Tweaching -- Twitter for Teaching is no April Fool's joke!

Twitter provides a multi-device communication platform for us to interact with each other. For those of us living in the 21st Century, it was a logical step from using Twitter to communicate with friends and acquaintances to applying Twitter in the global learning environment. Unfortunately, someone pranked this trend, and (I think) credited one of the least likely Universities with the idea. Nick Carr reported a new development at the University of Phoenix, where:

Most of the instruction in the Twitter courses will be done through the 140-character "tweets" for which the service is famous, though instructors are also expected to occasionally refer to longer online documents by including "short URL" links in the tweets. "

The Chronicle of Higher Education did some follow up and reported this: Sorry Twitter lovers, no online courses yet. “University of Phoenix is not going to deliver courses via Twitter,” wrote Wendy Paul, executive director of public relations for the university.
So does that mean Twitter for Teachers isn't going to work?

Not even! I do think it's more of a tool than a platform for teaching, though I can see a use for the latter. For use of Twitter as a Tool (I suspect we would call this a Tweaching Twool), I posted earlier on David Parry's use of Twitter in the learning environment (http://tinyurl.com/tweach (I know, cool custom URL -- think it'll catch on?).

And then I learned about Twitter for Teachers, where teachers from all over the world are gathering and writing an eBook to help tweachers use Twitter. The e-book is intended for use by teachers from primary, elementary, secondary and post-secondary schools.


Is it possible the abbreviated lecture notes could be used to enhance the learning environment? Check out Twitter University: The lecture series.

If you are reading this close to the posting time, now would be a good time to check out TFT, as EDUCHAT #3 is coming up soon!

Should we even consider "Teaching With Twitter"?

I saw a nice overview of Twitter in the learning environment by David Parry, a professor at the University of Texas at Dallas, who talks about using Twitter for his courses.



More at Chronicle Multimedia.

What do you think?

I apologize

Though I have not been duly elected to represent my colleagues, I am gutsy enough to say that anyone in higher education who teaches how they were required to learn should apologize to their students for perpetuating the lie that the lecture alone is how we as adults learn best.

Jason Alba asked "us" to "make it interesting and not do a book report of what I had to read for homework" . . . bring some career management stuff into the discussion . . . Don’t just talk about it - but LIVE IT.

You want interesting -- demand it! Drop the classes that aren't and change schools if there are too many of them (and take your friends). Career management? Not my job. What I will do is provide examples of what can be done with this degree and introduce you to some of the people (face-to-face and virtually) who are working in the field -- now. I also bring in (and connect you with) people that are much better at helping you plan out your career development, and I will (if you will give me opportunities) write you a killer letter of recommendation to help you get into 1) an internship and 2) a job. Some of us do live it, BTW.

I agree with Gerald Graff that "our experience of teaching in hermetically sealed classrooms makes us — to coin a word — “courseocentric.” Courseocentrism — like its ethno-, ego-, and Euro- counterparts — is a kind of tunnel vision in which our little part of the world becomes the whole."

Naomi Rockler-Gladen noted that not all professors and departments are laid back enough (?) to use Facebook and Myspace. I realize that there are some professors who would not be caught dead having a conversation with their students (not to be confused with the Socratic method of pedagogy).

I strongly encourage them to find another job . . .

My all time favorite summary is actually a recent commercial . . .



. . . which the New York Times also liked (and to answer the question posed by the article - yes, Virginia, Online Universities do have Virtual Cheerleaders - I am one of them).

So here's what you want (and honestly, need) to know:

• Tell me what I can expect when I get out of school.

- you can't handle the truth . . . but I will tell you what not to expect. Don't expect companies and organizations to trip over each other while beating a path to your door like it's the NFL draft.

• Tell me what the value of an internship is and strongly encourage me to get a real internship.

- Internships are not valuable - they are imperative. Unless you have experience in the field you want to work in after college and have all the contacts you need - find an internship! The ones I look for should actually charge -- not pay.

• Tell me what you love about your career, and what your friends in the industry do, how they got there, etc.

- In order to get this, you have to come to class. If you haven't sensed the passion I have for my current (education) and former (policing) career, you haven't yet found the classroom (nor have you connected with me on Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, Twitter, etc.). My friends are part of the learning environment -- if you have been to class or connected to me, you can hear from (and talk one-on-one with) them.

• Bring professionals into class so they can share their stories with us. Bring recent grads in so they can tell us what it’s really like.

- See above.

• Teach us what networking is, how to network, and why and when we should network.

- I promise! The best way to learn is by experience. In a recent publication, I observed

By capitalizing on the use of social networks while students attend college, faculty and other school leaders can not only strengthen the learning foundation for students, but can also maintain contact with students as they go out into the community following graduation. College administrators can strategically use social networks to stay in contact with graduates in hopes of garnering a loyal cadre of alumni.

For students, taking part in social networks while in college offers benefits for the future. Networking can be a means of establishing connections within the community they will enter upon graduation. As alumni, they can show loyalty to their alma mater by offering employment to future graduates, support o athletic organizations, and financial contribution.

"The Emergence of The Relationship Economy" by Scott Allen, Jay T. Deragon, Margaret G. Orem and Carter F. Smith

• Teach us about personal branding, what it is and why we need it.

- Also in "The Emergence," Jay Deragon noted:

Our brand is largely influenced by what and how we communicate, to whom we are connected to as well as where our presence is throughout the worldwide Web.

• Any chance you can bring the career services folks into the picture? It seems like there is a brick wall between you and career services… I don’t care why, but I would like to know if there is value in the career services offices.

- There's no brick wall. In fact, I try to be the bridge! We are connected on Facebook and LinkedIn, and I bring them to class every chance I can. Make sure you are 1) there, and 2) pay attention.

