Twitter

“As soon as the lunch bell rings at his elementary school in Medford, Oregon, teacher David Cosand takes a few minutes to scan his mobile phone screen for messages that have accumulated throughout the morning in his Twitter account. In a few well-chosen words, the people Cosand follows via this free online service share their latest news, resources, questions, and (sometimes) trivia about education, technology, and related topics. Cosand became a Twitterer about a year ago, and he now considers Twitter one of his best sources of real-time professional development. "I'm able to get information and find opportunities I wouldn't have been able to gather on my own," he says.” Retrieved http://www.edutopia.org/twitter-professional-development-technology-microblogging Ref: //A. What are the issues involved with using social networks, Twitter, for professional development in the workplace?// Cost: Twitter is able to be used by anyone who registers for a free account at twitter.com. Twitter is available on all computer platforms or operating systems. It functions with any browser and uses little bandwidth. Flexibility: Many third party applications using the Twitter program have been created to allow users to check their twitter updates. Some of these allow for greater search functionality or more organization of updates or followers. Users are able to group who they are following using some of these third party applications. “Twitter lets you find out what your friends are doing in whatever way makes the most sense for you. ” Retrieved [] Privacy: Even though Twitter is usually used in the public domain Twitter accounts are able to be set to private by using the ‘protect my updates’ settings. This ensures that users profiles and updates are not in the public view. Mobility: Twitter is able to be accessed on mobile devices such as iphones and itouch. There are twitter widgets that update messages on blogs and other websites. Ease of use: Twitter is easy to use. Lurkers, those who don’t tweet are able to benefit from following the tweets of others. This is important in a workgroup as there isn’t the requirement that all participants are comfortable with contributing online. Problem: Users need to be prepared to sort through their updates if they have a lot of people that they follow. This can be managed by third party applications who allow for the grouping of those you follow. //B. How do Web 2.0 tools (blogs, wikis, podcasts and video lectures) complement such social networks?//

Twitter integrates extremely well with other Web 2.0 tools. It allows users to add links to their tweets. Many tweets provide links to updated blogs, podcasts and other websites or tools. Users are able to access current information from blogs, podcasts etc… as soon as those links have been posted on Twitter. Twitter clients, those programs that have been created from the Twitter program have added a lot more functionality to Twitter. //C. How is a work-related social network developed and sustained?// Search functionality and hashtag searches enable groups to stay connected as well as having the advantage of focusing on particular areas of professional development. Conferences often create a hashtag search so that twitter members are able to participate. Twitter allows you to build a reliable and trusted network of people you are following. You choose who you want to follow ensuring that the information that you get is pertinent to your areas of interest. Direct Message (DM) allows Twitter users to contact other users directly without being a part of the public forum. Advantages of using Twitter for professional development David R Wetzel states that twitter as a web 2.0 tool is “ used to improve teacher professional knowledge, collaboration, self reflection, and ability to remain current with the latest news and trends in education.” Twitter allows teachers to collaborate. It is a quick method for keeping in touch with other teachers. Twitter is a way to quickly share resources. It’s a quick communication tool. Twitter help to remove the isolation often experienced by teachers working within their classrooms. Suggestions and support can be sent to mentors or experts. Feedback on activities and resources can be given quickly and accessed easily on Twitter. Teachers are given an opportunity to reflect on their experiences before posting to Twitter. “Good teaching is a result of reflective teaching”. Teachers are able to work together to become better at their profession. Twitter allows teachers to remain current in latest educational trends. They are able to view quick snippets of information and choose whether to investigate further. They’re able to save the tweets as favourites and then revisit messages and their associated links. Retrieved: http://teachingtechnology.suite101.com/article.cfm/using_twitter_to_break_down_classroom_isolation
 * 1) NECC **#ISTE** #k12online are all education conferences that welcome input by both attending and online participants. In terms of professional development teachers are still able to participate through tweeting comments, links and responses enabling those who aren’t physically attending the conference to be involved.