel development of Web technology.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WPVWDkF7U8

A quite insightful and engaging perspective of how Twitter is being used to create interaction in the classroom.  University of Texas at Dallas professor uses Twitter for in-class discussion via the interface.  She marvels at the response that is generated when students actually respond to her discussions via tweet.  This fosters greater depth and breadth in subject relevant discussions.  Many ideas are generated, many of which would not emerge in a typical class discussion.  This removes the fear and intimidation of the large group dynamic.  Students are required to condense their thoughts to something concise for clarity as they are limited to 140 words.   It is evident that skills needed for a truly genuine conversation or  a presentation in a formal setting are not a consideration.  Nonetheless, this professor should be commended for her intrepid spirit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OxIz_3o3O0&NR=1

Under the sponsorship of the University of Minnesota, students at Roosevelt High School are using all digital tools in their classes.   The classroom teacher maintains the same focus on the content, it just communicated in a more palatable means in the classroom.   Students use laptops and twitter to actualize the material.  Seems to be engaging to the students, which is a key point that the promoters of this University program are embracing.  Teachers and students seems to enjoy and testify to increased engagement. 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZl5GQfY6kk&feature=related

Chicago instructors at Columbia College use twitter for a class tool because of the many facets it offers in terms of access.  This video outlines the micro-blogging features of Twitter; posting format, functionality of access, posting variations, etc.  The “following” feature is also explained in detail to clarify the arrangement of who would be able to view whom.

 

https://tle.wisc.edu/solutions/engagement/50-ways-use-twitter-classroom

Another 50 ways to use twitter-seems more engaging and applicable for the classroom teacher.

 

http://tbarrett.edublogs.org/2008/03/29/twitter-a-teaching-and-learning-tool/

British educator Tom Barrett offers reflection with clarity revealing perspective on Twitter being valuable to him as a teacher.   In professional connections, establishing fruitful and enlightening relationships all over the world.  Its value in the classroom is significant, although not exclusively most valuable.  Quite aptly, Twitter is that middle ground between email and IM communication.  It does have the capacity for both so it remains the median.  Tom Barrett continues by reflecting on Twitter as a river with many interacting with it as such, a moving body of water.  Those in the vicinity have the option of “getting in.”   Concluding, the networking capacity for this medium is the most rewarding aspect. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Educational Uses for Blogging (Con't)

https://mywebspace.wisc.edu/avee/blogstoteach/ 

This practical site gives helpful information about the use of blogs for teachers.   The author has made an efficient delivery in regard to the blog from basic definition to the ethical issues faced when using this medium.    The content on this site is another confirmation that blogging builds literacy skills. Beyond that, several researchers have pointed out that blogging as a tool develops the writing process in another way that is appropriate for the digital world that students live and will need to thrive in.  Additionally, the article defines three different types of literacy that are developed when students engage in meaningful blogs.  All three literacy forms; functional, rhetorical, and critical provide students with what is needed for success in the digital age.  The blog also will form a natural network that creates collaboration and is conducive to meaningful peer review.

http://theedublogger.edublogs.org/

This article is reader friendly and is quite practical.  Though it is not cerebral in tone, it a useful in providing the blogger with help for making the blogging experience a successful one.  The content discusses the difficulty with cutting and pasting from Word, various copyright issues regarding images used, uploading images, linking, and copying other posts.   Every one of the five items listed had a link that expanded in depth to discuss the origins and the reasoning behind the issue addressed. 

http://www.techteachers.com/keynotes1.htm

Information shared in this web site covers many available digital tools that students use primarily for social and recreational purposes.  The most valuable aspect of this article is that the author shares the perspective of how student in the classroom today engages in a customized experience that spans all parts of their recreational life.   Subject matter is broad discussing Facebook,  MySpace, podcasting,  and Club Penguin among others. The author shares openly and honestly about the state of being a “digital immigrant” when she visits Second Life.  The insight is a valuable reflection of the new world teachers must learn to navigate to be successful in the digital age.  It clear that the teacher is at a disadvantage and must learn quickly.  Students are no longer observers in a passive stance; they have been conditioned to participate.  When it comes to the use of the blog, it must be considered as a useful tool that the student can participate in much like their world is currently.

 

 

 

 

Educational Uses for Blogging

The blog is a fascinating and personally manageable tool used to engage and discuss relevant topics of interest.  Consider it the faster and more interactive "little brother" to the opinion/editorial/commentary page of the newspaper with a more defined focus.  In this present digital age, this form of interaction and engagement is a tool that has various benefits to the classroom teacher.  It is yet another blow to the already crippled and terminal print media.

Books are no longer the engaging resource they once were.  A heavy, aging, and often tattered text cannot compete with the personal digital assistant better known as a cellphone that weighs in at a svelt 4 ounces.  This is just one of the many manifestations of the shift in technology that is occurring.  The blog is another way by which teachers can use new means to convey skills relevant to academic success.  In the area of literacy, which is the foundation of all academic pursuits, the classroom instructor is faced with attempted to promote essential skills in reading and writing.  Also, there is an increased need to unite literacy skills with digital know-how to prepare students for a future that is quite unpredictable.

The following are several enriching resources that will benefit the classroom instructor:

http://jthornsberry.pbworks.com/f/Blogging%20in%20the%20Classroom%20Paper.pdf

David Huffaker’s explores the necessity for blogging as a tool to develop literacy.  His premise is that literacy is nurtured through the most personal and reflective form of writing; the story.  Storytelling is critical to not only for self-expression but to increase in collaborative work.   As part of the digital youth culture, blogging can be useful to increase literacy as a tool used by those who are motivated by areas of interest.  Building on the familiar activity of storytelling, Huffaker expounds on the fact that the story is not lost but continues to be a viable means of expression that the blog expands for the individual.  Collaboratively, the blog is generally an easily accessible tool that incorporates the group context for meaning discussion.

Thus, the blog increases literacy and provides digital skill needed for success in academic and professional contexts.

 

http://eprints.qut.edu.au/5398/1/5398.pdf

The article entitled “The use of blogs, wikis, and RSS in education: a conversation of possibilities” immediately outlines more practical uses for digitals tools to make a positive gains in the classroom beyond that of just the gathering of data.  With a functional skill set in technology, the student will be able to effectively engage in collaborative creation, peer assessment, and formative evaluations.   The author simply identifies the characteristics of the blog and how it differs from the traditional website in form and function.  This examination extends to the educational benefits of blogging; namely, critical and analytical thinking, different forms of interaction, as well as exposure to substantive information sources.  The list of educational uses for blogs is specific and easy to understand as they are expanded upon via the application of personal, organizational, and pedagogical perspectives.   The authors, Dr. Axel Burns and Peter Duffy, also provide insight into the need to harness the social uses of online technology for more educational purposes.

 

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Hello,

I am a teacher.  One who is trying to take part in the enormous shift that is occurring in our world.  The digital age has begun and is rapidly changing the way we live and function.  Therefore there is a tremendous need to change the way we teach.  To not change is a greater risk than changing.  The same problems exist and now are further complicated by the age of electronic devices and interaction.  Technology is a key asset to making a change in teaching to create a more literate society starting with those in our classrooms.