If this rather lengthy response wasn't enough to prevent insomnia, I addressed a bit of this in a presentation a couple of years ago -- the link to the slideshow is here, and the video here.

When In Rome

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: adult learning)

There's another slide you might want to see about how we as adults learn best . . .

How Do Adults Learn

View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own. (tags: adult learning)

What do you think?

So, how did you get started... and what difference has it made?

The road to wherever here is . . .

So I was on my Google Reader, minding my own business in the passive reading mode, when I was provoked . . . in a good way.

Tony Karrer did a pass-along inquiry for Karyn Romeis and I just had to respond. The reason I am answering here is three-fold. First, posting on a blog allows links and that makes the post less cluttered (and, ultimately, shorter). Second, I have two blogs that relate to this topic and maneuvering between them would make me (and probably you, the reader) dizzy. Third, I noticed it's been a while since I posted here (though my other blog has been pretty active lately), so I figured I'd kill 3 birds with 1 stone.

And the ability to spread link-love helped push me over the edge . . .

Hi Karyn,

Here's my answers to your basic questions:

* How did you get started with social media?

I started this adventure for very basic reasons, which I detailed a while back in a post entitled How I got started on Social Networking (MySpace, LinkedIn, and Facebook edition. The short version is that I had teen sons & college students in the space and I wanted to know more about it. The exposure to (or increased use of) YouTube and Google Video, Twitter, and Skype seemed to come naturally.

* What was your introduction, and how did the journey unfold?

I started out slow, focusing more on LinkedIn for professional reasons. If it wasn't for the brilliance of the embedded follow-up, I think that sight might have lost me. As you see from the previous answer, I felt that a MySpace presence was required, and Facebook seemed like a great way to get to know my students.

I began getting a feel for how these sites were fitting into my life here, and began thinking about how business could be done in this new market - documented initially here. I documented other parts of the journey in my initial thoughts regarding a police-only networking site here.
I once (well, maybe more than once) got a little overzealous while growing my network and got a serious warning from the friend police at Facebook. I have since matured, and shared my findings in two organized academic presentations (in 2007, and 2008), and on LinkedIn.

I've gotten more creative in my "thinking out loud" and posted a couple of quasi-fables (actually recreations - here and here - the first is my favorite, but it's a bit longer than average). Some of my thoughts on how social media can enhance business are here.

* What difference has it made in your professional practice?

I consider things differently. Never before did I (in the middle of a conversation) say, and think, "That would make a great blog post!."

I hadn't yet written a book (paper here, free e-book here), I hadn't created a global police cross-platform network, and I didn't blog before social networking enticed me (and now I can't quit). I also wasn't previously involved with a global collaborative project like Link To Your World, and I hadn't yet figured out the need to assist those in business with understanding social media, so Link To Your Education wasn't even a thought . . .

And I've met and conversed with some really great people!

I, am in the beginning phases of my dissertation, as well, and intend to post it for access wherever, whenever. I haven't yet decided whether blog or wiki is the better media . . .

What do you think?

everything you ever wanted to know about Twitter but were afraid to ask

well, not exactly, but it is a real good primer . . .

My apologies for assuming everyone knew the basics!

Thanks to Marc Hustvedt for reminding me to post this - by way of posting it on his blog.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddO9idmax0o

What do you think?

Hi-tech Mid-South educators

OK, so I'm at the13th Annual Instructional Technology conference here in Nashville and the featured speaker is about to begin and I see an @itconference08 on the screen. Hey -- that looks like a Twitter address, I think silently (in case I'm the only one that speaks Twitter). Right after that was instructions on how to get on the WLAN, so I slide out my PPC phone and hit the site and they have (now that I'm following them) 5 followers. Not good, I think.

And then I see that they aren't following anyone back. And then I see that the last 4 (actually first four, as well) posts were April 6, March 19, March 18, and March 18. And there are hundreds of people here -- on April 7th!!!

OK, so I am not in Silicon Valley . . . but shouldn't we have like some fairly regular posts just to see if someone responds. There admittedly are only a few Twitterers within 20 miles of Murfreesboro (the home of MTSU) according to TwitterLocal, but . . .

Help me out -- there's still tomorrow -- check out http://twitter.com/itconference08 and follow them!

If you'd like to make sure they get the message - @itconference08 and @carterfsmith and I'll make sure to pass it on.

What do you think?

Yesterday's technology today -

I just finished an educational session for those interested in engaging the social space for a variety of reasons.

If interested, check out Link To Your Education.


And I've finally figuring out how to take a PPT, record narrative, and then add to slideshare, embedded Gvideo, and podcast. I feel so Web 1.0 :-(

I've redone the audio for the last presentation (below). It's available on Archive.Org.

My link to the audio is here.

And I've been playing around with Twitter. It's neat, and so "tech."

A friend recently asked (on Twitter, of course), "Why Twitter? Why now? Couldn't we have done this in a chat room 5 years ago? Is mobile what makes it different? Answer in <140>."

My first thought (while at a stop sign in my car receiving messages on my phone) was:
Twitter, now because it's new but familiar and crosses platforms. We couldn't do opt-in asynchronous chat in 2002.

If you just have to know more about Twitter, check out their Frequently Asked Questions.
Twitter also has a blog . . . and Patricia Mayo does a good overview.

If you want to follow me on Twitter, feel free.

And to automate your posts (if you blog regularly), check out Twitter Feed! If you just can't get enough of Twitter, add it to your Firefox browser with TwitBin.

And I'm wondering how much is too much when we engage for learning purposes in the online world. Does it really help to provide reading, audio, visual (presentations) and a combination (like video)? If so, here's the video (presentation with audio in a video format) for the Retrofitting The Learning Environment Presentation.



There's a VCast link coming . . .

What do you think?