BartmasBlurb#38
My New Found Addiction!
Twitter
A
year ago I had very limited knowledge of Twitter and any of its uses. I thought
it was stupid, a waste of time, and was just another social media platform. I
was already using Facebook and LinkedIn, I did not need another. Boy, was I
wrong! Twitter has become my go-to place for ideas and collaboration. For a
while I was overloading the staff in my building by emailing them articles that
I found in the Twittersphere. Two weeks ago I challenged them to get a Twitter
handle by Thanksgiving, and I would stop sending them ALL those emails.
I
found that many educators have had a similar experience with Twitter;
apprehension. I first just lurked in the background…which is fine on Twitter,
and followed two educators that I had heard of. I then realized they had common
people they followed or that followed them-I made the connection. Find other
like-minded individuals to follow. Pretty soon I was reading a wide range of
information on education, technology and leadership. Holy smokes, I was
learning! My next step was realizing that many of these individuals were in
little groups with hashtags. They met on a regular schedule and had quite
interesting discussions. My next move was to become involved in these, “chats.”
Not
too long ago in one of these discussions, or thread, an educator said something
that I disagreed with. We exchanged views in a professional manner and defended
our viewpoint to each other, and no one was hurt! I am now using Twitter as my
main source of professional development and gaining in knowledge almost daily. I
have learned from younger teachers how to integrate technology and use it more
efficiently, and I have learned from seasoned educators that our technology
advances are tools to add to our toolboxes. It amazes me that educators all
over the world are connecting and collaborating with each other. Teachers of
varying grade levels from pre-kindergarten to collegiate level are sharing
research, and ideas. You connect with teacher candidates and professors at the
same time. Twitter is one huge, non-grade classroom! There is one common point,
children. Every educator that interacts focus is what is best for children now
and in the future. Don’t fear the Tweet! Have fun, connect, and learn. I would
suggest hatching out of your egg photo- you will understand when you get your
Twitter account, and start following some simple hashtags(#) #edchat ( there
are state versions of this) instructionally focused, #edtech- great for
integration ideas, #tlap and #nbtchat- being more creative in your thought
processes, #edutopia- resources, #weirded- a little different mind set! My
learning curve is going straight up, and I love it!
