Twitter in Education

Twitter was founded a little over ten years ago. While the uses of Twitter have mostly focused around it being a social media tool, the way we think of social media has evolved over the years. Twitter has become about more than just connecting, people have found a variety of ways to utilize it for their own purposes. Educators, for example, have found ways to engage their students in schoolwork, while not in school.

Within classrooms, Twitter can be used in classrooms in a variety of ways. Twitter can be used to post questions for students to answer, almost in a gamified way. Twitter can be used to share ideas about a topic once your students have left school for the day. Students can be told to, look to Twitter for updates, which can range from educational materials, to videos, to just keeping them thinking about class material while they are not in school. Is it more likely students will go home and willfully think about material on their own, or watch a video about Civil War history, given a subtle push? Keeping students engaged is key to success.

Twitter as a Learning Community in Higher Education.
Is Twitter an Effective tool in Higher Education?

The Ever-Changing Classroom is the Same as it's Always Been

The video Educational Change Challenge talks about the movement from lecture to education reform. When you look at the what we've learned in the last 100 years, the way we've been teaching has not kept up with the times. Being able to connect with your students can be incredibly advantageous in creating a learning environment that can benefit everyone. It's true that not all students learn at the same pace or in the same way. Creating technology that can meet these different student's needs may be key to education in the future.

The video Networked Student talks about a teacher that took a constructivist approach to learning. The idea is that students will learn by making connections with ideas that they have already learned. Rather than lecturing, the teacher allows the students to explore the newest ideas, rather than learning in traditional methods. While this is good in theory, the way it is described seems to miss the necessary direction that you may need if you are totally unfamiliar with the topic. This method also may cause students to become sidetracked more often than if they were in a traditional classroom setting, even if they think that their focus is in the correct area.