Summary: In the article, "the Flock!", author Hadley Ferguson discusses how Twitter can help individuals build their Personal Learning Network (PLN). A PLN is a way for people to come together to collaborate, learn, and grow. Collaboration is a term often heard in discussions about education and it is important to note that education isn't a solo endeavour, it often takes a village.
Twitter is also a support system where perfect strangers with the same interests and passions can interact with one another. They can share what they know, how they know it, where they know it from, show you how to know it and learn from others who share the same things. It is something that take an investment in terms of time. The more you use it, the more you can benefit from it.
The first step is to set up an account---you "choose the people you want to learn from". The next step is to follow people. "A good way to find people is to check out the lists that other people create." The authors for example follows specific educators that have identified people who are, "committed to learning and growing in a Web 2.0 world." If you don't feel comfortable enough to immerse yourself completely in this online community on Twitter, it's completely acceptable. You can read tweets, observe a chat (like a fly on the wall) that others are partaking in, look at blogs, and learn from what others are sharing. Retweeting something you find important is a way to get the word out there as well. Retweeting multiplies the number of potential viewers who will see the tweet. The last two steps in the process are to expose yourself (once you are comfortable), i.e. posting an educational article or tweeting links to helpful resources, and tag your tweets. Using a hashtag will give the idea more exposure. The article concludes with a piece of advice, "the more you retweet, the more people will begin to follow you because you will have made yourself visible in the PLN world."
I think this is a great tool. Everyone can be a part of this community, whether you are a teacher, student, educator, or just a plain human being. Information can travel at high volumes to vast amounts of individuals. It's a great way to stay current, stay informed, and stay knowledgeable. The more an individual immerses themselves in a PLN the chances are they'll reflect about what they see. Reflecting is crucial to obtaining a deeper understanding and Twitter gives individuals a place to do just that.
Q1: How can educators use Twitter in the classroom?
A1: Teachers can have their students use Twitter in a number of ways. An example may be for the teacher to ask their students to sign up for a Twitter account, to be used specifically for the educational purposes of the class. The teacher can provide them with a lists and people to follow, have students "lurk" around and write about something interesting that they learned. They can also give students assignments that involves doing research on Twitter via (educationally appropriate) websites, articles, and education chats or discussion boards.
Miller McClintock, S. (2010, June/July). Enhance your twitter experience. Learning and Leading with Technology, 37(8), 14-17. Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/learn/publications/learning-and-leading/DigitalEdition/digital-edition-june-july-2012.aspx
Summary: Author of "Enhance Your Twitter Experience," Shannon McClintock Miller is amongst the strongest advocates of using social media to enhance an individual's PLN. The articles goes beyond how to use Twitter and discusses the benefits of adding a Twitter organizer or manager to your desk top such as Hootsuite or Tweetdeck. Both of these tools organize your Twitter stream into columns so you can be streaming information from various places simultaneously. It's also important to reflect and look back on what you or others have tweeted. A good formula to use may be one derived from a blog the author discovered, "Twitter Engagement Formula- 70% of Twitter time should be spent sharing voices, opinions, and tools; 20% of tweets should be directly responding, connecting, and collaborating, and co-creating with Twitter colleagues; and 10% is chit-chatting trivial details about your life as a human being."
Using a Twitter organizer can be a helpful tool in creating a PLN. I like the fact that it opens up the flood gates for communication and a constant exchange of ideas. To learn and grow takes frequent and consistent questioning and reflection and I believe that those using Twitter for professional and educational purposes can benefit from the experience. The only reservation: determining reliable sources.
Q1: Is it possible to have "information overload" or "too much stimulation" while using this tool?
A2: If there is too much going on, on the screen, organizers like Hootsuite and Tweetdeck leave it up to the user to determine how many sites they are managing at one time. If the user wants to have only a few streaming, it's up to them, and it's easy to change.
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